Plumbo jumbo

On our Sunday travels through Shropshire we found these fabulous plums for sale by the side of the road and bought the lot! - Now apart from them being the sweetest and tastiest plums I have munched on since the heady days of Knock, they were also perfect for my plum chutney...see recipe beneath.

Ingredients

1kg plums

4 red onion chopped

2 tbsp olive oil,

200 ml white wine vinegar,

6 tbsp water,

1 tsp cinnamon,

200 g demerara sugar,

*optional~I also added a big squirt of sweet chilli sauce to just give it a piquant kick~

Method

1. Cut the plums in half down the crease, twist the halves in opposite directions and pull apart. Prise out the stones and discard. Roughly chop the flesh.

2. Place the chopped shallots in a heavy-based, non-reactive saucepan with the olive oil and heat until sizzling. Sauté gently for 5 minutes until softened.

3. Add the chopped plums, vinegar, water, cinnamon and sugar. Stir until the sugar is dissolved, then simmer for about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until softened and slightly thickened.

4. Meanwhile, heat the oven to 100-120°C /gas 1-2. Place 2 clean 0.5l jars in the oven to warm. When the plum chutney is ready, spoon it into the warm jar. Seal with a lid and leave to cool completely.