A Taste of Summer

We finally delved into our first home-made Rumpot last week - hic! It has been over a year in the planning and execution, so it's nice now to savour the fruits (literally) of our labours.

I received my beautiful Rumpot for Christmas 2014, but had to wait until June 2015 before I could begin the process of filling it. The Rumpot - or Rumtopf, to give it it's traditional name - is a way to preserve fruit throughout the winter. Our freezer is always full to the brim so I wanted to try this method out. I also thought it sounded pretty tasty too!

So, in June I started with a layer of strawberries at the bottom of the pot and continued throughout the summer - adding handfuls of fruit whenever we had a glut. It holds more than I had realised so big thanks are due here to Jan and to Pat who donated extra raspberries and some great Morello cherries to the cause.

I know some of you have made this before, but for those who haven't, here is the method: each layer of fruit is covered by half it's weight in sugar then a liberal glug of rum to cover. The fruit is weighted down with a saucer to keep it submerged. It only takes a few minutes to add to so it isn't really a chore. You add layers all through the summer, then, when it's full, leave it to mature for a few months - or as long as you can resist, before broaching.

As well as strawberries, raspberries and cherries, I put in a few blackcurrants and redcurrants, plums, blackberries and pears. I also added a couple of vanilla pods and used a spiced dark rum for the alcohol content. It took two 70cl bottles to fill the pot.

After straining off the liquid and bottling for future use (plus the odd tipple for the chef!), we are now enjoying the rum-infused fruit medley in a variety of desserts. As with all preserved fruit, it is so good to eat a taste of summer at this dismal, cold time of the year.

A few things I have learned since starting are:

• You don't have to use rum. Cheaper spirits such as vodka or gin will also do the trick. Buy the booze when it's reduced in price.
• Make sure the fruit is really ripe when you add it to the pot and cut into small chunks as the alcohol will harden it slightly, especially if left for a long time.
• Adding dark-coloured berries will colour all the fruit brown. To keep the colours bright, only use pale fruits such as strawberries, grapes, pineapple and melon. We don't grow many of those here in Somerset, so it becomes a question of aesthetics: do you want to preserve your own produce or make a beautiful Rumpot? The answer may depend on the dessert you intend to make - a crumble disguises whereas a trifle is for display.
• Rather than adding to it throughout the summer, you can make the Rumpot all in one go - maybe in early autumn when there is surplus fruit.
• Dried fruit apparently works really well so this year I might add some dried apricots.

Enjoy!

Submitted by Jane, plot 9