Prunes | Boozed + Infused

Happy Mothers Day!

Our plans changed a bit this year, and we had to come up with a portable breakfast. What we came up with turned out to be a winner.

Remember the prune liqueur taste test from a few weeks ago? Well we still had the prunes soaking in the booze. We finally strained them and decided to make something useful.

Boozy Prune Jam

1 generous cup booze soaked prunes (half of our prunes were soaked in bourbon, half in brandy)

3/4 cup orange juice

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1/2 c. dark brown sugar

pinch of salt

– Make sure the prunes are very soft, and have soaked in the alcohol for a long time. (ours had soaked for a month, so they were very soft and spreadable inside)

– Quarter the prunes, then give them a rough chop.

– Place all ingredients in a small saucepan, and bring to a simmer on medium/low, stirring often and breaking up the prunes.

– Reduce heat to low, and continue to simmer until this reaches the consistency of a thick sauce or loose jam. (It will thicken up a bit upon cooling.) This will probably take about 5-10 minutes.

– Remove from heat and allow to cool.

– Store in refrigerator. Will keep for a few weeks.

We made some mini cream scones to spread this on, and it was perfect! In fact, this spread was so tasty, I could eat it by the spoonful. It was such a hit, I’m tempted to get a big bag of dried prunes to soak in booze for the sole purpose of making this jam and canning it (I’m a canning addict).

If you don’t have booze soaked prunes, you could probably start with dried prunes and stew them on low in a bit of water and brandy or bourbon until they get really soft. Then chop them and proceed with the recipe above.

After the success of this spread, I think we are going to start using a lot more of our booze-soaked ingredients.

Have a great Mother’s Day!

If we told you we were doing a prune taste test, would it sound like we were trying to “spruce up” the menu at a senior living community?

I had not had prunes since I was a kid. I had seen some prune infusions at bars, and love how most dried fruits turn out in liqueurs, so we thought we would do a taste test… Prune Brandy v. Prune Bourbon

You decide…

Prune Liqueur

3 oz. dried prunes

1 1/2 c. of Brandy or Bourbon

Let infuse for approximately 2 weeks. Delicious!

For the prunes, we used Newman’s Organic. They were very soft and juicy for a dried fruit, and had no added sweeteners or preservatives. We split a 6 oz bag between the 2 spirits, which turned out to be about 10 large prunes per jar.

As for the taste test, both my husband and I prefer the Prune Bourbon. My husband is a bourbon lover. He loves all bourbons, especially on their own, so that is not really a fair judgment. But for myself, I am not a huge bourbon fan. I love a good Manhattan, and there are certain other bourbon cocktails that are spectacular, but it is not typically something that I would have on its own.

Infusing bourbon has really changed my feelings about this spirit. I have to say, I think bourbon makes some of the easiest, and tastiest liqueurs we have made. It has so many flavors and sugars of its own, and they blend so nicely with nearly anything that you would choose to infuse.

The Prune Brandy is also spectacular, so don’t let this rant convince you not to try that as well. I can see why the “prune” industry has been trying to give itself a face-lift over the past few years. I believe the proper term is now “dried plums” but they will always be prunes to me… But I think I’ll start buying them more often now!

Cheers!