It's Damson time again

adsk

I bought 2kg of Damsons from my local market today (£1.74p per kilo or 78p per lb).

1 kg has already been turned in to jam - the rest will be stewed and frozen for making into damson crumble or damson sponge later in the year.

The one positive side of the hot spring/wet summer we've had is that it's great for British grown fruit such as plums/damsons/apples. The damsons were very large which meant that I could cut them in half, twist them and remove the stones making the process of jam making much less tedious. (I'm not sure which job I like least - skimming damson stones or topping and tailing blackcurrants)

A quick damson jam recipe for those of you who are interested

- 1kg of stoned damsons (probably about 1.25kg before being stoned) stewed in 200 ml water for 15 mins approx
- 1.2 kg of granulated sugar (preserving sugar not needed because damsons are very high in pectin) warmed in the oven added to the damsons
- bring to boil and boil for 5-20 mins testing every 5 mins for a set (a little jam on a cold plate left for 2 mins - push with your finger and if you see a skin it's ready for the jar.

Enjoy!

kethry

i got some damsons from the market last week, and made damson jam. I have to say its gorgeous stuff, OH just had it with a ham and cheese toasty (yes i know it sounds wierd), and he said it was absolutely GORGEOUS, the fruit really emphasised the savoryness of the ham/cheese.

I had half a pound of damsons left after jam making, so i popped them into a bottle of gin to make damson gin. hope it works!

i think you can also make damson chutney and damson ketchup.

you're right about the weather being good for fruits like this though. I've also made golden plum jam and am going to make dark red plum jam this afternoon - going to pop some cinnamon sticks in as well to make the whole thing a bit christmassy!

keth
xx

janetmw

We have a monster crop of damsons on our tree, best year yet. They are the larger Merryweather variety (less stones to fish out per pound).

I have just made three batches of jam using 2.5kgs (5lbs) of fruit each time. That equates to 40 jars in assorted sizes. From tree to jar in 3 hours.There is still loads of fruit left! Damson crumble on Sunday I think.

I am now looking at the laden crab apple tree!

Janet

thriftlady_2

Ooh I love 'em -I haven't had any yet, I'm planning to buy a big box in a couple of weeks (on hols next week). I'm going to make damson gin, damson chutney and damson puree.

You're right about the weather being good for them adsk, local farmshop is saying the same thing -lots of stone fruit round here, come to think of it the Lake District where I'm off to next week is damson country too

I've already made a start on my laden crab apple tree, had to cut a branch off -got 11 jars of jelly off it.

Oh I do love this time of year -and the kids are back at school soon :j

divorcingjack

Do damsons grow wild like blackberries or do you have to find a tree? All the damson recipes sound gorgeous. What do they look like?

Knowing my luck, I'd end up making jam from something totally random and posioning myself!

Are they still in season now?

Cheers,

dj (apprentice jam maker)

tiff

Yes, you can find them wild. I've been looking but not struck lucky yet. Have found a walnut and a sweet chestnut tree though which I was thrilled about, just need to get to them before the wildlife lol