Recipe: Banana and Plum Crumbles

Bon Appetit/May 2004

`INGREDIENTS:`
1/2 cup water	1/2 cup sugar	1 cinnamon stick
1 whole star anise	1-3/4 inch piece fresh ginger, peeled, thinly sliced	1-1/2 vanilla beans, split lengthwise, divided
1 pound plums, halved, pitted, cut into 3/4-inch pieces (about 3-1/2 cups)	1 cup self-rising flour	pinch of salt
6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes	1/4 cup sugar	1/4 cup raw sugar
3/4 pound ripe bananas (about 2 large), peeled, cut crosswise into 1/3-inch-thick rounds	sweetened whipped cream

`1`	Mix first 5 ingredients in heavy large pot. Scrape in seeds from 1 vanilla bean; add bean. Add plums to pot. Bring to boil, stirring until sugar dissolves. Remove from heat; cool.
`2`	Preheat oven to 350 F. Whisk flour and salt in medium bowl to blend. Rub in butter with fingertips until coarse meal forms. Mix sugar and raw sugar in small bowl. Scrape in seeds from remaining 1/2 vanilla beans; mix into sugar (reserve bean for another use). Mix sugar mixture into flour mixture for crumb topping.
`3`	Transfer plums and 2 tablespoons cooking syrup to medium bowl; discard remaining syrup and spices. Fold bananas into plums. Divide fruit mixture among six 1-1/2 cup custard cups or ramekins. Spoon crumb topping over fruit. Place cups on rimmed baking sheet. Bake until bubbling around edges and crumbs topping is lightly browned, about 30 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature with whipped cream.