Name: Plum Butter
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 3 h 30 min
Total time: 4 h
Yield: 5
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 5 pounds Italian plums, pitted and quartered (about 70 green/yellow-fleshed plums); 1 cup water; 1 3/4 cup organic cane sugar; 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom; 1 cinnamon stick, (like this)

I'm not sure how I lived without plum butter for the first 30 years of my life, but now I'm confident I don't want to live without it. Some eggs and a piece of toast smothered with butter and plum butter is my quick breakfast solution for a tired morning.

This recipe is also great if you need to use up a whole lot of plums very quickly. Last year I went through about 20 pounds of plums using this recipe and this one for plum crisp.

Plum Butter

Yield: 5 cups

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 3 hours 30 minutes

Total Time: 4 hours

Ingredients

5 pounds Italian plums, pitted and quartered (about 70 green/yellow-fleshed plums)
1 cup water
1 ¾ cup organic cane sugar
¼ teaspoon ground cardamom
1 cinnamon stick, (like this)

Instructions

Remove the plum pits and cut approximately 70 Italian plums into quarters in a large mixing bowl.
Add 1 cup of water and bring to a simmer over medium-low heat in a large (5-6 quardutch oven for about 30 minutes, or until the water has been released from the plums and it resembles a soupy texture.
Using an immersion blender, puree the plums until smooth, about 5 minutes.
Add the sugar, cinnamon stick, and cardamom, and stir.
Reduce the heat to low and cook without a lid for approximately 3 hours, stirring frequently to avoid burning, or until the liquid has reduced to a jam-like consistency (about 5 cups).
Remove from heat and let cool. Transfer to a glass container to keep in the fridge or place in jars for freezing.
Serve on toast with butter or to your own liking.