Plum-Vanilla Preserves
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 lbs firm-ripe plums, cut into 1-inch pieces (with skin) – to be honest, they can be a little mushy Last time I made this I just cut them in half, pulled the pit, and called it a day.
- 1 1/2 lbs firm-ripe plumcots (pluots, dinosaur eggs) or apricots, cut into 1-inch pieces (with skin) – again, can be a little mushy
- 2 1/4 cups sugar
- 2 vanilla beans, split lengthwise and halved crosswise see recipe for notes
- 4 small cinnamon sticks
- 1 lemon
Instructions
- Put the plums, sugar, vanilla beans, and cinnamon in a large wide saucepan. Squeeze the lemon juice through a strainer into the pan. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until the sugar dissolves and the mixture boils, about ten minutes.
- Reduce the heat to medium and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until a candy or deep-fry thermometer registers 220F, about 30 minutes. To be sure that the mixture has reached the gel point, spoon some onto a chilled plate and put in the freezer until cool. The liquid should set; if not, continue to cook and retest after a few more minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and let cool 30 minutes.
- Meanwhile, if canning, sterilize four 8-ounce canning jars and lids
- Return the plum mixture to medium-high heat. Bring to a boil, stirring, then add the plumcots. Reduce the heat to medium and simmer until the plumcots are tender, about 5 minutes. Discard the cinnamon sticks and vanilla pod pieces if still present.
- Fill the jars with the plum mixture, leaving 1/2 inch headspace, then seal and process.
Notes
I like to scrape the vanilla beans in between step 1 and 2, stirring the seeds well into the mix as well as returning the actual bean pieces. Discard the large beans pieces before canning.
Step 4 has you discarding the cinnamon sticks – while I am not a cinnamon fan, leaving a stick in the jar adds to the taste over time.