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Jul 10, 2008 7:25 pm US/Eastern
Tony Tantillo: Dinosaur Egg Pluots
This week's
tip—we're in Kingsburg, California at the home of the Dinosaur Egg pluot,
Kingsburg Orchards.
Oh…when this comes
out every year I get so excited. I talk
about them every year because when it comes to enjoying a nice piece of fruit
this time of year, you just can't beat 'em. These pluots are just delicious,
but you have to select and store them right, and right now for this time of
year also, it's not that hard. They're all pretty good; let's talk about selection.
When you buy the
pluot, you want to make sure it has beautiful colors all the way around; that
is so important. Nice and firm, skin nice and tight, and nice and heavy for
their size.
When you bring them
home I like to say store them on the counter for 2 or 3 days at the very most
because you don't want to hold them for too long cause they're loaded with
sugar.
When you bring them
home, you know what's going to happen? You're not going to store them; you're
going to eat them right away. That's the best time to eat these Dinosaur Egg
pluots, and when you cut them open inside, take a look at these. Not only do
they look beautiful, but they taste just as good.
The Dinosaur Egg
pluot for this time of year like I said before, this is a gift from Mother
Nature.
PLUM KUCHEN
Kuchen is an old-fashioned dessert
that also doubles as a coffee cake. This one is more the former than the
latter, but it would go nicely with afternoon tea.
Serves 6
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
Pinch kosher salt
1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar
2 tablespoons cold butter, cut
into pieces
1 egg
1/2 cup buttermilk or skim milk
3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
Butter-flavored cooking spray
1/4 cup sliced almonds
1 pound Dinosaur Egg pluot plums
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/3 cup spicy plum jam
1. Preheat oven to 400°F. In a
mixing bowl, combine flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar. Add butter with a
pastry blender or large fork until texture resembles coarse meal.
2. Combine egg with buttermilk and
vanilla extract. Stir into flour mixture and mix just until combined. Spread
into the bottom of an 8x8x2-inch pan sprayed with butter-flavored spray.
Sprinkle with sliced almonds.
3. Halve plums lengthwise and cut
each half into 4 slices. Arrange plum slices on batter in rows. Spray with
butter-flavored spray. Mix cinnamon with remaining tablespoon of sugar and
sprinkle onto plums; bake in the middle of the oven 30 minutes or until plums
are tender.
4. Meanwhile, prepare glaze by
heating plum jam in a small pan or in a microwave oven until it begins to boil.
Brush on top of kuchen when it comes out of the oven. Serve warm or at room
temperature.
Cooking Tip
This dish can also be made
in an equivalent size round cake pan. If using a round pan you can make a ring
or circle pattern with the plums. Peaches and nectarines would also make a good
kuchen
