Quick Plum Confiture with Pectin

Cooking method

1. Step 1:

   

   Choose ripe, unblemished plums whose pits come away easily. Any variety you like will work — I used prune plums.

2. Step 2:

   

   Prepare the jars: wash them with baking soda and rinse well under running water. While still wet, set them upside down in a cold oven along with the lids. Turn the oven to 300°F (150°C); once it reaches temperature, sterilize the jars — 10 minutes for pint (0.5 L) jars, 15 minutes for quart (1 L) jars. This is my favorite way to sterilize; I've used it for years and it's never let me down.

3. Step 3:

   

   Wash the plums, pit them, and be sure to weigh them — this determines how much sugar and pectin you'll need. (Use 1 packet of pectin per 2 lbs / 1 kg of fruit plus the same weight of sugar. Cherries are the exception: 2 packets per 2 lbs / 1 kg of fruit plus 1.2 kg of sugar, per the manufacturer.) Weigh out and set aside the right amount of sugar now.

4. Step 4:

   

   Purée the pitted plums in a blender or food processor. A coarse or medium texture both work — like me, you can go with medium. It won't change the flavor.

5. Step 5:

   

   A wide preserving pan works well here. Sprinkle the pectin over the purée and stir it in. For a thicker jam or confiture, add the juice of 1 lemon (I used about half a lemon's worth, a little less, to my taste). Stirring constantly, bring the purée to a boil.

6. Step 6:

   

   Once it comes to a rolling boil, stir in the measured sugar and keep cooking.

7. Step 7:

   

   I cooked it over high heat. This is probably the only "jam" that's easy to stir with a whisk. When the mixture returns to a boil, cook for 5 minutes, stirring the whole time.

8. Step 8:

   

   Take the pan off the heat, swirl it to gather the foam in the center, and skim it off.

9. Step 9:

   

   There's quite a bit of foam.

10. Step 10:

    

    The hot confiture will be thin and syrupy. Pour it right away into the warm, dry, sterilized jars.

11. Step 11:

    

    Seal with sterilized lids, turn the jars upside down, and leave them to cool wrapped in a blanket. From 2 kg of plums I got about 2.6 liters of confiture (almost six pint jars). For the photos I made a thicker batch, but the yield was about the same: three pint jars, one 720 ml, one 350 ml, and a little to taste in a bowl. The serving count here reflects the number of jars that's handy for my own family.

12. Step 12:

    

    Once cooled, the confiture turns thick but still spreads easily. For this batch I added lemon juice and one packet more pectin than the manufacturer recommends. When I followed their directions exactly it was also delicious, just thinner — more like a jelly. So feel free to adjust the thickness to your taste and needs.