Good and Good for You: Plums

 

So what happens when you mix an unexpected snow day with the first day of a free month of Netflix streaming? You end up with someone who plum forgot to do their post last night!  insert guilty sheepish grin here

In preparation for this weekend’s recipe, I did a little bit of research to learn more about plums.  I'd never really given them much attention before, but that was before I enjoyed the wonderfully delicious plum spice cake that Ximena and Ruth made for Christmas when I was in Guatemala. 

PLUMS

Turns out they are indeed good and good for you.  Plums come in a wide variety of colors – from deep reds and purples to pale yellow and white.  They range in taste from very sweet to very tart, though their smooth skin tends to the be tartest part of them.

The red and purples ones in particular are rich in anthocyanins which help with preventing heart disease and some cancers.

Plums are also full of healthy phenolic compounds that are effective in neutralizing free radicals as well as being good for good brain health.

Because plums are low on the glycerin index, they are very diet/dietary friendly.  They provide a good source of easily absorbed iron (good for the blood) and a source of carotenes (good for the eyes).

Plums in their dried state (aka prunes) are best known for their able to help regulate the digestive system and for their laxative properties (can you say prune juice?). 

Did you know that plums may have been one of the first domesticated fruits?  Along with grapes, figs and olives, plum remains have been tied to the Neolithic period thru archaeological sites.  Plums are native to Europe, Asia and North America, though they differ from region to region.  European plums are believed to be descended from wild plums that were developed and cultivated by the Ancient Romans while what are known as Japanese plums were actually native to China.

Plums are a drupe fruit, which besides being fun to say means that they have a hard stone pit that surrounds their seeds.  Plums are distant cousins of peach, nectarines, and almonds.

Plums can be consumed in many different ways – eaten fresh, baked, pickled, dried, preserved (as jam or jelly) or beveraged.  Plum juice is used to make plum wine or plum brandy, and from what I understand, in some parts of England they make a hard cider-like beverage using plums (note to self: check that out).

Interesting side note – plum pudding? Not really made of plums. In pre-Victorian England, “plum” was just another term for raisins.  Plum pudding is actually a mix of dried fruits, suet, spices, eggs and molasses and then “aged” for a month or so. 

When you buy plums, you want to look for those with smooth unblemished skin.  Don’t be put off by the waxy white bloom on their surface, that doesn’t mean they’re moldy, it actually means they are fresh.

And speaking of fresh, I’m hoping to track some down for the recipe on Sunday, but we’ll see what we can manage if I don’t.