Juicy plums and blueberries are a riveting combination and
baking them together is a quick and simple way to enjoy these luscious summer
fruit.
Sprinkle them lavishly with sugar, add the fine seeds of a vanilla
bean, fruit juice (apple, orange or mango), dabs of butter and either an apricot
or a black currant liqueur.
Blueberries, which swell and release their gorgeous
colour during the baking, are not only rich in colour but rich in flavour. Serve
this dessert at room temperature with thick cream mixed with a little plum
and blueberry puree.
The vanilla and cinnamon-flavoured syrup the fruit is
cooked in is delicious. Leftover syrup can be used as a delectable sauce for ice
cream and other fruit such as sliced bananas.
INGREDIENTS:
10-12
large, ripe juicy deep purple ripe plums
125 g blueberries, fresh or frozen
½ cinnamon stick, broken into shards
2 tablespoons butter
125 g sugar
1 vanilla bean
500 ml fruit juice
1-2 tablespoons apricot or cassis liqueur (optional)
250 ml cream, whipped
(Serves
4-6)
You will need: chopping
board, small sharp
knife, shallow baking
tray, tablespoon,
sieve, bowl,
aluminium foil, whisk or
beater
STAGE
1:
Plums used for baking should
not be overripe. Taste a raw plum before adding sugar - you may need more or
less depending on the degree of ripeness and sweetness.
Blueberries freeze
particularly well and can be used out of season. Only wash fresh blueberries
just before using. Frozen berries do not need to be thawed before use.
Preheat
oven to 180ºC. Place plums stem side down in a baking dish. Using a sharp knife
cut a cross on the top of each one. Add half the blueberries, cinnamon
and dabs of butter. Sprinkle with sugar.
Butter is an important
ingredient in the dessert as it enriches the flavour and adds gloss to the
sauce. Drizzle with liqueur after
the plums have cooked to enhance the taste even further.
STAGE
2:
Split
vanilla bean lengthways and scrape out seeds. Mix seeds with fruit juice. Place
bean between plums. Pour juice around the base of the plums.
Don’t stint on using a
vanilla bean - both the diminutive seeds and the pods can be used. The pod
can be rinsed, patted dry and used to scent and flavour sugar for later use.
To make your own good extract of vanilla, add two beans to a jar of vodka,
seal and leave for six months.
STAGE 3:
Cover
with foil at bake for 25-30 minutes. Remove 1-2 plums with a spoonful or
two of blueberries and set aside. Add remaining blueberries. Continue baking 5-10
minutes. Add liqueur and cool to room temperature.
STAGE 4:
Sieve
reserved plums and blueberries to make a purée. Immediately before serving swirl
through whipped cream.
Baked fruit is delicious
served with crisp, buttery biscuits, such as shortbread or a crisp almond
tuille.
COOK'S CLASS