Wild Plum Coulis

What a year for plums!    The wild plum trees in the little Owl Wood are still offering up their delicious bounty.      

The mother tree is way too tall to harvest, so I simply collect the windfalls, leaving the squishy ones for the animals of the woodland floor and the wasps.

I love the wonderful bloom on them.  
As you know, something magical happens when you cook them.   The blue pigment turns to a deep, rich, plummy red.  The transformation is so amazing that I feel like an alchemist.   Okay, they are not the elixir of life, but the resulting coulis is totally delicious, as well as being beautiful.

We love the coulis swirled on top of natural Greek yogurt.    Heaven on a spoon!

Throw on a few walnuts and you have a dish fit for a king.

To make the coulis, all I do is wash the plums, drain them and then pop them in a good, heavy stainless steel saucepan.     Then I add the tiniest splash of water and gently bring them to the boil and  simmer slowly.   I let them do their own thing until they have changed colour and the plums are soft and luscious, the colour is deep red and the kitchen is filled with a wonderful plummy, jammy smell.

Once that stage is reached, simply push them through a sieve, to remove all the small stones.  Unless you have added too much water, you will be left with a thick and delicious, tart plum coulis.  If the result is too watery keep simmering it until it reduces down to a thick syrup.

No sugar is necessary, unless you wish to add some,  we like that plummy sharpness, you may have a sweeter tooth.

Cool it, and add a swirl to yogurt, as required.   It will keep for several days in the fridge.

We have had enough of plum crumbles to last for quite a while, so this makes a light and delicious change, mind you, if the weather turns cold again we may yearn for pie or crumble!   fliss&max