Simple Purple Plum Pie
Perfect Plum Pie: A Celebration of Summer's Sweet Bounty all year round 🥧
Plums can’t help but remind you of summer BUT in my home, I keep a supply of fresh frozen plums stocked in my freezer so that I can enjoy them all through the year. This beautiful stonefruit freezes exceptionally well and how lovely does a warm plum cake or pie in the dead of winter sound? That GORGEOUS deep jewel tones just scream cozy snuggly fall and winter delights - and the aroma!!! Ooooh, the smell of a baking pie is just heaven. Honestly, if you aren’t already freezing plums for year-round use I urge you to do so! You won’t be sorry. This pie is the perfect call to action to add freezing plums. I will describe how I prepare my plums for freezing deeper into this post. Meanwhile, I am currently, excitedly awaiting this summer plum crop but in the meantime depleting last year’s sweet little plums to make space in anticipation. Plum pie is an extremely efficient way to do just that!
Pie-Making Magic
There are cake makers and there are pie makers. I’m the latter 100% due to the forgiving nature of pies. You can quite literally place ANYTHING in a pie crust - savory OR sweet - pop it into the oven and MAGIC! Pop a scoop of ice cream on top and who cares what it looks like - that pie is going to be delicious. Even more so if you use beautiful ripe ingredients. Plums are just that. If your fruit is already delicious, it in pie form is going to simply amplify that flavor. SO absolutely 1000 percent taste your fruit before using it. If it is unripe and bland - no amount of ice cream or baking will save it. Pies are just a platform for ripeness expression. If you take nothing else from this post let it be that.
Exploring Plum Varieties
Did you realize that there are about 13 different types of plums?! I hadn’t realized this before doing this deep dive into all things plums. I have the absolute delight of growing two distinct types of plums at my home. The previous owner so graciously planted these and I am forever grateful for the effort. Not only do they BURST with glorious blossoms in early spring letting me know that at last my most hated season of all, Winter will soon be forgotten. BUT plum trees tend to be crazy bountiful as far as fruit trees go. In the few years I’ve lived at this property we experience a plum glut. I recall selfishly guarding my trees the first year we were here with bird netting and harvesting every last fruit! I now realize there is more than enough to go around and leave. some for the birds and many to fall to the foot of the tree where they’ll simply return to the earth and be all that helps support the mama tree. It’s a cycle I find beautiful. Before we dive into the kitchen, let's take a moment to appreciate the sheer variety of plums available. From the deep purple skin and sweet flesh of Black Diamond plums to the tangy-sweet flavor of Santa Rosa plums, each variety brings its unique charm to the table. Whether you prefer the intense sweetness of Friar plums or the delicate tartness of Damson plums, there's a plum variety to suit every palate.
I believe plum experts can wax endlessly on about the subtle flavor profiles of each plum variety like a seasoned sommelier with wine. I have to admit I do not myself possess such sensitivities and simply find ALL plums delicious, particularly at their peak of ripeness.
Preserving the Plum Harvest
Plum trees are very generous providers! And in the mad glut of a summer harvest, it can feel overwhelming to manage the abundance. Not at all a bad problem to have but I have come to deeply appreciate freezing excess fresh plums to take away some of the pressure of processing plums. To freeze plums you will want to select perfectly ripe plums. Wash them to remove any dust and dry them. I then cut the plums in half and remove the stone. Place each half, cut side down on wax paper, and place on a baking tray in your freezer for about 15 minutes. This allows the plums to freeze without sticking to one another which will make it easier to separate your plums in the future when you’re ready to use them. Freeze them in batches this way and when one set is firmly frozen simply roll the wax paper with your plums inside and place the entire roll into a freezer-proof plastic bag that you will add your remaining plums to. I find this again makes it much much easier to separate the plums and is worth the effort. Plum season while generous is also fleeting - keep that in mind.
The Importance of Plum Blossoms
I wanted to also touch upon one of the other AMAZING qualities of plums and specifically growing trees for yourself. I am fully aware that you need to reminder of the beauty and magic of a plum tree in full bloom. It’s a special kind of magic. I find plum trees in particular amongst fruit trees in bloom are particularly beautiful. The flowers are so dense and fragrant that I feel they can’t be real sometimes. And when they near the end of their time and the winds make it rain petals, it leaves me speechless. Truly. But Let us not forget that the blossom plays a vital role in the ecosystem. Plum blossoms are a beacon for bees and other pollinators, providing nourishment and sustenance. Without these industrious pollinators, the bounty of plum season—and much of the natural world—would be greatly diminished. If you don’t already have a plum tree in your garden I highly recommend it.
Without further ado, here is the recipe:
Simple Purple Plum Pie
Ingredients
Instructions
Notes
You can make your pie crust if you prefer.
If you like a tarter, more sour taste then add 1/4 cup lemon juice when tossing your plums in the sugar.
You can also add a dash of cinnamon for a more complex flavor.
How to make Purple Plum Pie
As we bid farewell to another glorious summer, let us raise a slice of purple plum pie in celebration of nature's bounty and the joys of the season. Whether enjoyed alone or shared with loved ones, a slice of plum pie is more than just a dessert—it's a testament to the beauty, abundance, and deliciousness of summer's sweetest offerings. So here's to plum season, to pie-making adventures, and to the simple pleasure of savoring life's sweetest moments, one juicy plum at a time. Cheers! 🥂
