Can someone press pause, please? I mean on this thing called time! It seems to be stuck in fast forward all the time and I see the days zooming past me at a million miles an hour. In case you had not realized it’s already the second week of November.
I have to admit that it’s been good. I am not complaining as I’ve been on a high and enjoying the rollercoaster ride I seem to be on. The ups are good and the downs are taken with a light stride. Besides I truly believe we all need our downs in life. Without them we would not really know how to appreciate the ups all that much.
Appreciation – the little things are what really matter. And no that is not a cliché!
I appreciate these magnificent plums for example, given to me by a lovely friend. She on the other hand probably could not stand looking at them as the branches on the numerous plum trees in her garden were heavily laden with ripe fruit. She complained incessantly! Soeren and I went over with an empty basket one afternoon and picked plums till it was brimming over with the deep purple colored fruit.
The next afternoon I rang her doorbell, she opened the door, probably surprised to see me so soon again. Yes, I had my basket again but this time it contained something for her. I winked and handed her the basket and said “appreciate it!” winking at her. As I walked down the stairs I heard her say “I appreciate you!”
“Then make sure you fill that basket with more plums when you bring it back!" I replied without turning.
And she did! The card she left behind for me, neatly laid on top of the basketful of plums, simply said “I am appreciating my plums all over again, thanks to you!”
You’ve got to love and appreciate friendship based on the love of food, don’t you?
This crumble tastes divine in all it’s intermingling flavors of honey, ginger, plums in thick, sweet, syrupy juices topped off by a crunchy and nutty topping. Pulling it out of the oven and taking in the sublime scents that wafted into the kitchen was pure bliss.
I used spelt flour for the crumble topping as this adds a wonderful robust and slightly nutty flavor to the topping. It pairs extremely well with the pecan nuts and the Muscavado sugar caramelizes providing another layer of incredible flavor. I added the crystallized ginger as an afterthought and it added a wonderful vibrant body to the entire crumble. Don’t skip it!
My dear and sweet friend Deeba of Passionate About Baking is the current hostess for our Monthly Mingle this month. Deeba chose Fruit in Baking as the special theme and I am really looking forward to the entries this time. For my own humble contribution I bring my honeyed ginger plum crumble to share with you all. We hope to see you there too. The deadline is 22nd November – so make sure you are there!
Honeyed Ginger Plum Crumble
Printable version of recipe here
Ingredients
8-10 ripe plums, halved and stone removed
4 tablespoons honey, I uses a floral scented honey
30g crystallized ginger, finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon fresh ginger, very finely chopped
100g spelt flour
75g butter
75g Muscavado Sugar
50g Pecans, chopped
Method
- Pre-heat oven to 200 degrees C. Using just a smidgen, lightly butter a heatproof form.
- Place the plum halves in a saucepan, drizzle with honey and add the finely chopped ginger. Allow to simmer for just about 5-8 minutes so that the fruit is slightly soft but still hold their shape.
- Stir in the crystallized ginger and transfer mixture to the heatproof form. Spread evenly.
- In a large bowl, rub together the butter into the spelt flour until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Stir in the sugar until evenly distributed. Finally toss in the chopped pecans.
- Evenly spread the crumble mixture over the fruit and bake in the oven for approx. 15 minutes until the top is a lovely golden color.
- Remove from oven, allow to sit for a few minutes, then serve with either a vanilla custard, vanilla sauce, or ice cream.
The Food guide Tips:
- Selecting and storing plums
- Health benefits of ginger
- Pecans are good for you
Verdict
Warm – that’s the best way to enjoy the crumble with either a creamy cool vanilla sauce or a generous scoop of rich bourbon vanilla ice cream. Appreciation comes in many forms and this is one of my favorite ways to appreciate a few simple ingredients put together in such and exceptionally brilliant way.
From Plate to Page Update:
So we’ve got good news and we’ve got good news! Which do you want to hear first?
OK the good news is that the first From Plate to Page is sold out! Yes, of course we are excited that within two days of the announcement all 10 places sold out and we had a waiting list. As the 10 places were secured we began planning again.
That’s the other good news: we just announced the second From Plate to Page Workshop, which is scheduled for Autumn 2011 in Italy.
The waiting list is open for the second P2P Workshop and you can sign up now.
All four of us are blown away by this response and the interest the workshop has generated. Thank you all for all your support!
We have exciting features and stories planned on the From Plate to Page blog that will certainly interest the budding writer, photographer or stylist in you. So make sure you subscribe to the From Plate to Page feed and follow us on Twitter @Plate2Page to get your updates as soon as we release the news!
Crumbles, Clafoutis & Co. from WFLH:
Rhubarb Mango Pistachio and Amaretti Crumbles | Clafoutis - Dark Chocolate Cherry and Tahini | Clafoutis - Gooseberry Red Current & Blueberry |
All photographs and written content on What's For Lunch, Honey? © 2006-2010 Meeta Khurana Wolff unless otherwise indicated. | All rights reserved | Please Ask First
LOVE IT!!! LOVE IT!! I am crazy about plums and our season here was so very short, much too short! This crumble is outrageous! And yes thank heavens for friendships based on food as it is what brought US (and Deeba) together! xo Oh and I'll be there in a few hours with a (very large) spoon.
ReplyDeleteGorgeous looking droolworthy crumble..yumm!
ReplyDeleteShe said what I was going to...sistah power! Love love love the crumble Meeta...the robustness, the warmth, the charm...the very essence! YUM, HOLY YUM! It's reflective of the bond the spicy bunch of us share. I 'head nodded' from the beginning of your post! HEY, November, slow down ...love the 'surprise' in the basket for the plum lady! That's the way Aha, Aha, I love it!! xoxoxo
ReplyDelete{Oi Jamie...a spoon for moi too}
Beautiful and mouthwatering! I've been wanting to make a plum dessert for a very long time and am in love with addition of crystalized ginger. Believe you me, if we lived close by, I'd be running, not walking, to your place with my spoon too!
ReplyDeleteGorgeous looking crumble. Love the plums and the ginger flavors in it.
ReplyDeleteTime passes too fast, indeed! That crumble looks terrific. I love plums...
ReplyDeleteCheers,
Rosa
I love how the plums ooze out their beautiful colour juices when baked. Yes...why does time fly past so soon?
ReplyDeleteMmmm, that looks delicious! :) Petra
ReplyDeleteI cannot wait for plums to be in season here, Meeta - I'm adding this beautiful crumble to my to try list! It looks amazing! I love the idea of using spelt flour and ginger.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for all your comments and feedback.
ReplyDeleteJamie - get here already!
Priya - Thanks so much.
Deeba - you crack me up. "It's reflective of the bond the spicy bunch of us share." You are so right! Hugs!
Debra - glad you like this and yes come running with that spoon!
Sangeeta - Thank you!
Rosa - I love crumbles for exactly that reason and the crumbly topping.
Petra - thank you!
Patricia - I love using spelt flour as it adds such a wonderful nutty flavor.
I have been visiting your page more often than I originally planned to, just for that pinch of inspiration for daily cooking, the energy and good feeling :-) Thanks!
ReplyDeleteThe crumble looks lovely and I have a box of plums waiting ! Where do you pick up crystallized ginger here in Germany ?
Reformhaus ?
warm regards,
Soumya
wow, what a wonderful friend you are! good friends are a rare commodity these days! gorgeous plumb crumble!
ReplyDeleteI like the taste of ginger, it makes me will. These are great treats for kids, they look like they are having a blast!
ReplyDeleteI want to be your neighbour. And I promise to appreciate every delicious plum & ginger crumble you make for me ;o) Crystallised ginger makes the world a better place, I always maintain, and I love the nuttiness of the crumble topping. Nice stripey cloth - you MUST tell me where you got it, daaahlink ;)
ReplyDeleteGorgeous Meeta! I love the idea of adding spelt flour to the crumble...and you are def a good friend! Glad to hear it was appreciated.
ReplyDeletewow lovely food yaar the relay good Time passes , yammmmmmeeeeee
ReplyDeleteIt is truly crumble season... I am relishing the thought of a bowl of this after Sunday lunch!
ReplyDeleteThat crumble looks perfect!
ReplyDeletehello, this plump crumble is def superb dish. but i want to know some terms to understand if you can explain me . 1) spelt flour 2) muscavado sugar 3)pecans 4) cristalized ginger.
ReplyDeletepls give me subtitute if thereis any. thanks
This looks gorgeously dreamy! Delicious!
ReplyDeleteWe both seem plum crazy at the moment ;P Maybe you could try Germknoedel with plum jam instead of Powidl.
ReplyDeleteThat looks delicious and adding the crystallized ginger is genius! I am SO into anything ginger :) And I know what you mean about appreciating. My brother, who lives in North Queensland, hates his mango tree because it rots and falls on the ground and smells LOL but here I am painfully paying £3 for an average mango!
ReplyDeleteYUM. This sounds right up my alley. What pretty pictures, too!
ReplyDeleteI am not a fan of crumble, but as I come from the kingdom of plums (which is Poland in case you wonder), after reading your post, I think maybe I should give it another try.
ReplyDeleteGorgeous crumble! I love plums!
ReplyDeletehi meeta,
ReplyDeletei am a regular reader of your blog and i truly admire your pictures. i have a question...i see in your previous post that you have put some choclates on a wooden table( i suppose) without a plate on the bottom. after taking that picture what did you do with the choclate? do you eat it or throw it away? i hope you are not wasting food just for taking pictures. please continue with your good work.
It sounds like the plums are the gift that just keeps giving!! This sounds absolutely delicious!
ReplyDeleteThank you everyone for all your wonderful comments. Great to see this crumble is rocking so many tastebuds out there. Hugs!
ReplyDeleteYour event is going to be incredible, Meeta! To learn the art of writing and photography from you and your lovely co-hosts would be amazing! Congrats!
ReplyDeleteLove this crumble. Looks so delicious
ReplyDeleteI love crumble (with custard of course!) - lucky neighbour. Thanks for inspiring such a great mingle Meeta.
ReplyDelete