Plum Crumble

Last September, on a whim, I rescued a gorgeous box of Italian prune plums from Costco for no other reason than I simply had to behold their breath-taking shade of velvety blue-red-purple piled into the emerald green bowl on my island. That is my favorite color combination. I know God likes it, too, because He uses it so often! 

And that is when I began to seriously pursue the perfect plum crumble. Eventually I tinkered my way to this recipe, which is now my favorite thing to do with any kind of summer stone fruit. Well, other than scarf them down over the kitchen sink with their cold nectar dripping off my elbows. 

This, lovies, is tangy, sweet, spicy fruit rolling out from under a topping that is by turns custardy, crunchy, and chewy. I think I've actually dreamed about eating this. Justin says it's his favorite dessert I've ever made! 

A lovely dessert, but we also like it for breakfast. Good cold, room temperature, or warm. Just good good good every which way, really.


Plum Crumble

For the plums:

½ cup lightly packed brown sugar OR ½ cup honey
4 ½ Tbsp. flour
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground ginger
⅔ cup finely chopped crystallized ginger
about 30-40 Italian prune plums, halved and pitted*
Juice of 1 fresh lemon

For the topping:

1 ½ cups sugar (I use unbleached organic)
2 cups flour
1 rounded cup old-fashioned oats
1½ tsp. ground cinnamon
2 tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. kosher salt
5 large eggs, beaten well (4 perhaps, if extra large)
1 cup unsalted butter, melted

Position a rack in the center of your oven, and preheat to 375°F.

In a large bowl, whisk together the seasoning for the plums: the brown sugar or honey, flour, cinnamon, ginger, and crystallized ginger. Add this to the plums, and gently stir to coat. Spread the plums evenly in an ungreased 9X13 inch baking dish. (You could also divide it into two smaller baking dishes.)

In a medium bowl, combine the dry ingredients for the topping: sugar, flour, oats, cinnamon, baking powder, and salt. Whisk to blend well. Add the beaten eggs. Using your hands, mix thoroughly, pinching handfuls of the mixture to produce moist little particles. (If it still has dry patches, add another beaten egg.) Drop spoonfuls over the plums, then pat and spread with your fingers till it covers.

Spoon the melted butter evenly over the topping.

Bake for 35-45 minutes, or until the top is browned.

Serve warm or at room temperature, with crème fraîche, ice cream, or unsweetened whipped cream.

Note: Reheat slowly, in an oven set to 300 degrees or less, to avoid over-browning the crumble.


*Roughly equivalent to about 15-20 regular plums. I just use up a whole container from Costco and I never remember to count. Peaches? Eh, maybe a dozen? I'm totally guessing, can you tell? It's more art than science, so just use what you have and it will all be glorious, you'll see.

Pioneer Woman's Mushrooms Stuffed With Brie

The Pioneer Woman's first cookbook came out last week. I confess I wasn't even tempted to add it to my already abundant collection... until I made these mushrooms tonight.

Oh my stars.

I'm pretty sure I'm now seeing those Disney sparkles in the eyes of my loved ones whenever they gaze upon me. Seriously, Ree wasn't joshin' -- you have to make these. So easy, and yet they taste like you slaved over them half the day.

Behold.

Pioneer Woman's Mushrooms Stuffed With Brie

photo by Ree Drummond, aka The Pioneer Woman,

who I hope won't come after me with Marlboro Man's lasso for borrowing it.

PS. I made them with Baby Bellas, and I did use the optional splash of white wine. Which I heartily recommend.

PPS. I cannot imagine serving these without mashed potatoes to soak up the amazing pan juices. In fact, next time I make these, which may well be tomorrow, I will just make a triple recipe and a mess of mashed spuds and call it dinner. And I suspect nobody here will complain.

Ratatouille and Italian Sausage Potpie with Cornmeal Biscuits

I made this for supper last night and right this minute I'm mighty sorry there weren't any leftovers!  This was a stellar one-pot supper, my favorite kind of recipe for a weeknight.  Healthy, aromatic, and very satisfying.  Dan asked me to be sure to "put it in the regular rotation," which is high praise indeed.

Do try this while there are still some summer vegetables in the stores!  I used basil instead of parsley, and frankly, I can't imagine it with parsley, or without the basil.  I want to make this again before my basil fades away with cooler temperatures!

The recipe is from The New York Times. There are far better pictures of it here, because that blogger was smart and took her pics while the sun was still up.

Where's That Link? Vol. 1

A few recipes online that I've known and loved and wouldn't want to lose...

Crockpot Mexican Beans/Bean Soup
Serious yum. I always add several cloves of garlic, at least one teaspoon of cumin, and, after the beans are tender, a little salt. My Mema was convinced that a half teaspoon of ginger made beans more sociable, and I've come to suspect she was right. So toss in some ginger. I've tried all sorts of jarred salsas and am rarely impressed, but Herdez Salsa Casera Medium will do just fine. As close to fresh salsa as you're going to get from a jar. A pantry staple.

Martha Stewart's Always Perfect Macaroni and Cheese
Okay, for real, that's not what Martha calls it. But it is. Always Perfect, I mean. This is the only mac & cheese recipe the universe needs. It's a bit of work, but oh baby, it's dinner all by itself. And breakfast the next day. The Beehive kids always want this on Christmas Eve. And does The Mamadah make it for them? Of course she does. Because she loves her children through food, like all good mamas do. NOTE: If you love yourself you will NOT omit the nutmeg or the cayenne. Do you hear me? I mean it. We always have it with Martinelli's Sparkling Apple Cider, which we horde get from Costco. Or baked apples. Oh wow. Oh. Oh. Wow. Okay, I'll stop.


Martha Stewart's Fruit & Nut Refrigerator Cookies
This is the cookie you're looking for. Having a log or two of this dough handy in the freezer when company drops in will completely take care of that ruse you're trying to pull off that your house is always homey and you're just the kind of gal who always has fresh baked cookies coming out of the oven right when people want them. Which is all the time. Terrific cookies. We don't bother to ice them. Beware of slicing them too thin-- they'll burn or get too crunchy. About ¼ inch but not less.