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30 May 2007

Hog or chickasaw plums?

Our plum trees are really loaded this year. I've always assumed they were hog plums, but there might be other varieties out there. The flowers did appear a bit different on some of the trees. I keep forgetting to take cuttings with me when I go to town so I can ask the extension agent.

Most of the fruits are green yet.


There are a few just about ripe.

Hopefully, the plum curculios won't find them and the birds will leave some for us. According to the Texas Native Plants Database, they produce 'heavy crops of fruit only every 3 or 4 years', so it's pretty much now or never. So far, I haven't found much in the way of recipes, but I'll keep looking as long as there are plums to be picked.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

I checked a cookbook I have that has a section of cracker recipes, but no wild plum jelly or jam. Loquat, kumquat, calamondin, guava, elderberry, grapefruit, mango, and even rose petal, but no wild plum. I bet F.C. has one though.

R.Powers said...

Yup,
From the "Seasonal Florida" cookbook, page 81 (old version).
Sophie, you need this cookbook, it's amazing and it's been republished with even more recipes than my older version.

Chickasaw Plum Jam

Makes 10-12 half pints
5 pounds ripe chickasaw plums
1/2 cup water
1 box sure jell
8 cups sugar

Place washed plums in 6-8 quart pot with 1/2 cup water.
Bring to slow boil, reduce heat to simmer, cook 20-25 minutes or until skin is tender.

Strain juice into large measuring cup and place pulp in a colander. When cool mash pulp with hands to remove seeds.Discard seeds.

Combine pulp and juice to make 6 cups. Return pulp and juice to pot and reduce over medium heat if necessary. Measure sugar into large bowl and set aside.

Add Sure-Jell to fruit and bring to full roling boil over high heat, stirring constantly.

Stir sugar into fruit mixture, bring to a full boil and boil 1 minute, stirring constantly.

Skim off any foam with a metal spoon.

Fill clean canning jars immediately to 1/8 inch of tops. Wipe jar rims and threads with a damp cloth. Cover quickly with lids and screw bands on tightly.

Whew!

SophieMae said...

Thanks for looking, Cathy! Now I'm really missing my grandmomma's guava trees. Mmmm!!! I definitely need to move back down there so I can grow things like that.

FC, that was a lot of typing! Thanks ever so!!! I've actually never made jam or jelly. Can you imagine picking 5 pounds of those little things?! I'm seeing more and more purple. Shouldn't be too long now. 8-]

R.Powers said...

Sophie,
Honestly, I can't see gathering 5 pounds of them. I just eat them off the tree.