plum jam

 

stone fruits are my favourites - peaches, nectarines, apricots and plums are all at the top of my fruit list. plum and bay jam was my first blog post, back in august 2006, so it’s timely that i have another plum jam recipe for you.

this is courtesy of nigel slater and he describes it thus: “this is the most straightforward of jam methods, producing a softly set preserve that will keep in a jar for a couple of weeks in the fridge. to make a jam that will last longer, you will need to boil for a little longer so that it sets more firmly. including some of the fruit's stones is not necessary, but it can add a faint almond note to the finished jam. 

my kentish plums were perfectly ripe and i wanted to keep the freshness of flavour that they had – not too sweet and gently aromatic - so i went for the soft set option, distributing the extra jars to friends and neighbours, who i exhorted to eat it quickly. needless to say i should have kept an extra jar back as we’re getting through this very easily!

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daring bakers: bakewell tart...er...pudding

 

having signed up to the daring cooks and made both ricotta gnocchi and potstickers, i thought i had better get back on track with the daring bakers challenges, having missed a few.

the june daring bakers' challenge was hosted by jasmine of confessions of a cardamom addict and annemarie of ambrosia and nectar. they chose a traditional (uk) bakewell tart... er... pudding that was inspired by a rich baking history dating back to the 1800's in england.

the reason for the “tart... er... pudding” is down to the rich heritage of this dish and the two main types which exist - the “pudding” where a layer of jam is covered by an almondy pastry cream and baked in puff pastry and the “tart” where a rich shortcrust pastry holds the jam and frangipane, an almondy sponge cake-like filling.

the version we were dared to make was a combination of the two: a sweet shortcrust pastry with a frangipane and jam filling.

so, how did i get on?

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get back to black: essex blackcurrant jam

i am in love with peyton and byrne's essex blackcurrant jam. it is fantastically dark and fruity, not too sweet and makes your mouth water and toes curl from the sheer delight of eating it.

i first tried it as part of afternoon tea at the wallace collection. david picked up a jar for me from the p&b shop in the new st pancras station. it's as good as i remember and is my new favourite jam.

crumpets with rhubarb and pink grapefruit jam

i adore rhubarb and am particularly fond of the beautifully pale pink forced rhubarb which is currently available. sadly it’s never around long enough for me to feel that i’ve eaten my fill so i was really excited to try skye gyngell’s rhubarb and pink grapefruit jam in the hope that this will provide me with a rhubarb hit once it is out of season.

despite being called a jam i think this is more like a marmalade (what is the difference – is it just the inclusion of citrus?!?) although the balance between the rhubarb and grapefruit might be less noticeable if you use a zester, rather than peeler, on the grapefruit.

i’ve found that the best way to maximise the rhubarb flavour is to be generous when applying the jam to your bread, crumpet or toast. which really isn’t much of a hardship.

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plummy plums!

living in central London and only occasionally visiting the countryside around the UK means that when i have the opportunity to visit a farm shop i often go overboard with my purchases.

at the weekend we stopped off at a roadside farm shop which was selling the most beautiful plums. small, deep purple, warm and tasting like the nectar of the gods; i had to have a box of them – a mere 2 kilos to dispose of.

plum jam was the first thing i wanted to make, but plum jam with a twist - i decided to add bay leaves to give it an extra depth of flavour.

the verdict?

well, i didn’t get the first taste of my jam but according to the person who did: “well, it's lovely of course. and it tastes slightly ginger-y, which might be an effect of adding the bay. and it is as dark as midnight in alaska in the winter. and it has a treacle-like texture. and it's good on soda farls.”

a success!

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