Share your stories with us at letters@canadianliving.com.
When scanning recipes from the September issue, I paused at the section "Plum delicious" and thought… cooked plums? I had never eaten a cooked plum, as far as I can recall. However, the image of baked juicy plums sparked my curiosity.
I baked the Plum Upside-Down Cake, which, by the way, was delicious. Later that evening, while sneaking a second slice and still being amazed how baking a plum can draw out such sweetness, I got a call from my father.
"Have you ever eaten a baked plum?" I asked, expecting him to say no. After all, if he knew how good they are, I surely would have had them at some point in my childhood. His answer surprised me: Yes.
We talked for over half an hour about the four plum trees in his yard growing up on Manitoulin Island; climbing plum trees, picking, stewing, canning and many ways that they found to eat plums. It always surprises me what the simplest things can draw out in conversation, and it makes me think about how many of our family histories are lost just because nobody asked the right question. So, thank you for Plum Upside-Down Cake and stories that would have been lost.
By the way, wild prune plums came highly recommended. I plan to try them in the Plum Crumble recipe!
