"Plums that are purple and plums that are plump, so that each bumpy lump is a plum that is plump"...
Whoa, whoa, whoa, not so fast. Plum. The origins of that word literally meant "any dried fruit." Guess that explains why 'plum pudding' made famous in the lyrics above, is devoid of any plums. So that 'Little Jack Horner' fellow, my guess is that he pulled out a big raisin and not a plum. But wait you say, I thought a prune is a dried plum. I don't know where this all got turned around but plums are of the species prunus, so somewhere along the way someone decided that 'plum' sounded better than 'prune', and what was once dried became fresh.
Name aside, we are talking stone fruits that are showing up at the Farmers Markets now thru October. All varieties are nice and juicy, but the taste can range from sweet, sweet, sweet, to mouth puckering tart. And such a beautiful range of skin color, from bright yellow and green to deep inky purple. But inside? Beautiful golden flesh.
This fiber rich fruit also packs in a load of potassium, magnesium, phosphorus, calcium, and vitamin C. And once if becomes a 'prune'? Well, show me the antioxidants baby. And here's an interesting little tidbit, especially for us gals, plums are a huge help to the body in absorbing iron.
Look for plums that have uniform color, are plump and yield to gentle pressure. Steer clear of any with broken, bruised and wrinkled skin. If the plums you picked need a bit more ripening place them in a brown paper bag, left on the kitchen counter, for a couple of days. Once ripe, plums will keep in the fridge for up to three days.
Plums are so yummy as is, but if you want to try your hand at 'cooking' them, there are many ways to go. Sliced in a salad, in a chilled soup, broiled, grilled or roasted, baked in a cake, crumble or tart, frozen in a sorbet, or cooked down into a jam, chutney or compote. I did come across a great use for plums, especially for those that got whonked with the tomato blight this season. Swap out tomatoes for plums in a BLT sandwich. I was skeptical but oh so glad I tried it.
Since the evening temps have been cooler, I have been putting the oven to use as of late. A big thank you to Martha (as in Stewart) for the following recipe for Plum & Port Crostada. I can't thing of a better way to use the Stanley plums I found at the market this week. And paired with some lemon butter milk ice cream? Two words: absolute perfection, if I do say so myself.
Plum & Port Crostada
(adapted from the Aug '09 Martha Stewart Living or at www.marthastewart.com)
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoon salt (divided)
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1 stick cold unsalted butter, cut into small pcs.
2 tablespoons ice water
1 1/2 cup ruby port
1 1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
2 lbs Stanley (or Italian prune) plums, halved and pitted
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1 tablespoon heavy cream, for brushing (or buttermilk I had from making the ice cream)
sanding sugar for sprinkling (regular sugar does fine here)
1. Pulse flour, 1/2 t. of the salt, and sugar in a food processor. Add butter and pulse until mixture resembles coarse meal. With machine running, slowly add ice water until the dough comes together. Shape into disk, wrap in plastic and put in the fridge for 30 minutes.
2. On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough to an 1/8 inch thickness. Fit into an 8" pie dish and leave a 1" overhang. Freeze for 30 minutes.
3. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Simmer port and 1/2 cup brown sugar in a saucepan over medium heat until reduced to 1/2 cup (approx. 30 minutes). Transfer to a bowl and cool for 10 minutes.
4. Stir together the remaining 3/4 c. brown sugar, 1 t. salt, plums, cornstarch, cinnamon and port syrup. Transfer to the pie shell. Fold over the overhand to form a crust. Brush crust with cream and sprinkle with sugar. Bake for 30 minutes. Reduce oven to 375 degrees. Bake until golden and center is bubbling (Martha says for 1 1/2 hours more, I found 45 minutes to 1 additional hour to be plenty). Let cool.
Labels: Chicago Farmers Market, Green City Market, Plums, Prunes
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