Wild Edible Plum Jelly
Wild plums grow in rural areas, such as meadows, woodlands and river banks, from Idaho to Quebec. They also grow in ditches known as ditch plums. You might even have some growing in your backyard or campsite. If you can't find these wild edible fruits, there's a good chance you may find cultivated plum trees in your local area, or even in a neighbors backyard.
If your neighbors are letting them fall to the wayside, you might inquire if you could come over and pick them. Why let them go to waste? You'd be surprised how often folk aren't even aware what grows in their backyards, or simply don't have the time or interest to harvest backyard edibles.
Sometimes you're not even actively looking and you'll find wild edible treats. We were camping at our site the 1st year and all the bushes surrounding us were dripping with wild blueberries. Our picnic table displayed a heaping bowl of fresh blueberries everyday. Blueberry pancakes, blueberry smoothies and dessert: wild blueberries smothered in cream or almond milk. Simply amazing.
If you can get your hands on this yummy wild edible fruit count yourself well fed. There's really so much you can do with this fruit from summer cocktails and plum folk wines, to old-fashioned wild plum ketchup; and of course, desserts, such as wild plum cakes, cobblers and pies, to plum simple syrup, jellies and jams. The sweet and tart flavors of the plum lends a perfect touch to savory meat dishes, sauces and gravies. Add a new flavor to your summer BBQ with wild plum.
If you've never worked with wild plums before, stay tuned for my wild plum recipes, and we'll have you stocking your pantry with all sorts of wild plum recipes. You'll be surprised how much you can do with this little fruit.
This is how the original prairie settlers survived and sustained themselves on the prairies with recipes from fresh, wild edibles harvested in their local environment. In Manitoba, a colder northern climate prevails, thus this is Manitoba's only wild edible fruit available. It's said when the prairie settlers migrated to Manitoba, the wild plums and berries were abundant along river banks.
So much, in fact, the south eastern region where I reside was originally named the land of milk and honey. The wild plum along with other local berries was a main staple food for the prairie dwellers. Food is love and I love food back in every way, from hunting wild edibles, growing my own organic garden, to food storage and preservation in the pantry. Recipes are a form of passing down our knowledge about the art of food. After all this effort, the art of cooking and may I add the art of love? Some of the best moments in life are sitting around the table sharing a feast of freshly prepared dishes together with friends and family. That's what it's all about folks, love. And of course, munching on fresh, tasty morsels.
I love newer eclectic recipes that take the old and make something freshly novel and brand new, but I also enjoy researching traditional recipes passed down through the generations. You can learn a wealth of knowledge from history, and sometimes it's just purely interesting how different our pasts are from our present, whether it's how we prepare food differently, or simply the differences in the art of communication.
Oft times, I find historical recipes exclude explicit directions unlike modern recipes. Why do you think that is? I found this Wild Plum Recipe (August, 19, 1858) from the Prairie Farmer Magazine (1841-1900). Brevity of the language of recipes seemed to be the fashion of the day, yet all the same you or I can glean enough to recreate the recipe today.
The word, saletarus water, stands out in the passage below. If you have no idea what this word means (I didn't) it is water with sodium bicarbonate (baking soda). Thus, you are instructed to briefly scald your wild plums in water mixed with baking soda, which will remove any bitterness from the skins.
"The wild plum makes excellent jelly. Scald them a minute in weak saletarus water to remove the bitterness from the skins. Pour that off and add pure water; boil till very tender then strain; add an equal part of sugar and boil gently for about 15 minutes. A good deal of the pulp of the plum is left, which, if pressed, through a colander, and added to half its quantity of sugar, makes a good marmalade. Boil gently and stir till done. The wild plum makes excellent pickles."
(August, 19, 1858)