Apple and plum

I've been dying some clothes for Isla and me. The colours remind me of apple and plum.

Apples from our fruit box delivery today.

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I'm trialing buying a weekly organic fruit box from here. I was pleased with the amount and quality of fruit. Isla approves too.

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Plums from mum's tree.
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Being stewed and bottled for later.

And being turned into tart and delicious plum butter.

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Mary Beth - I'll answer your question here in case others want to know. It really is so easy to preserve fruit :)

- For stewed plums I boil the plums up with a little bit of sugar, just to taste, until they are pipping hot. Then pour them into sterilised jars* and seal immediately. Leave them to cool and then check they are sealed properly before storing them away (The lids will kind of be sucked in and inverted if they are sealed properly). We heard some strange noises coming from the shelf a couple of days ago, Aaron suspected there was a mouse, but it turned out it was one of these jars that had not sealed properly and was starting to ferment and bubble!

- To do whole plums I squish them tightly into jars then pour hot sugar syrup over (1 part water to 3 parts sugar brought to the boil) leaving a 1-2 cm gap at the top. Put lids on and screw down tight then put the jars into a big pot of hot water on the stove top (fill with enough water to come about two-thirds of the way up the jars) and bring to the boil. Boil for about 20-35 mins. Remove and let cool. Remember to check they are sealed before storing them away.

* To sterilise my jars - I wash them with hot soapy water then put them upside down in the oven, just on the oven racks and turn the oven on to 150c. Once it reaches temperature the jars can come out, carefully, and make sure you don't put them onto a really cold surface as they may crack - a wooden chopping board is good. For the lids, boil them in a pot of water for a bit.