Preserving stone fruit for nutritious winter enjoyment

Plums, peaches and nectarines are best enjoyed at the peak of freshness but by preserving their bounty you can enjoy summer goodness throughout the winter months.

Known collectively as stone fruit as they all have a pit or stone in the centre, each of the three fruits comprises several varieties of varying colours, tastes and textures, that ripen at different times throughout the season until early April.

March is a good time to stock up on the last fruit of the season to preserve them for the winter months ahead. Stone fruit are high in vitamin C and other vital nutrients to boost your immune system and help protect you against colds and flu.

There are several ways you can preserve stone fruit such as jams, stewed fruit, compotes, purees, coulis and chutneys. Freezing is another easy and fool proof way to stock up for when the fruit is no longer in season. Fresh stone fruit freezes well for snacking, baking and making delicious smoothies all year round. Stewed fruit also freezes easily for later use in delicious crumbles or desserts.

Food writer Karen Hart has put together her favourite stone fruit preserving recipes to delight your taste buds all year round.

Her plum jam is an easy and delicious way to preserve your plums to perk up your breakfasts and desserts.

Plum and coriander chutney is a tantalising condiment to brighten up your cheese platter. It also goes very well with roasts, especially pork.

Make the most of seasonal fruit with Karen’s plum, apple and onion relish. It’s a winner with cold meats and adds a splash of colour to any platter.

Peaches and nectarines are as versatile when it comes to preserves.

Her peach and raspberry conserve is a great way to enjoy peaches in winter. The slightly softer set than jam makes it ideal for serving with a really good vanilla ice cream or a plain sago pudding, and it is a spectacular addition to Pavlova.

Capture sweet stone fruit flavour with nectarine and pistachio jam. This recipe transforms plain jam to new levels of flavour and a bit of crunch too, just perfect on toast or as a condiment to complete a cheeseboard.

Give your braai a deliciously fruity twist with Karen’s spicy Chinese plum sauce. It will add extra zing to sticky braai ribs or use it to baste a pork joint or chops to give them extra flavour. This sauce also works its magic with stir-fries.

Hacks for freezing fresh stone fruit:

The best way to freeze fresh plums, peaches and nectarines is to ‘dry’ freeze them. Slice the fruit into bite size pieces, then lay them in a single layer onto a tray lined with baking paper. Place into the freezer and once completely frozen, place the pieces into portion sized freezer bags. By freezing the individual pieces before bagging them and returning them to the freezer prevents them from clumping. Alternatively blitz your favourite fruit and make delicious juice that can be frozen in a sealed container to preserve the fresh taste of summer.

Hacks for sterilising your jars:

Wash the jars in warm, soapy water, rinse well and place in an oven pan, lined with a clean tea towel. Place in a preheated oven at 110ºC for 10 minutes.

Remove from the oven and allow to cool.

Feel inspired by following @juicydelicioussa on Instagram or visit www.juicydelicious.co.za for more tempting stone fruit recipes.

Issued by: GC COMMUNICATIONS

Pictures: SUPPLIED