Plums, plums, plums!

I get my fill of plums every summer while they are plentiful and linger until late October. Early November, and they are still there: Bring some plums home while they last! The variety of plums I love is the long, dark, sweet, plump and firm-tender, called Damson Plums. There’s nothing I don’t do with plums: Plum Tart, pie, dumplings, sauces both savory and sweet, chutney (brilliant plum chutney recipe by www.geniuskitchen.com), compote, clafoutis, soup, you name it. The unprepossessing and modest little plums are the perfect superfood fruit! Take a look at my latest creation: Sugar-Free Gluten-Free Plum Tart!

Plum Sauce:

Here I just want to share something so simple it is not even a recipe: this fragrant, chunky and luscious plum sauce, with all the variations it affords. I cut open about two dozen long plums with a sharp knife, discarding the pits, and put them in a pot with 2-3 cups cranberry or pomegranate juice. Don’t worry if the halves look too large, they will break up during the brief cooking time. Bring it to a boil, and immediately lower the heat to low. Let the mixture cook covered about 5 minutes, stirring a couple times to avoid scorching. They need very little adornment as they pack a huge flavor punch. I love to add 1/4 cup Creme de Cassis, which underscore the plum flavor beautifully, and a good pinch or two ground black pepper, and I taste for sweetness. I like mine tart, but not too sour, so I might add 1/3 to 1/2 cup maple syrup. That’s about it!

I let the sauce cool, and store it in glass jars. It yields a good 3-4 quarts. Do not divide the recipe, as it keeps very well a good couple weeks.

Now let’s take plums and my plum sauce places:

• Eat it just as is, or thin it with a little cranberry or pomegranate juice if you like it looser.
• Cream it in blender or food processor (just some of it) until smooth, and use it as a sauce on ice cream, sorbet or pound cake.
• Cream it in a blender with some berries or/and yogurt for the perfect smoothie, or pour the mixture into popsicle molds and freeze, for ices or frozen yogurt.
• Stir a little yogurt into a serving in a bowl, then eat a is or topped with granola. Hint: You can even do this on the road, at lunch time.
• Thin the mixture with a little red wine in a bowl, and call it plum soup. Eat it plain or topped with a scoop of coconut yogurt or vanilla ice cream.
• Use it as filling for crepes.
• Stir in 1-2 good pinches curry and cayenne, and use it as a sauce for meat or poultry.
• If you would rather not include liqueur, skip the creme de cassis and put in a splash of vanilla extract.