Pluots are the sneaky summer hit.
Stone fruit season sends us crazy, shoveling perfect tiny plums into our mouths by the handful. Fuzzy peaches are positively revered as they’re chucked into everything from cobbler to ice cream. Nectarines are just as well known and beloved, and rightfully so. But pluots are the unsung hybrid wonder, part apricot, part plum — all part delicious.
I may have been pronouncing pluot incorrectly and calling the little gems plouts instead, for just, like, my whole life. But that doesn’t diminish my love for them.
Now that fall has officially hit, I ransacked the last bins of produce in search of my little spotted friends, snuck them home and made some jam in the hopes of keeping their tart sweetness around a little longer.
Pluot jam with wine along for the ride keeps the flavor vivacious and adds an extra layer of twang, with honey rounding out for depth. This batch comes together so quickly and good thing too — because I’ve been smothering it on everything from pork rillettes to turning it all into a salad complete with burrata (see recipe note).
Jam is just always a good idea, am I right? Especially when it keeps these delightful little stone fruits around just that much longer.
Pluot Jam with Pinot Grigio & Honey
Ingredients
- 1 LB ripe pluots about 5
- 1/4 cup pinot grigio or other crisp white wine
- 3-5 TB honey to taste
- 1 tsp orange blossom water
- zest of one lemon
- pinch of salt
Instructions
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Chop pluots into small pieces, leave skin on.
(Taste the fruit, if it’s super sweet, start with the smaller amount of honey.)
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Dump everything into a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Cover and let the mixture come to a boil.
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Uncover the pot and wean heat down to low. Simmer, stirring occasionally until the fruit has completely slumped down and dissolved into a gorgeous jammy mess. About 30 minutes.
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Taste, add the extra honey if needed and a pinch of salt.
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Store jarred in the fridge.
(You can certainly go ahead and do the whole snazzy canning thing but this is a small batch and I rarely do it because I eat everything too quick for it to matter.)
Recipe Notes
- The salad was simply sliced pluots, greens, cucumbers, and pickled red onions, topped with burrata. Thin some of the jam out with olive oil and a little vinegar, salt and pepper to taste and you’ve got a sweet and savory dressing. Lately in lieu of croutons I’ve been frying sourdough or other craggy bread and piling the salad on top.
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