Plum Crazy!

My under-the-stairs pantry. Almost full...

The first year I learned to can, I started out with pickles. 

They were terrible. 

The second year, I followed my mother-in-law's instructions and made V8 juice. 


It was a hit. 

Now, five years later, I've graduated to flipping through 70 year old cookbooks and online blogs to discover ideas to use in my own pantry. 

This year's sure-to-be-a-hit recipe is the fruit canned in a vanilla, cinnamon, clove sugar syrup. I started with plums, and will be moving on to a half bushel of peaches. 

I received my inspiration from Mostly Foodstuffs recipe for canned plums. To make the recipe my own, I did the following:


Simple Syrup - 
2 cups sugar
4 cups water
2 tbsp vanilla
Bring to a boil. 

Poke a few holes in each plum (gently now). In each pint jar, squish as many plums as you can fit, it's okay if they start to get a little mushed. Using the tip of your paring knife, add a pinch of powered cinnamon and cloves to each jar. Add 2 tablespoons of brandy to each jar. Pour the boiling syrup over the jars, wipe the rims, then cap and screw on your band. 

Put in a canner of boiling water to cover the jars and process for 20 minutes. Any jar that doesn't seal in 24 hours goes into the fridge, use it within 2 weeks. 

I'd love to hear YOUR summer real food stories. Jump onto the facebook page and share a picture or an anecdote!

---