What to do with fruit from the branch...

I got some lovely fruit from a friend in the Adelaide Hills last week - fresh from her garden. Beautiful peaches that taste like they SHOULD taste. The way they used to taste when mum would buy them from the local orchard when we were kids. It has been YEARS since I have tasted such wonderful peaches. It seems that nowadays things are grown to look good and last a long time in the supermarket rather than for taste. The older peach varieties are not much to look at but they make up for it in taste. They also don't keep as long as the newer varieties so you either need to eat them up quickly or stew them. We ate some and I stewed the last few up. This is very easy!

* Peel the peaches and halve to remove the seeds(this will be easy if the peaches are freestone varieties. If they are clingstones you will need to cut around the seed). Pop into a saucepan with a little bit of water and some sugar if you like. Cook slowly and simmer until the fruit is soft. Cool and store in the fridge. It will last for about a week. *

Then you can enjoy your stewed fruit with yoghurt for brekky or warmed with custard and icecream for dessert!

I also was lucky enough to get some blood plums from my friend's garden too. Beautiful and juicy but too many to eat all at once! As I had already stewed the peaches I went looking for something slightly different to do with the plums and came up with this recipe.

Poached Plums

1 1/2 cups water
1 cup of port (or red wine)
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 stick cinnamon
750g plums, halved

In a saucepan place all the ingredients except the plums. Over low heat bring to a simmer, stirring as you go to dissolve the sugar. Cook for 5 minutes. Add the plums gently and simmer for 10 minutes then remove from the heat and allow to cool in the liquid. Pop in a container and keep in the fridge for a week.

Divine with icecream!

So our desserts are sorted for the week. I froze a batch of the plums for later. I think they will be great on a cold winter's night!