Raw plum jam - failure ?

This it the seventh recipe in a row evolving around plums a theme. And it the last recipe with plums from my plum "cook-out", so now you and I can relax without plums popping up everywhere on this blog :-)

However, I have really been in doubt, if I should share this specific recipe with you or not, as I consider it as a failure right here and now. After a discussion at work I decide to make raw plum jam or the more correct name is raw marinated plum. In order to make something with accepted shelf-life, I decided to use a ratio of plum and sugar in 1:1, so using the conserving effect of sugar. Anyway, I also decided to add potassium sorbat as well to control the growth of un-wanted micro-organisms in the raw jam.

But 2-3 days after making this raw jam, I noticed, that the jam was split into several phases: sugar at the bottom, juice part in the middle and plums in the top. So the appearance is not appealing at all. I have not taste the raw jam yet.

So right here and now I am questioning, if plums is a good fruit for raw marinating, if the sugar ratio should be lower or higher. If you have comments and suggestions on how to make raw marinated fruit, please leave a comment.

Raw plum jam:

• 500 g plums - stone remove and medium chopped
• 500 g sugar
• 3 tablespoons home-made vanilla sugar
• potassium sorbate

1. Stir chopped plums, sugar and vanilla sugar together.
2. Prepare the jam glasses by filling them with boiling water. Remove the water, before filling them with jam.
3. Fill the glass with jam and close the glass. Store them cold.

Pickled plums in liquorice a la Isabella´s Countryliv

This is the sixth recipe in just as many days with focus on PLUMS.

I found this recipe here in the Isabella's Countryliv issue 5/2012, and as it a combination of plums and liquorice, I found it to be a recipe to be tested out in my little kitchen during my plum "cook-out" session last week, where I turned "tons" of plums into many different things.

Pickled plums in liquorice a la Isabella's Countryliv:

• 500 g plums - cleans, stone removed and diced
• 100 g water
• 100 g dark Muscovadosugar
• ½ teaspoon raw liquorice powder
• Potassium sorbat - optional

1. Add water, Muscovadosugar and liquorice powder to a cooking pot and bring it to the boiling point.
2. Lets the plums boil in the sugar syrup for 10 minutes.
3. Add boiling water to the storage glass.
4. Empty the glass for the hot water.
5. Pour plums and sugar syrup into the storage glass.
6. Serve these pickled plums together with cheese - firm dry cheese types.

GOLD chocolate muffins

We have a tradition in my rowing club relating to the use Toms Guldkarameller (caramel coated in dark chocolate), when we have rowed more than 1500 km within the rowing season (from end of Marhk to end of October). If you row more than 1500 km within a rowing season, you will receive a "golden ore" as a piece of jewellery to celebrate this achievement. As a thank you to your fellow rowers, you will "feed" them with Toms Guldkarameller for rowing together with you, as it is a team effort to row this long distance.

I will be passing my 1500 km this evening on the weekly row with the "Fyn Rundt" team, so I am bringing these muffins with Guldkarameller baked into the muffin for my team mates.

I have used exactly the same recipe as I used yesterday, when I baked the GOLD chocolate cake, now the cake is just turned into muffins instead of.

GOLD chocolate cake: - 12 muffins

• 175 g (cake) flour
• 250 g sugar
• 50 g cocoa powder (without sugar) 
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 tablespoon vanilla sugar
• 150 g butter
• 2 eggs
• 50 g milk
• 50 g orange juice
• 100 g Toms guldkarameller

1. Heat the oven to 200'C
2. Whip butter and sugar together.
3. Add baking powder and vanilla sugar.
4. Add the eggs and whip.
5. Add milk and orange juice and whip together.
6. Add the (cake) flour and whip again.
7. Add the cocoa powder and stir it well into the cake mix.
8. Fill muffin form with paper muffin form.
9. First add some of the muffin mix into the muffin form.
10. When place the unpacked "guldkarameller" on top, before you fill the rest of the muffin mix on top.
11. Bake the muffins at 200'C for 25 minutes.

GOLD chocolate cake

Today the young rowers at my rowing club got a visit from the Olympic rowers Anne Lolk & Juliane Elander and the opportunity to actually row together with these two Olympians, which rowed themselves to an amazing forth place in Olympian final in lightweight doublesculle.

As I am not an youth rower, I have "bribed" myself into meeting these Olympians by offering to bring cake to this arrangement. I was not in any doubt as to which cake to bake for these two Olympians and youth rowers, they should off cause have a GOLD chocolate cake for their great achievement at the Olympic Games in London 2012 and their job for promoting rowing to all ages.

Wauw, these two rowing ladies have star quality. They are so natural, without any "bad star manners", they talked about, that they still have technical parts of their own, which they need to focus on like the youth rowers. They also mentioned, that England was great in making good rowing competition with great atmosphere.

And yes, I got a picture taken of me standing together with these amazing rowers !!!!

The GOLD cake is a combination of this Classic Chocolate Cake and Toms Guldkarameller (caramels coated in dark chocolate). The reason for using these caramels, you will learn more about in tomorrow´s blog posting.

A small remark after cutting the cake is, that you should place a bottom layer of the cake mix in the baking form first, before you add the Guldkarameller, as they are forming a caramellic bottom layer otherwise

This is not the best thing to do !!!!!

GOLD chocolate cake:

• 175 g (cake) flour
• 250 g sugar
• 50 g cocoa powder (without sugar)
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 tablespoon vanilla sugar
• 150 g butter
• 2 eggs
• 50 g milk
• 50 g orange juice
• 100 g Toms guldkarameller

1. Heat the oven to 175'C
2. Whip butter and sugar together.
3. Add baking powder and vanilla sugar.
4. Add the eggs and whip.
5. Add milk and orange juice and whip together.
6. Add the (cake) flour and whip again.
7. Add the cocoa powder and stir it well into the cake mix.
8. Fill a cake form (20 x 30 cm) with baking paper.
9. First fill a bottom layer of cake mix, when add the unpacked "guldkarameller" in.
10. Fill the cake mix on top.
11. Bake the cake at 175'C for 45 minutes.

Lønnestræde´s plums in port with Christmas spices

This is the fifth reciep in a row having focus on guess what ? Yes, you are right - the answer is PLUMS.

This time I was twisting the recipe on plums in port a la Dansukker taking inspiration from plums in spiced red wine. This time I am again using smaller plums with firm texture, as I will be boiling those plums and still would like to some texture left in the final dessert.

I imaging that these plum could be served with ris à l´amande (rice pudding) instead of the usual cherry sauce.

Lønnestræde´s plums in port in port with Christmas spices:

Plums soaken in port and spi

• 500 g plums - half and without stone
• 4 dl port
• 300 g sugar
• 2 stick of cinnamon
• 4 star anise
• 8 allspice corns

1. Clean the plums, cut them in half and remove the stone.
2. Place them in pot and fill the port and spices on top. I use a small saucer in order to keep the plums down in the port, so they are floating around.
3. Leave the plums for minimum 1 day in the refrigerator.
4. Add the dark Muscovado sugar and stir well
5. Add boiling water to the storage glass.  
6. Add everything into a cooking pot.
7. Let the plum boil softly for 5 minutes
8. Empty the glass for the hot water.
9. Remove the plums and place them in the storage glass.
10. Reduce the port - softly boiling it for approx 30 minutes.
11. Let the plums mature for minimum 2 weeks, before using them for dessert.
12. Serve them plums as sauce for rice pudding (typical Danish Christmas dessert)



Plums cooking in port

Reine Claude s'érouler

Plums - plums - plums - this is the forth recipe in a row with plums. Actually is now bein published a little ealier than expected, as a work colleague of mine "demand" this recipe for some coming week-end guests ! Hopefully both you and the week-end guests will enjoy these plum crumbles :-)

I have found this recipe om Reine Claude s'érouler or in more "plain" English Plum Crumble in the weekly newsletter (week 32/2012) from Årstiderne. But as I got these plums with a French name from a French work colleague, I decided to give this recipe a French to maintain the French touch.

The flavour combination for the crumble top in form of cinnamon and cardamon is very tasteful. The rest of crumble part is OK, but I have had better texture with the crumble lid from this recipe on rhubarb crumble.

Reine Claude s'érouler a la Årstiderne: - 12 pieces

• 500 g plums - without stone and roughly chopped
• 100 g sugar
• 1 tablespoon home-made vanilla sugar
• 60 g (cake) flour
• 40 g oat flakes
• 110 g sugar
• 80 g hazelnuts - chopped
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon cardamon
• 100 g butter

1. Heat the oven (conventional) to 200'C.
2. Mix the roughly chopped plums, sugar and vanilla sugar together. Fill the mix into paper muffin forms.
3. Knead flour, oat flakes, sugar, hazelnuts, spices and butter together to the crumble part.
4. Make a small lid of the crumble part and place it on top of the plums.
5. Place the small plum crumble in the middle of the oven. Bake the crumbles at 200'C for 20-25 minutes.
6. Serve the crumbles warm or cold.

Plums in port a la Dansukker

This is the third reciep in a row having focus on plum - plum and yet some more plums.

Again I am using smaller plums with firm texture, as I will be boiling those plums and still would like to some texture left in the final dessert.

As usual I have a preference of trying out new recipes again instead of keeping repeating over and over the same old recipes, so I am always on the look out for new recipes to try in my little kitchen. This time is a recipe from www.dansukker.dk/portvinsblommer, which I am having a go at.

Plums in port a la Dansukker:

• 500 g plums - half and without stone
• 3 dl port
• 250 g dark Muscovado sugar
• potassium sorbat - optional

1. Clean the plums, cut them in half and remove the stone.
2. Place them in pot and fill the port on top. I use a small saucer in order to keep the plums down in the port, so they are floating around.
3. Leave the plums for minimum 8 hours in the refrigerator.
4. Add the dark Muscovado sugar and stir well.
5. Add boiling water to the storage glass.
6. Add everything into a cooking pot.
7. Let the plum boil softly for 5 minutes
8. Empty the glass for the hot water.
9. Pour everything into the storage glass
10. Serve the plums either warm or cold together with whipped (dairy) cream or ice cream