French Prune Plums

French Prune Plums

The past several years we’ve enjoyed the ultimate u-pick experiences when our dear friend Otti invites us to help harvest fruit from her orchard. Her late husband and her son planted several varieties of fruit trees over the years, some choices based on research and others on a whim, such as “the name sounds interesting.” To put in perspective the challenge of choosing a particular fruit tree to plant, there are over 2,500 varieties of apples grown in the United States alone with more being developed every year. There are over 300 varieties of peaches, and while there are fewer plums, choosing a particular variety can still be daunting. About three years ago Otti and her son planted two French prune plum trees. They were in full production this year and we came home with about 20 pounds of plums.

Verne picking plums

What to do with 20 pounds of plums? A few years ago during my Master Food Preserver (MFP) days I would have said “Make jam!”. I haven’t kept track, but over my four years in the program I must have canned over a thousand jars of jam and given most of it away. Bottom line…we just don’t eat that much jam and when we do eat jam we have our favorites, like multi-berry or strawberry fig. Plum, plain as well as various combinations, such as plum-rosemary, ranked well down the list. After eating a stomach-ache full of the little prune plums, I decided eating 20 pounds of any fresh fruit was not a good idea.  They needed to be either frozen or dehydrated. When we arrived to pick we found Otti busy in her kitchen making a Prune Cake, a favorite as a child growing up in Germany. Her recipe begins with a German shortbread (Muerbeteig dough) that is pressed into a 9”x13” pan, topped with the fresh halved plums, and baked. Otti’s recipe calls for a whopping 4-1/2 pounds of plums. Hard to imagine? Here’s a picture of her cake in progress with about 4 pounds of the “little soldiers” already lined up on the pastry.

Otti's Plum Cake in progress ("little soldiers" standing at attention)

The idea of making four of her Prune Cakes and using up all the plums we’d picked was appealing. But before starting I decided to see what other ideas were available in my cookbooks as well as online. I Googled “German prune plum cake” and got an amazing number of results. The most interesting recipe was included in an article published in the New York Times. The recipe was called the Original Plum Torte or Marian Burros’ Plum Torte and is considered “the most famous recipe ever to grace the pages of the New York Times.” It’s a simple recipe that goes together quickly. The only change I made was the quantity of fruit. Afterall, my mission was to use up the majority of the 20 pounds so I increased the number of plums from 12 to 32 (whole plums, 64 halves). Even with that change I was able to place them flat and side by side on the batter. No “little soldiers” for me. About a dozen cakes later I’d used up the majority of the plums. Each cake was cut into four pieces, wrapped and frozen to later be reheated and served at breakfast or in the evening as a dessert. Did I mention we absolutely love this plum cake? It’s not overly sweet, reheats beautifully, and will be enjoyed through this next year each time reminding us of a warm fall day picking prune plums in Otti’s orchard.

Marion Burros’ Plum Torte (I prefer to call it, Otti’s Plum Cake)

1 cup all-purpose flour, sifted

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 pinch salt

¾ cup sugar

½ cup unsalted butter, at room temperature

2 large eggs

32 French prune plums, pitted and halved lengthwise

2 teaspoon of sugar and ½ teaspoon cinnamon, mixed, for sprinkling on top last 5 minutes of baking

1. Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt in a small bowl and set aside.

2. In the bowl of a standing mixer or handheld beaters, cream the sugar and butter until very light and fluffy. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula.

3. Add the dry ingredients and the eggs all at once, and beat until combined, scraping down the bowl once or twice.

4. Spread the batter into an 8 or 9-inch spring form pan or 9” square pan. Arrange the plum halves, skin side down, on top of the batter in concentric circles or side by side (8 halves across and 8 halves down).

5. Sprinkle the batter and fruit lightly with the sugar-cinnamon mixture last 5 minutes of baking.

6. Bake the torte (cake) for 40 to 50 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean. Cool the cake in its pan on a rack for 10 minutes, and then release the spring and let it finish cooling just on the base. If baked in a square pan, let cool for about 20 minutes and then remove. Once it’s cool, serve, or you can double-wrap the torte (cake) in foil, put in a sealed plastic bag, and freeze for up to one year. Note: to serve after it has been frozen, defrost completely and then reheat for 5 to 10 minutes in a 300-degree oven.

I have seen very similar recipes to this that use blueberries in place of the plums. Great idea for those of us who pick blueberries in May or June and then freeze them to enjoy throughout the year.

Verne picking blueberries June 2019

Joyce picking blueberries June 2019

Cooking Inspiration

I no sooner finished my last blog post called “Inspiration” (now called “Quilting Inspiration”) and realized I needed a second post to share another inspiration in our life. Verne and I have never lacked for sources of new recipes as we own over one hundred cookbooks purchased over the years (maybe 200, but who’s counting?), subscribe to several cooking magazines (Milkstreet is our latest addition), follow cooking blogs and podcasts, and even follow favorite chefs on Instagram (like J. Kenji Lopez-Alt of Serious Eats). I know what you’re thinking…what about the cooking channel? The cooking channel is a great source of inspiration (and education) and at one point in our lives when Verne lived and worked in Nevada, he wouldn’t miss Alton Brown’s cooking show and every day without exception I watched Martha Stewart Living here at home in Volcano. As Martha would say, “It was a good thing.” But then life changed. Verne retired and we were back spending 24/7 together. We settled into our current routine of very limited television time that is exclusively crime fiction, like the British show Midsomer Murders, and the like.

Back to the point of this blog post, two years ago we joined the MotherLode Harvest (MLH), a local CSA (community supported agriculture). The motivation behind our decision to join a CSA was not because we only eat organic or only buy locally-grown food. Our (okay, let’s be real here) my reason was purely to support the local farmers. They work hard to feed us and without our support, the small family-owned and operated farm will disappear. Not a good thing. For years we have frequented (and still do) several of the local farmers markets and have our favorite roadside stands (like Davis Ranch, Lee’s Berries, and the Oneto Farm honor stand), but the decision to join MLH was different. Belonging to any CSA requires a commitment. In our case, a commitment to buy produce on a year-round weekly basis. We don’t choose what we get each week as that is based solely on what is currently in season and available for harvest. Our box generally includes about 6 to 8 different items. Here’s what we’ll be receiving in this week’s box as an example: Baldwin apples, Bosc pears, Concord grapes, salad mix, arugula, slicing tomatoes, tomatillos, carrots, and hot peppers. Hmmm…what to do with the Concord grapes? Last week I juiced them in my new steam juicer and used it in my kombucha. I think I’ll do the same this next week. Hot peppers? Maybe I’ll pickle them with the carrots.

I didn’t realize at the time we joined MLH that this would have such an impact on our cooking and lifestyle in general. I just assumed the only real change would be the source of our food and regularity of our grocery shopping. We pick up our produce every Tuesday at 10:30 a.m. in Jackson. As we’re now in town every Tuesday, we do the balance of our grocery shopping on that day. Here’s one of the biggest changes we’ve experienced…we plan our meals based exclusively on what is contained in the box! Recipes are chosen based on those key ingredients. Recipes often include additional ingredients that we purchase either through the CSA or at our local market, but those are also typically of the same season. We no longer randomly choose recipes that include un-seasonal items (afterall, everything is available at a well-stocked market, in season or not), but instead focus on eating our box of produce. This is such a small change and one that initially completely escaped me, but has had a significant impact on the way we eat. For the most part, if it’s not grown and currently being harvested in NorCal, we don’t eat it. We have reconnected with the cycles of nature and only eat in the season! What did I tell you…Small Change, Big Impact!

Typical weekly box of produce

Another benefit of this program is the opportunity to experience a wider range of varieties of produce. For example, we’ve spent the last couple of months eating Shishito peppers blistered in our new cast iron pan and finished with one of our flavored salts. Not widely grown, they are hard to find in grocery stores. As a simple lunch or served as an appetizer, there’s nothing better. Sadly, we’ve had the last of the Shishito’s until next August when they’re again in season. Just last week we enjoyed the last of the local berries and are now focusing on apples and pears. Every week for the past month we’ve had several varieties of each in our box. We eat them fresh and in salads or as a dessert in apple-pear crisp. Num! A few weeks ago our box included a pint of Jujube's, a fruit originating in  China and grown by a local farmer. New to both of us, Verne tried one (he wasn't too keen on them) and I got the rest. This past Spring we enjoyed our second season of garlic scapes. They freeze beautifully so we are able to enjoy them throughout the year in salads. Same with turnips that are plentiful in the Spring and easily preserved by blanching and freezing. We didn't eat turnips prior to our CSA experience, but have found them to be delicious fried with potatoes, a little bacon, and a splash of vinegar. We’ve experienced several different varieties of lettuce and other greens not available at the local grocery store and four different varieties of cucumbers.The list goes on. All fresh and delicious! We are living in the season and loving it.

Although we pay a premium to participate in a CSA, I believe it is money well spent to know we contribute to farming techniques that minimize the impact on the earth. And, although the CSA food does taste better as it's picked at the peak of ripeness, I'm not convinced it's necessarily more nutritious than store bought produce. However, that wasn’t the primary reason we joined the program. Being part of the community, meeting and getting to know our local farmers and supporting their passions makes our food as real as it gets. It wasn’t trained, trucked, or flown. It comes directly to us from the farm. 

Visit with one of the MLH farmers

Years ago I visited my Uncle Ned when he was living in Pine, Arizona on acreage shared with my sister. We picked green beans together from his neighbor’s garden he was tending. We sat outside and talked while I watched him carefully trim the ends from the beans.  I could have thoughtlessly had the job done in a fraction of the time, but I still remember how his was a slow, purposeful and methodical approach. It was an act of love. He’d helped grow those beans and he didn’t want to waste any of that effort. Uncle Ned was not a farmer, but that day he was. The beans were more than nourishment to him as, I believe, they are to every true farmer. Those are the people I choose to plant, tend, and raise my food. 

Belated Birthday Gift

View of Mt. Hood from Mt. Hood Train Excursion

Last October Lauren gave Verne a birthday gift that we all enjoyed this past weekend. It was a scenic train ride on the Mt. Hood Railroad. The 45 mile round trip took us through densely wooded forests, orchards, and vineyards to end up at the southern end of the line in Parkdale, Oregon where we spent an hour walking around the town and visiting the Hutson Museum before returning to the Hood River station. Lauren popped for the Diamond Class, which included tickets on the upper most level, the Sky Dome, with panoramic views of the landscape. We opted to bring our own tasty treats for the trip rather than purchasing box lunches. Good decision! We learned a couple of things on the trip: the Hood River Valley accounts for 30% of the winter pear production in the United States and the track between Hood River and Parkdale includes one of only five switchbacks still in use in the United States. A switchback, also called a zig-zag, is a method used by trains to climb steep grades.

Mt. Hood Train Excursion

Mt. Hood Train Excursion

Dinner Saturday night was at a Korean restaurant in East Portland. One of the perks that comes with Scott’s job as quality control head for American Seafoods includes travel (and fine dining) all over Europe and Asia. His exposure to different cultures and foods makes him an interesting eating companion as there seems to be little he hasn’t tasted. Thus, we left the ordering to him and just sat back and enjoyed our two hour eating extravaganza. Our dozen side dishes were followed by several meats (plain and marinated) and shrimp that he grilled at our table as we ate. Of all the delicious food that night, Verne and I found the steamed eggs to be a favorite. The eggs were silky smooth with a texture like a perfectly done soufflé. Drizzled with one of the several dipping sauces and they were magical! As for magic, the barley tea (boricha) was delicious. If you’ve been following my blog then you know the girls and I love tea and trips to Portland always include a visit to Smith Tea, a high-end tea shop we discovered after having their Jasmine green tea at Thai Peacock. Although boricha is technically not tea as it’s made from roasted barley grains and not from the leaves of the Camellia sinensis plant, for purposes of my blog and drinking the beverage, I’ll be calling it barley tea!

The rest of the weekend was spent with Scott and his family food sourcing and included a trip to the Columbia Farms U-Pick on Sauvie Island, where we picked raspberries, blueberries, and strawberries. Since giving up the Master Food Preserver program, I have also given up much of our food preservation efforts. However, we still have a few favorite foods that we put by, including triple berry jam. Last year we made a few jars of raspberry jam and loved it, so we were pleased to find that raspberries were in full season in the Portland area. This was our first visit to Sauvie Island, north of Portland and a short drive from Lauren’s home. It’s accessed by the Sauvie Island Bridge, has a little over a thousand full-time residents (mostly families involved in agriculture) and touts over a million visitors each year, many I suspect who are there to visit one of the several U-Pick farms. We arrived when Columbia Farms opened on Sunday morning and by the time we left a couple of hours later the parking lot was full and fields active with pickers.

Picking raspberries

Lauren picking strawberries

Lauren and Scott at Columbia Farms

We stayed in Portland until mid-week to help Lauren with a couple of home improvements. This time it wasn’t a DIY, we just had to be there to let the workers in and supervise the job, which included wood flooring for the hallway and new carpet in the bedrooms. We left on Wednesday refreshed and ready to get back to our work at home, which included the wood splitting and stacking project we started with the Burkhard’s visit mid-June. In hindsight, I don’t think Raelin remembered her supportive offer in May to come up with the kids when school was out to help us during Verne’s recovery from heart surgery with some hard physical labor. I remembered! And, I was prepared to take full advantage of her offer. We spent most of one day splitting wood. Kendall operated the lever on the splitter (the highly technical part of the job), Verne held the rounds as they were split, Raelin and Sam loaded the pickup (dodging the flying wood as Verne threw the split pieces in a pile), and I supervised. It’s my specialty! My original plan was to work (them) the entire weekend, but I weakened Sunday morning and changed the plan to include an excursion to Black Chasm. It was the second trip this year for us, but a new experience for the Burkhard’s and one they seemed to enjoy…especially as it didn’t involve wood splitting or any other project from our long list. We’ve got the McKenzie boys coming for a visit later this summer. We may get through that huge pile of rounds yet!

Raelin and her precious kids, Sam and Kendall

Family fun splitting wood