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vaherbmom

Gazillion plums--what to do?

vaherbmom
11 years ago

Not sure if it's ok to ask for recipe/processing ideas here . . .

My plum tree went crazy this year. They are delicious! I've already made 3 batches of jam, a plum buckle, and several plum pies. I'm also drying leather and half-plums for prunes. What else do I do with all these?

Also, the plums are small and yellow. I thought this tree was either a Methley, Stanley or Satsuma but in looking on the web it appears those three are all purple or red. How can I find out what type of plum this is?

thanks so much for any advice!

Comments (17)

  • franktank232
    11 years ago

    Shiro?

    Looks like you listed most thing I'd suggest. I tend to give away fruit... If anything put a post on FB (if you are a member) or Craigslist.

  • milehighgirl
    11 years ago

    German plum dumplings.

    Here is a link that might be useful: Zwetschgenkn�del

  • milehighgirl
    11 years ago

    I found a link for German plum cake too. The only plum I will have this year looks like Toka. I'll have to stop by the farmer's market.

    Here is a link that might be useful: Traditional German Plum Cake (Zwetschgenkuchen)

  • myk1
    11 years ago

    Plum wine. 3-4 pounds per gallon is a good place to start with most fruit. More fruit = more fruit flavor but watch out because the yeast eats the sugar and you can be left with very tart.

    This was my first year for my Shiro but it was small and yellow. Small pits and no outer aroma. Flavorful insides around the skin and pit.

  • jean001a
    11 years ago

    Food banks often welcome fresh from the garden stuff. Call first.

  • planatus
    11 years ago

    Last time we had gazillions of plums we made a lot of plum butter, canned "prune juice" and made 3 gallons of plum wine. You can clean them, half them and remove pits, then freeze them for wine or juice-making later.

    These days when I have too much of something good I take it to the farmers market and trade it for something I don't have.

  • flora_uk
    11 years ago

    A simple fruit sponge can be made with any fruit you have. Make a Victoria sponge mix ie equal weights eggs, butter,sugar and self raising flour. Splotch into your tin and place halved plums on top. The cake will rise around the fruit. Or any upside down cake recipe. Or a clafoutis, subbing the cherries with plums. Or a crumble. Or make into a filling for pancakes. Also chutney or plum sauce. And they freeze OK for future use, either raw in halves or stewed. Anything you can do with apples, pears, apricots or peaches you can do with plums.

  • ltilton
    11 years ago

    Plum butter uses up a LOT of plums. There's also Chinese plum sauce.

  • blameitontherain
    11 years ago

    Vaherbmom, I just posted a similar cry for help on another forum.

    Plum butter and Chinese plum sauce sound like winners, and I'd really like to know more about making plum wine. We have plenty o' plums and are wonderful winos!

    Will keep watching this post. Good luck and I'll let you know if I get any ideas from my post.

    Plum Loco,

    Rain

  • ltilton
    11 years ago

    In Europe a large amount of the plum harvest goes into brandy.

  • Konrad___far_north
    11 years ago

    Yes..we used to pick loads off the ground and toss them into wooden barrel, put on airlock, a rubber hose into a bucket of water. Then in winter, a distill on wheels came around, farm sites only because a farmer can brew legally, [Switzerland]. This comes from a very old law when way back there was no veterinarian to treat he's sick cows, the remedy was brandy, [Zwetschgenschnaps]. So when a farmer, let's say has 15 cows, he can brew about 15 liter of brandy, I think this law still exist today.

  • blameitontherain
    11 years ago

    Oh la la, eau de vie. Now you're talking!

    Rain

  • blazeaglory
    11 years ago

    The more cows the more booze? Excellent excuse for more of both...lol

  • creekweb
    11 years ago

    Too many fruits can be hard on the waistline especially when you try to do something with them, which most often makes a highly calorific food that much more. One idea, which at least needn't add more calorie density, is to make plum popsicles. Won't get rid of too many that way, but makes a nice cool summer treat.

  • capoman
    11 years ago

    Wish I had that issue, lost plums and others to weather this year.

    Yes, wine or brandy, or if you are really adventurous you can distill it.

  • blameitontherain
    11 years ago

    Creekweb's idea is a winner but I only have a regular size frig/freezer combo with space for perhaps 2 popsicles max. Must move getting a "real" freezer from the Wanna to Hafta Have list. For this year's harvest, I'm going with wine. A fellow gardenwebber supplied the attached link in my local forum and I'm going for the gold -- er, the red.

    Happy * hic * harvesting!

    Rain

    Here is a link that might be useful: Wine Recipe