There are always loads of recipes I'd like to try but lose them before I do. This is where I can record recipes I find interesting and keep notes on my experiments with them.

I have a system that I've adopted for working through recipes:

1 - New recipes are saved to the Experimental Mouffette and is labeled : Untested
2 - As I'm working out the changes I'd like to make (if any) it is labeled : Testing
3 - Once I think I've got the correct formula it is labeled : Test 1
4 - IF I am able to reproduce the effect a second time it is labeled : Test 2 - if I am not able to reproduce the effect, it remains Test 1
5 - The same process as step 4 is used to graduate it to Test 3
6 - Once I have been able to reproduce the effect successfully 3 times, it graduates to my main blog, La Mouffette Gourmande

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Friday, August 7, 2026

June Drop Italian Prune Plum Jam - Untested

1 - We got a bunch of the little Italian Prune plums that fell off in the natural pruning of fruit the trees do, and discovered they have the delightful name of June Drops. This is very experimental. A detail which may be important is that it is now August and they have been sitting on the ground all this time, and so have purpled. Apparently that means that their flavor will have changed and the pectin lowered, but still not as flavorful as fruit ripened on the tree.

1,437 g whole ripe wrinkled Italian prune plums
750 g sugar
30 g lemon juice (2 Tbsp)
75 g water

1. Put the whole plums, water, and lemon juice into a heavy pot.
2. Cover and cook gently for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the fruit collapses completely.
3. Add the sugar and stir until it is dissolved.
4. Simmer, uncovered, for 25–35 minutes, stirring frequently and crushing the fruit with a potato masher as it softens.
5. When the mixture is thick, glossy, and beginning to mound slightly on the spoon—but is still a little looser than finished jam—remove it from the heat.
6. Pass everything through a sieve. The pits and any coarse skin fragments will remain behind.
7. Return the milled pulp to the pot and boil for 3–8 minutes, stirring constantly, until it reaches 104–105°C (219–221°F) or wrinkles on a chilled plate.
8. Let it rest for 5 minutes, stir once, and ladle into hot sterilized jars.

OPTIONAL
During the long simmer, add 1 small cinnamon stick and remove it before milling. With prune plums, a whole stick gives a subtle warm background note without making the jam taste overtly spiced or “Christmas-like.”

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