It’s time to can! After a delightful 2 weeks off work (camping! cottaging! fresh air! mid-morning drinks!) it was lovely to come home and have a few extra days to get settled and organized before starting a new week and month. Yikes, where did you come from September?!
If you know me, one way for me to feel that all is right with the world is with a trip to the farmer’s market. I love farmer’s markets! So Sunday morning off we went to Leslieville Farmer’s Market where an abundance of goodies awaited us. With Ontario produce at peak season right now, it was hard to be restrained!
Plums for everyone – also apples (it really is fall!)
Gorgeous farmer’s market bounty
Luckily a BBQ that evening took the 6 ears of corn off my hands, and this super easy and exceptionally delicious plum jam helped as well. (Let’s be honest. I bought enough plums to make jam AND to eat all week.)
I stumbled on the recipe very randomly last year over at Food in Jars and was so happy with it, I couldn’t wait to recreate it again. The spicing may sound surprising, but you’ll be clamoring to make it again and again. In fact, I may buy some more plums just to have another go at it.
Washed and ready to be chopped
All you need: star anise, sugar, plums
This jam is super easy to make. You just need to chop up some Italian plums, add sugar and star anise, and let it sit for an hour or more until it gets all juicy. Then bring to a boil and cook for 15 min until the jam thickens up and the fruit falls apart a bit. All done! You can put it in jars for the fridge, or you might want to can it for the cold winter ahead. Especially delicious on toasts with a bit of salty cheese, or prosciutto.
All mixed and ready to sit and chill out
Such a gorgeous colour – all cooked up
Spiced Plum Jam via Food in Jars
I doubled the recipe and it made me two 250 ml jars and two 125 ml jars.
Ingredients:
1 1/3 cups sugar
6-8 star anise*
Method:
Chop your plums. I ripped each in half, removed the pit, and then chopped each half into 6-8 little pieces.
Add your sugar and star anise. Mix. Leave it to sit and get all juicy (at least an hour. If you lose track of time, it’ll be just fine for longer)
Bring to a boil and cook on high for about 15 min. Stir a lot (you don’t want it to stick to the bottom of the pan or burn in any way). You do want your fruit to break down a bit and the juices to thicken. It will also go from yellowy to an absolutely gorgeous…. well, plum… colour.
That’s it. Can it, or fill your jars and bowls. Perhaps the bowl had some ice cream in it already?
Happy jammin’!
*Really averse to star anise? Add some vanilla! or Amaretto! or perhaps an herb?! These plums are so yummy, they’re really the star of the show. I’m thinking of switching it up for the next round!
Culinary Concrete 