We’ve just harvested a stack of plums from our tree, although the birds got most of them while we were away. We had several large beetroot in the fridge so I did an internet search on beetroot and plum chutney recipes. I collected up four recipes, only two of which had plums in them. The others had various other fruits such as dates and figs. So I made up the following using the four recipes for ideas and raiding some of our leftover Christmas fruit.

I also decided to play with my newish camera, though I know nothing about food photography.

Ingredients
2 medium red onions, diced finely
1 1/2 cups red wine vinegar
500g light brown sugar
2 granny smith apples, diced
1 kg plums, pureed
800g baked beetroot, cut into 3mm cubes
100-150gm redcurrants
100-150gm fresh or dried cranberries
1 tbsp ground ginger
1 tbsp coriander seeds
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp allspice
2 tsp salt
1 tbsp coarse black peppercorns
1/2 tsp chilli powder
3 pieces of 3-4 cm orange peel

Simmer onion in vinegar for 5 mins until it softens.

Add the rest of the ingredients.

Simmer for at least an hour until the mixture is thick snd syrupy, stirring occasionally, and then stirring frequently at the end so it doesn’t burn.

Makes 6-8 medium-sized jars.

I have to say that I’m very pleased with the result!

Now to make plum sauce, plum spread, and other plum things.