Pastila is one of the most traditional delicacies and at the same time healthy. Preparing this dessert does not require the use of a large amount of sugar; sometimes you can do without it altogether or sweeten the product with honey. Most often, sweet and sour berries and fruits that contain a fairly large amount of pectin are chosen for making marshmallows; plums are one of them. Homemade plum marshmallow is a completely natural product, tasty and healthy. Cooking it takes a lot of time, but does not require great culinary skill.
Cooking features
Plum marshmallow can be prepared in several ways, but there are several important general rules.
- To prepare marshmallows, you need to get plum puree. If there are pieces of peel in it, this will negatively affect the taste of the product. When preparing the dessert using traditional technology, the plums are baked and then rubbed through a sieve, while the peel and seeds are separated. If the berries are crushed with a blender, you must first remove both the peel and the seeds. To grind in a meat grinder, it is enough to remove the seeds, and the peel will be crushed so that it will practically not be noticeable in the puree.
- Plum puree can thicken without adding sugar or other ingredients. To speed up the preparation of marshmallows, the puree is mixed with egg whites or thickeners (agar-agar, gelatin) are added to it. Then the marshmallow turns out similar to Turkish delight.
- You can dry the puree to the consistency of marshmallow without using kitchen appliances, but an oven and an electric fruit dryer will significantly speed up this process.
- When using an oven, set it to a relatively low temperature. If there is a convection function, it is activated. If the stove does not have such a function, the oven door is left ajar. The hob taps located above the oven are protected with a special shield, otherwise they may begin to melt due to overheating and emit an unpleasant odor.
- If you plan to dry the puree in natural conditions, it should be covered with gauze or a loose cloth to protect it from dust, insects, and direct sunlight.
- To improve the taste of the marshmallow, you can add nuts to it at the last stage of cooking.
- To prevent pieces of marshmallow from sticking to your hands, sprinkle it with powdered sugar or starch.
Pastila prepared without adding egg whites can be stored at room temperature; it will not spoil for 4 months. Treats made with proteins can be stored in the refrigerator for no more than a month. For storage, dessert is stored in glass jars or containers, less often it is kept in canvas bags.
Classic plum pastille recipe
- plums - 1 kg;
- sugar - 0.2 kg.
Cooking method:
- Wash the plums. After cutting the fruit in half, remove the seeds. Weigh the peeled plums - this is the weight you need to focus on when determining the amount of sugar required.
- Place the peeled plums in a mold, place in an oven preheated to 150 degrees, and heat them for half an hour.
- Remove the pan with the plums from the oven. Let them cool slightly. Rub through a sieve.
- Add sugar to the plum puree and stir. Place the plum mixture in a saucepan and cook, stirring, until the mixture has the consistency of jam.
- Place parchment paper on a baking sheet, place the plum mixture on it, and smooth with a spatula. The layer of fruit mass should not be thicker than a centimeter.
- Place the baking sheet in the oven and dry the plum mass for 5-6 hours at a temperature of 80-100 degrees.
Cool the finished marshmallow a little, sprinkle with powdered sugar or starch, cut into strips and roll them into rolls. In this form, place the marshmallow in a jar or container, close tightly and store in the kitchen cabinet.
How to make “Plum Pastila”
So, measure out the required amount of plums and sugar. Wash the plums under running water and allow the moisture to drain.
Divide the plums into halves and remove the pits.
Place the plums in a non-stick pan or pan with a thick bottom and walls, you can even take a cast iron. Cover with a lid and simmer over low heat for 15 minutes. During this time, the plums will give juice and soften. Don't forget to stir them with a wooden spatula.
After 15 minutes you should have a paste like this.
Add sugar, stir with a spatula.
Puree the plum mass with a blender and cook for another 15 minutes without a lid to evaporate as much moisture as possible.
Line baking sheets with baking parchment. I ended up with two large baking sheets. Spread the hot plum mixture over the paper. Now the parchment includes silicone, so there is no need to lubricate it. I immediately poured in the plum puree and smoothed it out with a spatula. The layer thickness should not exceed 6-7 mm, the ideal option is 5-6 mm, the main thing is evenly!
Dry the plum pastille in the oven for 4-5-6 hours, the oven door should be slightly open, the temperature should not exceed 100 degrees. Check readiness with your finger: if the marshmallow is elastic and slightly sticky, then it’s ready! Another way to check: bend the edge of the marshmallow away from the paper; if it comes away well, it means it’s ready. If puree remains on the paper, you still need to dry it.
Let it cool a little and remove it from the paper; it comes off easily, like rubber to the touch. Cut into strips and roll them tightly; you can store them in a glass jar or paper bag in the refrigerator. Bon appetit!
Source
Ketchup sauce “Autumn”
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Plum marshmallow without sugar
- plums - how many will be.
Cooking method:
- Place the washed and dried plums entirely in a baking dish and place in an oven preheated to 150 degrees. After about half an hour, turn off the oven and leave the plums to cool in it.
- Drain the juice from the mold into a bowl. Rub the plums through a sieve, thus separating the pulp from the seeds and peel.
- Beat the plum puree with a blender, gradually adding the previously released juice.
- Return the puree to the form and place in the oven preheated to 120–130 degrees again. To prevent the pastille from burning, the mold can be greased with vegetable oil.
- Bake the marshmallow until its layer becomes 3 times thinner. Keep the oven door slightly open during this time.
All that remains is to cool the marshmallow, cut it, sprinkle with powdered sugar so that it is not sticky, put it in jars or containers, close tightly and store in a cool place.
Plum pastille with honey
- plums - 1 kg;
- lemon - 0.5 pcs.;
- honey - 0.2 l.
Cooking method:
- Peel the plums and grind through a meat grinder. Place the puree in a saucepan and place over low heat. Boil the plum puree until it is reduced by a third.
- Squeeze the juice out of half a lemon, grate the zest from the fruit (you will need a teaspoon).
- Add lemon juice and zest to plum puree. Continue boiling it for another 10-15 minutes.
- Add melted honey until liquid, stir.
- Transfer the plum mixture onto a baking sheet greased with vegetable oil and smooth with a spatula. The optimal layer thickness is 6–8 mm.
- Preheat the oven to 100–110 degrees, place a baking tray with fruit and honey mixture in it, cook for 5–6 hours.
This way the marshmallow turns out stickier than the previous ones, but more tasty and healthy. You can also use it to sandwich cookies or use it to make other desserts.
Plum marshmallow has a pleasant sweet and sour taste, rich color, and pleasant aroma. Making it at home is not difficult, but you will have to be patient, as this process is lengthy.
This is a traditional Russian dessert. Our ancestors knew a lot of ways to process a rich fruit and berry harvest. It is believed that the method of drying puree was first used in Kolomna. Dessert from these places was even exported to European countries.
How to make plum pastille
Regardless of which recipe for making plum marshmallows for the winter the housewife uses, she needs to know that only ripe and even overripe sweet fruits are suitable for the dish. Any variety is suitable. The plums are washed thoroughly and left for a few minutes until the water drains. Then, using a sharp knife, they are cut to remove the seeds and passed through a blender or meat grinder.
The housewife can decide for herself whether to add sugar and other ingredients to marshmallows for the winter. It depends on personal needs and preferences. Even if the recipe indicates that sugar is needed for cooking, it is not necessary to use it. Gelling agents, such as gelatin, are not added to plum marshmallows. During drying, the puree becomes thick without adding these components.
In order to dry plum pastille for the winter, it is usually placed in the oven. But there are also alternative methods. Some simple recipes involve cooking in an electric dryer or slow cooker.
Important! In order for the plum pastille to dry evenly, it is made 5–10 mm thick.
Cooking in the oven
In ancient times, marshmallows were cooked in a stone oven or dried in the sun. In a city apartment, the easiest way to make dessert is in the oven.
Classic
You will need:
- 700 g plums;
- 70 g sugar.
Preparation
- Divide the fruits into halves, remove the seeds.
- Place the slices, skin side down, on a baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes at 200°C.
- Puree the cooled fruits in a blender or meat grinder.
- Grind the mixture through a sieve to remove any peel particles. But this is optional.
- Add sugar and heat the mixture over low heat for two to three minutes until the granules dissolve. It is important that the puree should not boil.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment so that the edges rise above the sides.
- Pour the mixture into a baking tray and smooth it out.
- The delicacy is dried in an oven preheated to 75°C for eight to ten hours with the door ajar. If the appliance has a convection function, the drying time is reduced to six hours.
- Turn off the gas and let the dessert stand in the oven for another hour and a half.
- Remove the dish and wait until it cools completely.
If you want to make small neat curls, you need to cut the dessert while hot with a pizza cutter. When the dish has cooled slightly, separate the strips from the parchment and roll them into snails.
Sugarless
You will need:
- 6 kg sweet ripe plums.
Preparation
- Clean the fruits. Without seeds you will get about 5-5.1 kg of raw materials.
- Puree using a blender or meat grinder. The second option is preferable, because the blender will not cope with hard peels.
- Grease a baking sheet with vegetable oil and spread the puree over it. Layer thickness is about 5 mm.
- Dry the workpiece in the oven at 100°C for five hours. The door should be slightly open.
- Cut the finished hot marshmallow into portions or roll into a roll.
From 6 kg of raw materials, about 900 g of finished product is obtained. The dessert will be slightly hard. If you are not satisfied with this result, cook it with the addition of juicy berries or fruits. Bananas can give softness and plasticity.
With apples
You will need:
- 300 g plums;
- 1 kg apples;
- 200 g sugar.
Preparation
- Place plum halves and apple slices without peel or core on a baking sheet lined with parchment.
- Bake in the oven at 150°C until soft.
- Combine the cooled fruits with sugar and blend with a blender until the mass becomes homogeneous.
- Pour the puree onto a baking sheet lined with parchment. The layer thickness should not exceed 8 mm.
- Dry for eight hours at 70°C. The oven door should be slightly open.
To make the marshmallow soft and retain maximum vitamins, dry it at room temperature. Two days on one side and two more days on the other.
With pears
You will need:
- 500 g plums;
- 500 g pears;
- star anise;
- half a teaspoon of cardamom.
Preparation
- Peel and cut the fruits into medium-sized pieces.
- Add spices to the fruit and place over medium heat for 15 minutes.
- Puree the mass. Don't forget to remove the star anise from the pan.
- Pour the puree onto a baking sheet lined with parchment. Layer thickness is about 7 mm.
- Dry the dessert for six hours at a temperature not exceeding 100°C. Don't forget to open the oven door slightly.
To determine if the marshmallow is ready, touch it with your finger. If the dessert does not stick to the skin, you can turn off the oven. Otherwise, drying must be continued.
From jam
You will need:
- plum jam;
- walnuts at your discretion.
Preparation
- Cover a baking sheet with parchment and spread the jam on it in a thin layer.
- Preheat the oven to 50-75°C and dry the workpiece for five to six hours with the door ajar.
- Grind the nuts with a rolling pin or using a coffee grinder.
- Sprinkle the hot delicacy with crumbs, cover with parchment and roll with a rolling pin so that the nuts are “stamped” into the dessert.
Apricot jam is also suitable for making marshmallows. In order for the dessert to acquire a uniform texture, it is better to rub the workpiece through a sieve.
With egg white
You will need:
- 1 kg plums;
- two egg whites;
- 200 g sugar.
Preparation
- Place the peeled fruits on a baking sheet, sprinkle with sugar and bake for 20 minutes in a well-heated oven.
- Blend with a blender.
- Beat the whites into a fluffy foam.
- Carefully fold the protein mixture into the fruit mixture.
- Cover a baking sheet with foil and transfer the egg-plum mixture into it in a thick layer of 3-4 cm.
- Dry in the oven at 60°C with the door ajar for four to five hours.
- Cut the finished delicacy into portions and sprinkle with powdered sugar, coconut or cocoa.
To make the marshmallow stick better and become elastic, use gelling agents. Zhelfix or agar-agar are suitable.
Plum pastille in the oven
Simple methods of processing fruits for the winter in Rus' were widely known. Kolomna is considered the birthplace of the recipe for drying fruit or berry puree. Sweets prepared in this city were even sent to Europe. In the old days, the delicacy was dried in stone ovens. And in modern conditions they are successfully replaced by ovens.
Peeled, seedless fruits, halved, are first lightly baked. They are placed on a baking sheet, skin side down, and placed in the oven for 20 minutes at a temperature of 2000 C. Then cooled and crushed with a blender or meat grinder. If desired, pass through a sieve to remove the peel. Add granulated sugar and place on the fire for a few minutes until all the sugar dissolves. It is not recommended to bring it to a boil.
The final and simple stage of the recipe is drying. The baking sheet is completely covered with parchment. The prepared puree is distributed in an even thin layer and sent to an oven heated to 750 C. Be sure to leave the door ajar. On average, the total cooking time is 8–10 hours. Ovens equipped with a convection function allow you to dry marshmallows faster, in about 6 hours.
Classic plum pastille
To prepare plum marshmallow for the winter according to a simple classic recipe you will need:
- 700 g berries;
- 70 g sugar.
Peel the plums, place them on a lined baking sheet and bake for 15–20 minutes. The berries should soften. When ready, remove them from the oven, put them through a blender, add sugar. Heat the sweet mass in a cooking vessel to dissolve the sugar crystals. Make sure that the contents do not boil.
Pour the plum mixture onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Carefully level it out. Turn on the oven, setting the temperature to no more than 750 C. Place a baking sheet inside and dry the marshmallow for 10 hours. Leave the door slightly open. After the delicacy is ready, it is recommended to steep it for about 1.5 hours.
Plum marshmallow without sugar
In order to prepare 1 kg of marshmallow for the winter, you will need about 6 kg of plums. The finished treat may seem harsh. To make plum marshmallow softer, the recipe can be supplemented with juicy fruits. Some housewives prefer to add bananas to it.
To prepare marshmallow, peel the fruits, remove all the seeds, and make a puree. Grease a baking tray with vegetable oil. Spread the plum puree in a layer 0.5 cm high. Place the workpiece in the oven. The temperature can be set to 1000 C, and don’t forget to leave the oven door ajar. Under such conditions, the dessert takes about 5 hours to prepare. After this time, take out the marshmallow and, without waiting for complete cooling, cut into small pieces. They can be shaped into simple rolls.
Plum pastille with apples
Homemade plum and apple pastille is a worthy competitor to an exquisite and healthy dessert. To prepare it, you need to stock up on:
- 1 kg apples;
- 300 g plums;
- 200 g granulated sugar.
Plums in this recipe give a pleasant sourness, and apples make the marshmallow more tender and flexible. Peel the apples. Cut all fruits and remove seeds. Place the plums and apples on a parchment-lined baking sheet and place them in the oven. Set the temperature to 1500 C. While the fruits are baking, keep an eye on them. As soon as they soften, turn off the oven and remove the fruits from the baking sheet. After the baked plums and apples have cooled, sprinkle them with granulated sugar. Beat everything together in a blender until smooth.
Change the baking parchment on the baking sheet, place the fruit puree on it and smooth it out, spreading it over the entire area. Make sure that the thickness of the marshmallow is equally thin, otherwise it will take a long time to dry out. At the same time, you should not make the layer thinner than 5 mm, the marshmallow will become covered with cracks and it will be impossible to roll it into rolls. Use the oven to dry. When the dessert is ready, you can cut it into long thin strips and roll it into rolls. To preserve the delicacy for the winter, you need to take plain parchment paper, put it on the marshmallow slices, put them in a container and tightly close the lid.
Important! There is a simple way to dry marshmallows. The delicacy is placed on a baking sheet and left at room temperature for 3-4 days. Then turn it over and leave for another two days.
Plum pastille with pears
To please yourself with natural plum and pear marshmallows, you need to take:
- 500 g plums;
- 500 g pears;
- ½ tsp. cardamom;
- a little star anise.
Peel the fruits and cut into small pieces. Add cardamom and star anise and place in the oven over medium heat for 15–20 minutes. Grind the baked fruit to a puree consistency.
Prepare a baking sheet with parchment. Pour the fruit mixture onto it. Dry for 6 hours at a temperature of about 1000 C, without closing the oven completely. In order to determine the readiness of the plum marshmallow, you need to touch it. If the treat is no longer sticky, you can remove it from the oven.
Dessert in fashionable devices
The arsenal of modern housewives has long been not limited to just the oven. Women have access to modern kitchen appliances, which can also be used to prepare marshmallows.
In a slow cooker
- Remove the seeds from the fruits, place them in the bowl of the device and sprinkle with sugar to taste.
- When the fruits release juice, turn on the “Stew” mode and cook for half an hour.
- Puree the mass with a blender or grind through a sieve.
- Cook in the “Simmering” mode for four to five hours.
- Pour the mixture into a flat container lined with cling film.
- Place the cooled dessert in the refrigerator overnight to help it set faster.
The finished marshmallow should be cut into square pieces. To prevent them from sticking together and give them an attractive appearance, roll them in sugar or coconut flakes.
In an electric dryer
- Puree raw plums.
- Add honey or sugar at your discretion and stir until the sweetener dissolves.
- Grease the trays with oil and spread the plum mixture in a thin layer.
- Cook for 12 hours at 65°C.
In the microwave
- Place the peeled fruits in a microwave-safe container and place in the oven. Warm up for ten minutes at maximum power.
- Grind the mixture through a sieve.
- Add sugar at your discretion.
- Heat for 25 minutes on high power.
- Cover the container with a damp gauze cloth, reduce the power by half and cook for a quarter of an hour.
- Stir the puree, cover again with a napkin and cook for another 15 minutes.
- Repeat this algorithm until two-thirds of the original puree volume has evaporated.
- Transfer the product to a container covered with film and cool.
Plums soaked for the winter
In contrast to the method described above (how to dry plums in an electric dryer), we will make a “wet” dish - soaked plums. We will use the fruits of the “ugerka”, you can take any container. We make the filling: take 10-12 liters of water per 25 kg of plums, granulated sugar - 0.5 kg and salt - 150 grams. Mustard powder - 30 grams will not hurt. Add kvass extract - one glass, 250 grams of flour mixed in two and a half glasses of water. When placing plums in a container, between layers of fruit we put celery, mint, cherry, currant, and parsnip leaves. Proportions are at your discretion. Fill all this with the prepared liquid, cover with a napkin, and put pressure on it. We keep it for a week at +20 ˚С, then for a month at +4 ˚С - +14 ˚С. Ready.
We recommend reading: How to Protect Pumpkin from Frost
Storage
Housewives prefer to store dessert in three main ways.
- In banks. Cut the treat into strips. Twist them. Place the “snails” in a clean and dry glass jar with a nylon lid.
- In parchment. Place the marshmallow on a sheet of parchment (whole or in portioned strips). Roll into a roll and secure. This can be done using thread or tape.
- In film. Roll the whole layer into a roll (to prevent the layers from sticking together, you can lightly sprinkle them with starch). Wrap tightly with film to block air access.
Pastila can be stored in a cool, dark place for up to two months. But not in the refrigerator. At low temperatures and high humidity, it will become covered with a white coating and become sticky.
Many are lovers of natural sweets and prefer to prepare such dishes themselves using fruits. One of the varieties of such desserts is pastila, the main ingredient of which is plum fruits. It is quite possible to prepare the dish with your own hands at home, but not everyone knows how to carry out this process correctly. This article will talk in detail not only about the dessert itself, but also about the algorithm and basic recipes for its preparation.
Storing plum marshmallows
You can store the finished treat rolled up in a glass jar closed with a nylon lid. You can put the jar in the refrigerator for longer storage. You don’t have to separate the product from the paper right away, but do it immediately before use.
Following these simple tips, try making homemade marshmallows. In terms of taste and beneficial properties, it is significantly superior to store-bought sweets. In addition, it does not harm the figure at all.
This is a traditional Russian dessert. Our ancestors knew a lot of ways to process a rich fruit and berry harvest. It is believed that the method of drying puree was first used in Kolomna. Dessert from these places was even exported to European countries.
Features of the dish
Plum pastille is a unique delicacy for tea, which has many positive reviews from both adults and children. This dish does not contain chemical components or preservatives. Some of the beneficial substances contained in plum fruits are retained even after heat treatment of the fruit.
Pastila has a soft texture; it can be given any shape and served as homemade sweets. You also have a huge scope for experimentation, since, in addition to plums, you can add other fruits to the delicacy, for example, apples. In addition, you have a unique opportunity to regulate the amount of sugar in the dessert; it is determined by the taste of the fruit itself, as well as personal preferences. Sometimes this dish is made sour and eaten in combination with meat and some hot dishes.
Description of preparation:
Plum pastila is one of the most delicious and sweet desserts! In addition, this dessert is 100% natural and healthy, homemade, without preservatives or dyes. Despite the small amount of sugar, the marshmallow is very sweet, and all this is thanks to the ripe plums. The color of the finished product is determined by the variety of plums. I got a brown marshmallow from yellow plums, from the eel it is darker bluish, from the Hungarian it is reddish. Try it!
Purpose: For children / For an afternoon snack / Inexpensive / Summer Main ingredient: Fruits / Plum Dish: Desserts / Pastila Geography of cuisine: Russian cuisine
Dessert recipe
Sometimes they take a much smaller amount of sugar, for example, only 70 grams of granulated sugar are added to 700 grams of fruit. If, on the contrary, you want to make a sweeter option, then you can take 500 grams of sugar per kilogram of fruit.
The cooking process must follow a certain algorithm.
- Select suitable fruits. It is desirable that they are quite ripe and juicy. This procedure will also eliminate the need to add a lot of sugar to the dish. Do not use even slightly rotting fruits to create marshmallows.
- Fruits should be washed and stems removed.
- Then cut the plums in half, remove the core and place them in the pan. At this stage, sprinkle the fruit with the juice of half a lemon and add water.
- Next, put the pan on the fire with the lid closed and bring the water inside to a boil.
- Then you need to remove the lid, reduce the heat and evaporate the fruit for 30 minutes.
- Remove the hot fruits and puree them using a blender.
- After this, add sugar and puree the mixture until it reaches a uniform consistency without lumps of sugar. This will take approximately 15 minutes.
- Then take a baking sheet and line it with baking parchment. Apply olive oil on top and pour in the plum mixture. It needs to be leveled so that the thickness of the layer filling the entire baking sheet is no more than 10 mm.
- The oven needs to be preheated to 100 degrees and the future dessert should be placed in it. The baking tray with puree is usually dried for 5-6 hours. To prevent the product from burning, it is recommended to leave the oven door ajar. If you don’t have an oven, you can dry the dessert for two or more days on the balcony. The readiness of the dessert is determined by touching it - it should not stick, and the finished sweetness can be freely separated from the parchment.
- On a baking sheet, cut the treat into portions and then remove from the paper. Afterwards the plates are rolled into a tube shape.
You can eat marshmallows by combining it with various foods. Sometimes it is sprinkled with cinnamon or vanilla is added, serving as a full-fledged dessert. To make the delicacy more satisfying, you can eat it together with various nuts - the products combine quite well.
An unusual taste can be achieved by sprinkling the dessert with sesame seeds or even poppy seeds.
Where can I cook?
You can prepare such the right sweetness not only in the oven. There are other technologies for creating natural delicacies.
To prepare a dish in a slow cooker, you need to take a kilogram of plum fruits and 250 grams of granulated sugar.
The cooking method includes a number of sequential operations.
- Clean and halved plums should be sprinkled with sugar, and then wait about half an hour for them to release their juice.
- Then put the mixture in the slow cooker, selecting the stewing mode, leave the ingredients there for another half hour.
- Using a blender, finally blend the ingredients to a puree consistency and return them to the slow cooker. You should select the simmer mode and leave the mixture there for 4 or 5 hours, stirring from time to time.
- The dish will be ready when no drops drip from the spoon when stirring. Instead, pieces should fall.
- After you have cooled the dessert, put it in a container (it must be lined with cling film on the inside) and leave for 10-12 hours or overnight in the refrigerator.
- When serving, the product is cut into small pieces and rolled in sugar or powdered sugar.
To create plum treats in the microwave, you must follow the step-by-step instructions.
Plum pastille at home (in the oven or in the dryer) is prepared very quickly! A simple recipe that does not require special culinary skills.
In winter or for the New Year, such marshmallows can be prepared from frozen plums. But even berries stored for the winter make a luxurious dessert! In the summer-autumn season, fruit sweets can be made from apricots, plums, apples, pears, grapes, cherry plums, dogwoods, quinces, and in the fall - even from pumpkins!
Homemade sugar-free plum marshmallow is a healthy dessert that can be eaten often, unlike sweets, pastries or cakes. Moreover, the delicacy is easy to prepare! The fruit puree is spread in a thin layer on a baking sheet or the tray of a dryer (dehydrator), the paste dries very quickly, there is no need to wait weeks or months, as it would be prepared in the sun.
If you prefer natural sweets without sugar, then you will definitely like it or for weight loss and energy boost.
How to cook dried plums at home in an electric dryer
Before drying plums in an electric dryer, select ripe and dense fruits without blemishes or blemishes, rinse them thoroughly under running water and place them on a dry towel to remove excess moisture. Use fruits of any variety and color for drying.
Using a sharp knife (or blade), cut the fruit in half and remove the seeds.
Transfer the prepared pieces to the electric dryer tray, trying to fill it as much as possible.
At the initial stage, set the temperature to 50 degrees and place the tray in an electric dryer for 3.5 hours. If you have a lot of fruit and use multiple trays, swap them out after every hour. When the specified time has passed, you must allow the dryer to cool completely. At the second stage, choose a higher temperature - 60-65 degrees. It will also take more time - from 4 to 6 hours. After completing this stage, cool the fruit again. At the last third stage, select a temperature of 70 degrees, the time also needs 4-6 hours. The plum should decrease in size, become dense and elastic.
Transfer the drying material into a box or jar and seal it tightly. You can enjoy the fragrant fruits for 10-12 months.
How to dry plums in the oven?
If you don’t have an electric dryer, it doesn’t matter; you can still save your large plum harvest. Every apartment has a gas or electric oven, so let’s look at how to dry plums in the oven. Line a baking tray with baking paper and evenly place the fruit halves (skin side down) on it, prepared in the same way as described in the recipe above. Heat the oven to a temperature of 40-50 degrees and place the baking sheet in it for 3 hours. If you simultaneously dry plums on several baking sheets, then once during this time you should change their places. When 3 hours have passed, increase the temperature in the oven to 60-70 degrees and keep drying for another 1-1.5 hours. After the required time has passed, turn off the oven, let the plums cool there, then take them out and dry them on the windowsill for 2-3 days (choose a shaded window, not a sunny one).
How to dry plums in the microwave?
How to properly dry plums if you have absolutely no free time and want to do it quickly? A microwave oven will help you with this. Line a microwave-safe dish with a paper towel and arrange the plum halves. Cover with the same towel and place in the microwave for 3 minutes, selecting medium power. When the signal sounds about the end of the selected process, remove the mold, remove the top towel, let the fruit cool and repeat everything again (3 minutes at medium power). Before the last third stage, cool the plums again, then set the microwave to maximum power, set the time to 1 minute and that’s it, your drying will be ready.
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How to dry plums in the sun?
Those who have a private house or a huge balcony can dry plums naturally in the sun. You will need wooden sheets; you can prepare pieces of fiberboard or plywood especially for drying fruit, and fill small slats (a kind of sides) around the edges. Place the plum halves on the sheets, cut side up, and place them in a sunny place throughout the day. At night, bring the sheets with plums into the house or barn. Repeat this for 4-5 days, then dry the fruit in a shady place for 2-3 days (a barn or veranda, or just some room, is ideal). The disadvantage of this method is that on the street all the flies and wasps from the area will flock to your drains. To prevent insects from spoiling fruits, cover them on top with thin gauze or tulle.
What to cook from dried plums?
- Dried plums at home can be used to prepare compotes, jelly, Christmas cookies, and tinctures.
- They can be added when stewing meat or while baking chicken in the oven, dried plums can be placed around, the dish will be saturated with a fruity aroma. Meat rolls are made with these plums.
- Your breakfast will acquire completely new flavor notes if you add dried plums to your regular porridge (oatmeal, rice or wheat).
- You can use them instead of raisins when baking muffins, buns, cupcakes, and also as a filling for pies. To do this, you will have to steam the plums a little and chop them finely.
- You can add dried plums to a blender when making homemade yogurt, smoothies, and milkshakes. Helpful Tips:
- Dried plums are best stored in three-liter glass jars, tightly closed with nylon or vacuum lids. In a cool, dark place (pantry, kitchen cabinet), away from sunlight, they can be stored for a year.
- You can dry any plums, but the varieties that are best suited for this are: “Hungarian” (Italian, purple and Azhan), “Arton”, “Goldan”.
- With any drying method, be sure to lay the plums cut side up so that juice does not flow out of them.
How to dry plums in the microwave?
Homemade sugar-free marshmallows
So, defrost the plums (they are already pitted). You need about 600-800 g of plums on a medium baking sheet.
Grind the resulting mass into a puree using a blender. Distribute evenly onto a sheet of parchment paper spread on a baking sheet. Dry at 50 degrees in a slightly open oven until the marshmallow becomes dense and does not stick to your hands. It will take 6-7 hours.
The finished pastille is easily separated from the parchment sheet.
You can roll it up and cut it however you like. It can be stored in an open wide container without a lid for quite a long time.
Bon appetit! Recipe from MariaS.
If not everyone, then the majority knows about marshmallows. This product was quite scarce during Soviet times and was immediately sold out when it appeared in stores.
The traditional marshmallow we know is made from apples, where dried fruits, nuts and other fillers can be added to the mixture. The finished product itself is a confectionery product that, in its taste and appearance, resembles both jam and marmalade at the same time. To give the product increased density and turn it into the same briquettes in the package, the marshmallow is dried in ovens or stoves.
This confectionery product, it turns out, is easy to prepare on your own. Let’s take, for example, a plum and make the described product from it. It turns out that plum pastilles made from plums have a number of useful properties:
- the finished product, unlike jam, retains vitamins and microelements;
- prepared without thickeners such as gelatin, pectin and others;
- absolutely harmless to children and pregnant and nursing mothers;
- the low-calorie content of the product allows it to be included in baby food;
- The specific rich taste allows this confectionery product to be used in the preparation of various porridges, meat dishes, and soups.
And the most important thing: that when preparing plum marshmallows, no special conditions or equipment are required, but only the presence of plums and a recipe.
Method for preparing plum marshmallow
Since this type of sweet is practically safe and healthy, and besides, it can also be prepared at home, why not try it.
Preparing marshmallows will require one kilogram of ripe plums and 200 grams of sugar
. Depending on the acidity of the fruit, the proportion of sugar can be increased. There are a great many recipes on the Internet, so everyone chooses the one that suits them.
So, let's get down to business and look at two or three recipes for making plum marshmallow at the same time. The difference between these methods is in minor details, but they allow you to choose the appropriate option based on your home conditions.
Option No 1
Option No 2
- Wash and dry the plum;
- Grind the seedless halves with a blender or grind in a meat grinder;
- The resulting mixture of plums is boiled in a saucepan over low heat
. You will have to stir all the time for an hour; - When the mass becomes homogeneous, continue to cook it for another two hours, stirring with a spoon. This is done until the liquid from the jam has completely evaporated;
- The resulting plum jam is placed on a baking sheet lined with baking paper. The paper is slightly greased with vegetable oil, and the jam laid out is leveled over the entire surface. To prevent the process from taking too long, the layer of jam should be no more than one centimeter;
- The plum marshmallow dries in the oven at a temperature of 100 degrees, from 15 to 20 hours. If the oven does not have convection, then it is better to keep the door slightly open to allow air to enter;
- The pastille is ready when it does not stick to your hands and does not leave traces of juice on them. The thickness of the layer of the finished confectionery product will be 3-5 millimeters;
- After all, the resulting sheet of sweets is separated from the paper and cut into pieces. Then it all depends on the cook: either leave various geometric shapes, or strips of chopped marshmallow are rolled into rolls.
Option No 3
Using these recipes as an example, there are noticeable differences in preparing plum marshmallows at home. So, some people don't add sugar at all if the fruit is sweet; someone covers the halves with sugar and leaves them for a while; others add sugar after cooking. Some people add water, others add lemon. In general, marshmallow lovers have a lot of room for creativity and invention.
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Marshmallow will make a wonderful dessert if you add nuts and a pinch of vanilla. Vanilla will give a wonderful smell to the product, and nuts will give it a special piquancy. They sprinkle it with poppy seeds and sugar, and do whatever they can to please themselves and their loved ones. In this case, experiments are only beneficial. The main thing is not to forget about proper storage: either in a tightly closed jar, or in a roll twisted from food paper and only in the refrigerator.
Methods for preparing plum marshmallows
Sugarless
Place washed and pitted plums in an even layer on a baking sheet lined with parchment. Bake in the oven until soft, grind through a sieve or grind with a blender. Spread the puree in a thin layer up to 0.5 cm on a baking sheet lined with baking paper and place in the oven to dry. The temperature should be 100-120 degrees. You need to dry the marshmallow with the oven door slightly open for about 5-6 hours. The oven door must be kept ajar to allow excess moisture to escape.
When warm, roll the finished marshmallow into a tube, or directly with paper. Before use, separate the paper.
In the video, Irina Kuzmina will tell you about the secrets of making sugar-free plum marshmallows
In a slow cooker
You will need: plums 1 kg, sugar 250 g.
Sprinkle the pitted plums with sugar and leave for 30 minutes to allow them to release their juice. Place in a multicooker bowl and set to simmer for 30 minutes. Rub the mixture through a sieve or blend with a blender. Set the simmer or multi-cook mode for 4-5 hours. The mass needs to be stirred periodically. When the puree reaches the required thickness (it stops dripping from the spoon, but slowly falls in chunks), cool it until warm. Then transfer the mixture to a container covered with cling film for further hardening. To make the mass dense, put it in the refrigerator overnight.
Remove the finished marshmallow from the container, cut into pieces, and roll in sugar.
In the dryer
Make puree from boiled or raw fruits. Add sugar or honey to taste, stir until completely dissolved. Spread the plum pulp in a thin layer on trays lined with baking paper greased with vegetable oil.
The thinner the layer, the faster the marshmallow will dry. Dry at a temperature of 65-70 degrees for 12-15 hours until ready. Roll the finished product into rolls, cut into pieces with a sharp knife, and sprinkle with powdered sugar.
In the oven
For preparation you will need: plums 1 kg, sugar or honey 250 g, lemon to taste.
Sprinkle the pitted plums with sugar and leave for a while to release the juice. If desired, add the juice and zest of one lemon. Cook over low heat, stirring until the fruits become soft. Grind the plums into a puree using a blender or sieve. Boil the plum puree over low heat for 2.5-3 hours until the mass becomes very thick. After this, spread it in a thin layer on a baking sheet lined with oiled parchment. Dry in the oven at 110 degrees, with the door slightly open, until done. Drying time is approximately 4-5 hours.
In the microwave
Cut the plums into halves, leaving the pits in place. Microwave for 10-15 minutes at full power. You should get plum porridge, which we grind through a sieve. You can add sugar to taste and lemon juice. Place the bowl with the grated plums in the microwave at full power for 25-30 minutes, then reduce the power by half. Be sure to cover the dishes with a gauze napkin so that excess moisture escapes, but at the same time the mass does not splash in all directions. Remove the plate every 15 minutes, stirring the contents. When the puree has evaporated by 2/3 of the volume, the pastille is ready. Transfer the warm marshmallow into a container and wait until it hardens completely.
Carefully remove the treat from the container, cut into pieces, and roll in powdered sugar.