Sunday, September 4, 2011

Spiced port and plum jam

OK, I may have outdone myself this time with the jam. Spiced port and plum jam.

This is another one from Preserve It!, now known as my summer bible. I have been drooling over this one pretty much since I read the book. Plums just came to the farmers' market two or three weeks ago, so I started buying them.

This variety were had beautiful pink freckled skin and ruby red flesh. I bought them from my peach guy, who said they'd be perfect for jam. What's even better is that he said he'd barter a basket of peaches next week for a jar of this jam! I sense the beginning of a beautiful friendship...

I only had 3/4 of the amount of plums that the recipe calls for (4 lb.), so I reduced all the other ingredients by 1/4 also. Plums, water, cinnamon stick (can't really quarter that...), sugar, and lime juice. I didn't de-pit the plums before cooking, which I should have, but actually these pits were a pain in the ass. Besides, the plum and lime jam recipe told me to pick the pits out after the plums fell apart. I wish they would make up their minds!

Boil for a while and you have a beautiful-looking jam:


After it is done cooking, you take out the cinnamon stick and add the port. I happened to have some on hand from a previous recipe, so I used a lovely ruby port. The jam is sweet but has a deep flavor, also. I wish I hadn't boiled the ever-loving hell out of them, because it is so liquidy and hardly has any actual plum pieces, but I'm sure it'll still be good!

No comments: