The Splendid Table: Locavore Nation

September 2008
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Complete archives

Leslie Allen
Reno, Nevada

I was born in California, and have fond memories of homegrown tomatoes and freshly caught crawdads. My family moved a lot when I was growing up. I even lived on the East coast for a while. More about Leslie

Laura Solorio
Salinas, California

I am third in a line of strong Yaqui women. My grandmother was from Baja California, from the town of Santa Rosalia. She came to the United States as a young woman, with her first child, escaping an abusive husband. More about Laura

Scott Swendsen
Boise, Idaho

I am in my late 40's and single and a bit selfish. Having no children and no spouse has allowed me to pretty much explore life in a much different way than most families would. More about Scott

Paulette Thompson
Seattle, Washington

I, P. Thompson, also known as Paulette, love food. It should not surprise you that I love to cook and eat good food. I also love talking about it, thinking about it, and reading about it. More about Paulette

< Chickens | Main | Summer has returned >

For the love of plums

Posted at 8:25 AM on September 2, 2008 by Paulette Thompson (4 Comments)

Fall is in the air now. It is getting chilly at night. I still have no tomatoes! I am just about over this two - week bug that I have had (finally).

On Friday as I walked home from the high school, I passed by a house with a plum tree in its backyard. I smelled them before I saw them. The plums were of the Italian variety, you know the ones that are elongated and purple. They were ripe and all over the place.The branches were hanging over the sidewalk and street.

I didn't pick any, but I was tempted to do so. When I was a child I remember my family receiving jars of plum jam from friends. That jam was so good on fresh baked bread. I loved the flavor in my peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.

As an adult I started making plum sauce with ginger and cardamom or maybe cinnamon. I really liked to mix it with yoghurt or serve it over pancakes. I also like making clafouti with plums and nectarines. I have known people who made plum leather; I am not one of them.
The plum sauce was to be kept in the refrigerator or frozen. I have not yet learned how to can. I have been reading up on canning lately. There are free seminars in the area that I can take.

Should I acquire plums, do you have any ideas about what I should do with them? Besides eating them fresh, that is! Noel Richardson has a nice recipe for chicken with plum sauce in one of her books. I am sure there is a nice recipe for plum chutney out there. Plum jam? Coffee cake?

Plum sauce, of the asian variety, is a great use for an abundance of plums. Can in small jars and use all winter. The _BALL Complete Book of Home Preserving_ has a good spicy recipe.

The Italian variety dry beautifully. They turn out very flat and chewy in our dehydrator, but wonderfully tangy.

Posted by Sarah | September 12, 2008 11:11 AM

I also dehydrated a bunch last fall and was very happy with the results - excellent snacking all winter long. I did the same with peaches, nectarines and pluots as well as with apples. And dehydrating is much easier than canning (which I still haven't yet attempted!).

Posted by Scott | September 13, 2008 8:13 AM

Hi Paulette, if you get your hands on enough plums, we can make jam together. I have plenty of jars, lids, the canning pot and all the tools. Be in touch!

Jill

Posted by Jill Cohen | September 13, 2008 5:09 PM

Sarah and Scott, thanks for letting me know about your experience with drying plums. I like dried fruit in granola. Sarah, thanks for the tip on plum sauce.
Jill, I am so glad to finally meet you! I would love to learn how to make jam. Scott, I'll tell you how it goes.
Paulette

Posted by P. Thompson | September 15, 2008 4:24 PM

September 2008

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< Chickens | Main | Summer has returned >

For the love of plums

Comments (4)