Making damson jam? Count the number of plums going into the pan so you know how many wee stones to scoop out when it's done.
ROLLING STONES
For such small plums, damsons have large stones which account for a full third of each fruit, so whether you bake, boil, brew or bottle your damsons, you’ll end up with a huge pile of teeny-tiny stones.
To stone or not to stone: that is the question that has confounded plum preservers for ages. In his book Rick Stein’s Food Heroes: Another Helping, the celebrity chef declares that it’s “almost impossible and very time consuming to stone damsons before cooking, so don’t. Just take care when eating”. Nigel Slater goes a step further in Tender Volume II – A cook’s guide to the fruit garden, advocating patience. “Only a masochist would attempt to remove them before cooking,” he says.
But, unless you’re steeping the fruit whole to infuse in gin or vodka, at some point remove them you must – and not just to spare your teeth. Like apricot kernels, damson seeds contain a toxic natural compound known as amygdalin that converts to cyanide in our bodies. The kernels should never be eaten raw. However, when simmered with sugar and their own flesh, a few cracked kernels can add a punch of marzipan flavour to jams and pastes.
DAMSON PASTE
The poshest of preserves for platters, damson paste is foolproof to make. Unlike quince or fig pastes, damson paste sets reliably and takes a fraction of the cooking time, thanks to its high pectin content. This recipe is based on the method used by the legendary New Zealand food writer, Lois Daish.
Ingredients:
1kg damsons, fresh or frozen, 1 cup red wine or port, 1 cinnamon stick, 6 cloves, 6 peppercorns, sugar to measure
Method:
Simmer damsons and red wine or port in a pot with the lid on, until pulpy. Cool then press pulp through a colander or mouli to remove the stones, skins and spices.
Measure purée and pour into a large, heavy-based pan (the greater the surface area, the faster the paste will cook). For every cup of purée, add ¾ cup sugar. Over a medium heat, bring to the boil, stirring all the time with a wooden spoon or spatula. Keep stirring until thick (20 minutes). It’s ready when you can drag a spoon across the pan and the paste stays separated. Pour into tins to set.
Use a shallow sponge roll tin (cut into squares once set) or madeleine or decorative jelly moulds to make pretty individual pastes for gifts. Grease tins first with a light spray of rice bran oil.
Wrapped in greaseproof paper, damson paste keeps for years in an airtight container. Look for fresh damsons at farmers markets this month, or by mail order from thedamsoncollection.co.nz.