With Rosh Hashanah (Jewish New Year) just around the corner, this recipe seemed fitting, almost necessary. Every year, my Oma (maternal grandmother) would make her famous plum pies for the holidays -- an open face pie with a shortbread-like crust, loaded with fresh fruit. During the summer months, blueberries, for jewish new year, italian plums, for her birthday in December, apple slices and cinnamon.
My mom continues the tradition and bakes these pies throughout the year; I on the other hand wanted to feel the warmth and familiarity of the pie, without going through the effort of baking (lazy or efficient, I'll let you decide). That's where this compote comes in -- yielding a similar texture and equally gorgeous colour as the plums baked atop the pie crust. Eat it straight out if the jar, or top your morning oats or yogurt with it. Either way, you're going to wish you had made a double batch.
ITALIAN PLUM COMPOTE //
The yellow plums magically change to this gorgeous pink colour as they cook down in their skins. Serve with yogurt, oatmeal, over ice cream or toast. Will keep in the fridge for a week.
Ingredients:
15-20 italian plums, quartered
1/8 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp ginger
1 T sugar
juice from 1/2 a lemon
What to do:
Combine all the ingredients in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Stir frequently. Once boiling, lower the temp to medium, and allow it to cook, releasing juices and colours for about 7 minutes - until plums break down, and there's a decent amount of liquid. Stir throughout, to help break down the plums.
Allow to cool to room temperature before transferring to the fridge.