Plums always remind me of me childhood. I grew up in central California where we had several fruit trees growing around our house — lime, dwarf apple, orange, lemon… but my favorite was the plum tree in our front yard. It was the perfect size to climb, and I loved to swing on its branches. I eagerly awaited the appearance of the tiny fruits each May and tore them down greedily, often before they even had the chance to ripen; chewing the sour flesh, spitting their tiny pits as far as I could….I love how such small things can transport you: how smells (for me; eucalyptus, black pepper, chlorine, horse manure), or sounds (wind chimes, steel guitar), or flavors (black walnut, wild licorice, sour plum) can take you instantly back to some shadowed, half-forgotten piece of childhood…..Anyway, I still look forward to eating plums this time of year — even if I must buy them from the market instead of plucking them from the boughs of my own fragrant and sun-filled tree…
This recipe is for a small batch of jam, but you could certainly multiply the measurements to make larger quantities. Similarly, the plums and blueberries could be replaced here with any kind of berry, cherries, currants, any stone fruit, pears — even mangoes or kiwis! Get creative and make something wonderful!
Ingredients:
– 1 cup of peeled, sliced, and pitted plums (about 1 lb. whole)
– 1 pint blueberries
– 1/2 cup honey or 1 cup sugar
– 1 Tbsp. any unsweetened citrus juice (I used grapefruit juice this time)
– 3 Tbsp. water
– 1 tsp. fruit pectin*
*Pectin is a thickening agent, usually extracted from citrus fruits or apples and is available in many grocery stores and most health food stores.
Directions:
1. Select the jar you wish to put your jam in. It can be a mason jar, or an old pickle or jelly jar — whatever you have available. This recipe will yield about 16 oz. of jam, so you do want whatever jar you choose for this to be pint-sized.
2. Wash and rinse your jar; let stand in hot water. Meanwhile, boil your lid and ring in a large pot to sanitize. Let stand in hot water also.
3. Peel, pit, and slice plums, make sure to catch as much juice from the plums as you can
4. Place blueberries in a bowl and mash using a pestle, or any other blunt kitchen instrument. (Tip: Mash blueberries a bit at a time: it’s much easier than trying to mash them all at once, and this way you can ensure that you mash the proper amount according to how much fruit and juice your plums wind up yielding)
5. Combine fruits, making sure that you have at least 2 cups of fruit and juice
6. Put fruit into a saucepan with citrus juice and water and cook at medium heat, stirring frequently. Bring to a boil
7. Measure out honey or sugar; thoroughly mix pectin into sweetener
8. Add pectin-sweetener mixture to boiling fruit. Stir vigorously for 2 minutes to dissolve the pectin.
9. Return to a boil and remove from heat
10. Remove your jar lid and ring from your large pot and return water to a boil
11. While waiting for water to boil fill your jar to 1/4” of top and wipe clean
12. Screw on lid (with ring) tightly. Place jar into boiling water to cover. Boil for 10 minutes.
13. Remove jar (carefully!) from water. Let cool. Check seal — lid should be sucked down/un-popped.
14. Label and enjoy! Jam should last about 3 weeks once opened.
I’ve never claimed to be a patient woman…I decided to try my jam for breakfast the next morning. Here’s what it looked like when I opened it:
I spread it on a couple of pieces of coconut-oatmeal bread (recipe to follow shortly) and it was absolutely heavenly — soooo much better than Smucker’s or any of those other store-bought brands! Hey, I’ve never claimed to be humble either…..:)
theindiehomemaker 