Plum Conserve – Intensely Fruity, Chunky Jam & Condiment

Plums, Rhubarb, Raisins, Oranges, Lemons and Walnuts, Too

Got plums? Then, I have a recipe for you. Plum Conserve, beautifully burgundy, intensely fruity and chunky with plums, rhubarb, sliced oranges and lemons, raisins and chopped walnuts. Enjoy Plum Conserve as a spread on toast, a topping for yogurt, oatmeal or ice cream, and as an appetizer over a log of fresh goat cheese or baked brie.

The backstory
Off a long driveway from Berkeley, California’s main street was a courtyard with 3 older homes. Mine was the smallest of the three. It sat behind a wooden fence that also enclosed a small yard with blackberry bushes at one end and two mature Santa Rosa Plum trees at the opposite end. Each September their branches hung heavy and low, covered with ripe, deep red-purple skinned plums. I ate plums, shared plums, gave plums as gifts and made batches of beautifully thick and chunky Plum Conserve.  Printer-Friendly Recipe

A “conserve” is a jam made with a mixture of fruit, usually including some citrus, and often nuts and raisins.

Good plum karma
Perhaps it was my generosity with those juicy, sweet and tart plums that accounts for my good plum karma. As for many a year, now, I’ve been gifted with bags of the small, juicy blue plums that grace trees throughout Bozeman and the Gallatin Valley.

We usually enjoyed these plums out of hand or as Plum Apple Butter. Then, last year I remembered Plum Conserve and made a batch. (Fortunately, I had most thoughtfully preserved the recipe for posterity in my first cookbook Sweets for Saints and Sinners.)

Mmm, Plum Conserve tasted more delicious than I remembered. Loved the luscious deep burgundy color, the thick and chunky texture and the many layers of flavor from the oranges and lemons and raisins and plums.

Plum Conserve here we go

This past Sunday a friend offered to bring me a bag of plums she harvested from her trees before our recent freezing temperatures. Three hours after their arrival, we had 13 jars of Plum Conserve labeled and ready for sharing.

Plum little preparation required
For the best plum flavor, the deepest color, and ease of preparation, leave the skin on the plums. Use a knife to cut around the plum from the stem end and back again.

♥  Twist the two halves to release one half from the pit.
♥  Use the tip of a vegetable peeler, a tomato shark or a spoon to remove the pit from the other half.
♥  Discard the pit and stem.

Plum Conserve Jam and Condiment

♥  Enjoy intensely fruity Plum Conserve as a spread on toast, as a topping for yogurt, oatmeal or ice cream, and as an appetizer over a log of fresh goat cheese, cream cheese or even baked brie.
♥  From my original recipe I’ve greatly reduced the sweetener. I’ve also substituted rhubarb for sliced peaches. Though, I believe sliced apples would also be a fine substitute.
♥  For complete information on sterilizing jars and hot water processing, click here.

Makes approximately 13 cups              Printer-Friendly Recipe
Total Time:  Approximately 3 hours

Ingredients

• 3 quarts (12 cups) pitted, halved blue-skinned plums (about 5 pounds)
• 1 cup 1-inch diced rhubarb
• 2 oranges with peel, thinly sliced, halved, seeds removed (4 mm food processor slicing blade)
• 2 lemons with peel, thinly sliced and halved, seeds removed (2-4 mm food processor slicing blade)
• 2 cups raisins
• 3 cups organic sugar
• 2 cups coarsely chopped walnuts

Preparation

1. Sterilize the jars, rings and lids in the dishwasher or for 10 minutes in boiling water.
2. In a large, wide, heavy-bottomed soup pot combine the plums, rhubarb, orange and lemon slices, raisins and sugar. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly until the sugar has dissolved.
3. Raise the heat to medium-high to bring the mixture to a boil. Lower the heat to medium. Simmer, uncovered, stirring gently and frequently until a jelly thermometer registers degrees Fahrenheit. This may take about 40 minutes.
4. Without a jelly thermometer place a small plate in the freezer. At about the 35-minute mark begin testing for doneness. Remove the plate from the freezer and place a small spoonful of the conserve on the plate. The conserve is ready when there is no clear liquid separating out from the conserve. If not ready. Wash the plate and return it to the freezer to check again.
5. When the conserve is ready, turn off the heat and stir in the walnuts.
6. Ladle the hot Plum Conserve through a wide-mouth funnel into hot, sterilized jars, leaving at least ¼-inch head space. Wipe the rim of each jar clean with a damp paper towel. Place the lid on the jar, and screw on the jar ring.
7. For hot water bath processing, place the jars on a rack in a pot high enough to cover the jars with water. Bring the water to a boil over high heat. Boil for 10 minutes. Turn off the heat. Using jar tongs, remove the jars to a kitchen counter covered with a kitchen towel.
8. Allow the jars to rest undisturbed until they cool. When the jars are properly sealed, you’ll hear a popping sound when a vacuum seal is created with each jar. If any jars do not seal properly, store them in the refrigerator and eat the Plum Conserve within a couple of months.

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