"Fruity" thoughts
Damsons and Plums
Damsons are blue-black fruit which look like small plums…. originating from the area around Damascus, hence the name, may have been introduced to Britain by the Romans.
They can be eaten raw when ripe but there is as much stone as there is flesh. They are best cooked, which brings out their sweet, spicy flavour, and put into pies and crumbles, jams, jellies, ice cream, fools and sorbets.
Serve fresh whole or stoned and cut into halves, as a dessert fruit or in fruit salads.
Recipe for damson sauce
100g/3½oz pickled damsons, drained and stones removed
50ml/2fl oz red wine
2 tbsp fresh peas
2 thyme stalks, leaves only
Method
Place the damsons and red wine into a saucepan and cook over a high heat for five minutes or until reduced by half. Add the thyme leaves and peas and cook for a further two minutes
Gill recommends that you can serve this sauce with many different items……Duck, pork, lamb, Potato rosti, tuna steaks….endless
How to make a Plum Smoothie…whiz the following!
4 oz blackcurrant yogurt
4 sliced fresh plums
1 cup cold milk
1/2 cup crushed ice or icecream (optional)
Honey to sweeten if required
NOTE: CHILL all ingredients…..or freeze beforehand.
Plums come in many guises - tart or very sweet; for cooking or for eating; and in a range of rich hues from light greens and yellows to dark reds and purples….ask the farm shop and they can advise best variety depending on what you want to do with them…knowledge.
Plums have been eaten in England for centuries. They were grown in the gardens of medieval monasteries and are referred to in the writings of Chaucer from the fourteenth century. The ever popular Victoria plum was first cultivated in Sussex in the 1840s.
There are now more than 300 varieties of plum in Britain and they grow in temperate regions across the globe.
The common European plum, Prunica domestica, is closely related to the cherry and is a member of the rose family (other members include the nectarine, peach, apricot and sloe).
NUTRITION
Plums are a good source of potassium, fibre and vitamins A and C. They are rich in antioxidants and also contain the amino acid tryptophan which is used by the body to produce the neurotransmitter serotonin.
TIPS
BUYING
Plums should be plump, smooth and well coloured. Ripe plums yield to gentle pressure and have an inviting aroma. Firmer plums will ripen and soften at home. If you are going to be using plums in cooking, choose ones that are just on the firm side of ripe.
STORING
Keep unripe plums at room temperature to ripen. Ripe plums can be refrigerated for a few days (allow them to reach room temperature before eating). Plums freeze well; halve and remove the stones first to prevent the flavour from being impaired.
Recipe for Plum and hazelnut crumble
You can use this versatile recipe throughout the autumn and winter, using other fruit as it comes into season, and varying the crumble topping for different textures and flavours.
750 g/1 1/2 lbs plums
50 g/2 oz unsalted butter
75 g/3 oz light muscovado sugar
100 g/1/4 lb plain flour
75 g/3 oz ground hazelnuts
25 g/1 oz flaked or chopped hazelnuts
Method
1. Stone the plums, and poach until just tender with a couple of tablespoons of water.
2. Spoon into an oven-proof dish brushed with hazelnut oil.
3. Mix the sugar, flour and hazelnuts, and then gently work in the butter, rubbing and lifting until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Whole hazelnuts that you grind yourself to an uneven texture are also very good in a crumble.
4. Spoon the crumble topping over the fruit and bake in a pre-heated oven at 180 C, gas mark 4 for 20-25 minutes, until the top is golden brown.
Pork and Plums
Gill from 1click2cook says….
‘This proved a popular recipe after we were given a bag of plums in the autumn. This recipe is given for pork chops, but it could be modified for other cuts of pork’.
Serves 2
Two Pork chops (or 4 smaller ones)
butter
vegetable oil
about 1/2 lb (250 g) stoned plums
sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
water
red wine
salt and pepper
Method
Melt a pat of butter in a frying pan. Add chops and brown both sides.
Drain fat off chops and put them in the bottom of a shallow casserole dish.
Put the plums, sugar (to taste) and couple of tablespoons of water into a pan and simmer until plums are soft. Add a splash of red wine, salt and pepper. Sieve or put into electric blender and pour over chops. Add addition wine to just cover chops.
Cover dish and cook in pre-heated oven (180'C/350'F) for about 45 mins.
I recommend serving with baked potatoes (butter/sour cream) and steamed fresh beans.
Seasonal Fruit is the Class Act!
With everything early this year, plums, strawberries and soft fruits generally are all available, with apples just appearing. Online local food service Farm Fresh Express has no less than nine different varieties of locally grown fruit available, with 21 different options to choose from, including plenty of organic varieties. And you can see which farm every one of them comes from.
Of course all fruit is delicious eaten quite simply, with no additions whatever. But if you fancy something different, you can make a delicious smoothie in seconds with a blender or processor. Simply whiz up a selection of your favourite fruits and add some organic yoghurt for a creamy, healthy treat. You can also top off any kind of cake, meringue, or pressed biscuit base with a medley of soft fruits - ideal for even the most sophisticated dinner party and its all part of your five-a-day!
