plum perfect. four – or more – preserving projects.

Slivovitz

Slivovitz is a plum schnapps or brandy made all across Eastern Europe, and under different names, in Germany, France and Italy. It’s made in home kitchens with whatever plum is local. It’s sharp and strong and beautiful. It will take three months to develop, and will be well appreciated at the holidays. An important quality in the final product is derived from the pit, so don’t pit your fruit first. Also, choose perfect, unblemished fruit. You’ll need about 2-1/2 pounds for a half gallon jar.

With a sharp paring knife, pierce the fruit right through to the pit. Do this three or four times with each plum, examining each one for perfection. Bruised fruit is not appropriate for slivovitz. (Put it in your rumtopf.)

Pack the fruit into a jar, add 1-1/2 cups of sugar, one cinnamon stick, and two slivers of lemon peel. Pour cheap vodka over the entire thing until the plums are covered. Cap the jar.

Every day for two weeks, turn the jar over. I put the jar in a bowl, as it invariably leaks, then pour the contents of the bowl back into the jar. It’s messy, but worth it. At the end of two weeks, the sugar should have dissolved.

Then, put the jar in a closet and forget it until December (total time is three months.) When it’s ready, strain through a coffee filter, fill pretty bottles, and offer it up in small glasses with cookies.

Fresh and Dried Quetsch Conserve with Walnuts and Sauer-kirsch Brand
from Mes Confitures with a slight adaptation
Makes 4 half-pints plus some extra

2-1/2 lbs. quetsch plums, washed, pitted and halved
2-1/2 lbs. quetsch plums, oven dried*, pitted and halved
3-3/4 c sugar
Juice of one lemon
Juice of one orange
1 c walnut meats, broken by hand
3 T Sauer-kirsch or kirsch

*Put whole plums on a baking tray in a 140° oven and make some prunes. Ten hours later, they will be just beginning to wrinkle and the flavor will have changed completely to something sweeter, denser, and plummy-er. The texture is slightly chewy. Let them cool a bit, then slit in half and pit.

In a large glass or ceramic bowl, combine the fresh plums with the sugar and lemon and orange juice and allow the mixture to sit for an hour. Scrape out the bowl into a preserving pan and heat slowly until the sugar is dissolved. Put the mixture back into a glass or ceramic bowl, cover with parchment and macerate overnight.

The next day, combine the dried plums with the plum mixture, then strain it well over the preserving pan, allowing the syrup to drain through for awhile, as it is very thick.

Heat the syrup to 220°, add back the plums, and bring back up to a full rolling boil, stirring constantly and gently. When it returns to the boil, add the walnuts and kirsch, then cook and test for set.

Ladle into half pint jars, place lids and rings, and process in a boiling water bath for 15 minutes.

Whole Boozy Plums for Christmas
Makes 3 pints

4 lbs. quetsch plums, pierced three or four times with a sharp knife
2 c water
1-1/2 c sugar
9 allspice berries
9 Tbls. ROOT liqueur (or any brandy)

Make a simple syrup with the water, sugar and allspice. Bring to a boil, boil hard for five minutes, add the whole plums, return to a boil. Turn off the heat, cover, and allow the mixture to sit for 30 minutes.

Prepare your jars. Add three tablespoons of ROOT or brandy to each jar. Add the plums and syrup, leaving 1/2″ headspace.

Process the jars in a boiling water canner for 20 minutes. Allow them to rest in a dark place for at least a month.

Chai Spiced Plum Conserve with Toasted Hazelnuts and Balsamic
Makes 6 half pints

1/2 tsp cardamom seeds (from green cardamom pods)
2 bay leaves
1/2 tsp black peppercorns, about 8
1/2 tsp anise seed
1 tsp black tea
3 lbs. quetsch plums, washed, pitted and quartered
3-1/2 c. sugar
Juice of one lemon
1-1/2 c toasted skinned hazelnuts, rough chopped**
1 T aged balsamic (I used a syrupy fig balsamic)

In a small skillet, dry toast the spices and tea until fragrant. Transfer to a coffee grinder or using a mortar and pestle, and grind the cardamom, bay, anise, peppercorns and tea to a powder.

In a large glass or ceramic bowl, stir together the plums, sugar, spices, and lemon juice and allow them to macerate for one hour.

Bring the mixture to a boil in a preserving pan, then return to the bowl and refrigerate overnight.

The next day, over your preserving pan, pour the mixture into a sieve. Set the fruit aside and bring the syrup t0 220°.

Add back the fruit, return the mixture to a boil, add the hazelnuts and balsamic.  Boil hard, then check the set.

Ladle into jars, place lids and rings, and process in a boiling water bath for 15 minutes.