Plum Preserves
A historical recipe from La cuisine creole, by Lafcadio Hearn (1885).
A historical recipe
La cuisine creole: a collection of culinary recipes from leading chefs and noted Creole housewives, who have made New Orleans famous for its cuisine, by Lafcadio Hearn (1885). Project Gutenberg eBook #75027.
From an old book: a historical recipe, not current advice. Its methods, additives and storage may be unsafe by today's standards. Its words name: home canning or sealing in jars, preserving or pickling. Check current food-safety guidance before following this.
Also printed in: La cuisine creole (1885).
United States
Known as an American recipe, with similar versions prepared across other nations.
- Home canning. Old canning methods can let botulism through. Use current tested canning guidance.
- Preserving. Old preserving methods may not make food safe to keep. Use current tested guidance.
Ingredients 3 ingredients
Cook safely
Keep children and pets away from the hob and the oven, and keep oven gloves and a lid within reach.
- Boiling water and steam. Turn pan handles inward, away from the edge of the hob. Lift lids away from you, and pour hot water away from your body: steam burns too.
- Hot sugar. Hot sugar sticks to skin and burns far hotter than boiling water: don't touch or taste it. Keep a bowl of cold water close, and keep children away while it cooks.
Method
Chef Wood
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- Get plums before they are dead ripe;
- allow a pound of sugar to a pound of fruit, dissolve and boil the sugar and water (allowing half a pint of water to a pound).
- Boil the syrup until it is thick, then put in the plums and boil them until they are transparent;
- then put them in sealed jars.
Plating
Cookware for this recipe
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Saucepan