Davidson Plum
I literally jumped with excitement when we found a beautiful Davidson Plum (Davidsonia jerseyana) on our property in Northern NSW. I have spent many hours foraging for these lovely, sour, native plums, and here one is 20 metres from the door. How lucky we are.
The Davidson plum season is pretty quick, with the fruit ripening on the trunk before it falls in Summer (different varieties fruit at different times of the year). However, with one tree, you may only get a handful a day over a few weeks (shaking the tree will bring down a rain of fruit, but beware they are falling from a height - maybe wear a helmet). I find it is easier therefore to process each small batch, by cutting in half and removing the two wing like seeds, and then freezing or dehydrating the fruit.
How to make Davidson Plum powder
Dehydrated plums can then be processed in a coffee grinder to a fine powder. The colour and sourness will blow your mind. Store the powder in an airtight container in the fridge.
Davidson plum powder
Frozen plums can be used for any purpose - fruit compote, sorbet, cordial, chutney or jam.
I have only met one brave soul who likes to eat these fresh. But do try just once for the experience...
Want to take Davidson Plums to the next level? Try making a sorbet - a perfect way to showcase the tart plum. The flavour is complimented by rose and cinnamon. Orange peel is another great flavour combination. Serve as a palate cleanser, or as a dessert alongside a crumble and a sweetened cream.
Davidson plum and rose sorbet recipe
Sorbet
400g Davidson plums, seed removed
500mL water
1 cinnamon stick
1/2 tsp rose water
400g white sugar
Cinnamon crumble
1/2 cup flour
100g butter
1 cup oats
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
rose petals and Davidson plum powder to serve
1. Simmer Davidson plum, cinnamon and water until fruit is soft, approximately 15 minutes. Turn off heat and remove cinnamon. Puree with a stick blender and place through a fine sieve.
2. Return strained plum liquid to a saucepan and add sugar. Heat until the sugar is dissolved. Place in fridge to cool and then into an icecream maker until semi frozen - approximately 40 minutes for this batch. Transfer to a container and place in the freezer to set and until ready to serve.
3. To prepare the crumble, preheat the oven to 170 degrees Celsius. In a large bowl rub butter into flour and then add the remaining ingredients. I taste test this raw - you want it to be on the sweet side to balance out the tart sorbet. Line a baking tray with baking paper, spread the crumble into a single layer and bake for 15-20 minutes until golden brown. Let cool. You can store this in an airtight container in the fridge for a day or two if you are making ahead of time.
Serve the sorbet with crumble, a dusting of Davidson powder and a dollop of vanilla sweetened cream or yoghurt. If you are layering your dessert, a spoonful of stewed Davidson plum and pear is a pretty good final touch for this sweetly tart dessert.
Davidson plum and rose sorbet w/ powdered sour plums and sweet cinnamon crumble
