It was so hard to get among this group, I was ready to sign off. My son's farm has many fruit trees, 2 are plum's, big, moist, blue on purple, the pit is attached to the flesh of the fruit and makes it hard to prepare jam. I wish to have some idea of the proportions. I assume I will have 5 cups of fruit, I want to add some almonds and a bit of honey, about half a glass of liquid honey. What should be the amount of sugar to add and should I add pictin? If I do not find the one for jams, could I use a pack or 2 of Jelo with strawberry or peach flavor. Thanks for helping me, it will be my first time making jam although I am in my 80s. Antea

Could you be more specific then about what you are looking for? Are you wanting to mix them with other fruit of some kind? Otherwise most all the recipes for Plum Jams are the same - nothing more than the plums and various amounts of sugar. In other words, nothing unique. And wild plums are used just like any other plums and nothing unusual is required. You can mix them with just about any other fruit in equal proportions if you want something special and no specific recipe is needed. And BBB has a good recipe for Plum Conserve with orange pulp, orange peel, raisins, and chopped pecans. Page 32 in current edition. And Small Batch Preserving has a Plum Amaretto Jam. But those are the only unusual ones I can find in any of my books. Dave

I think it may be just fine. Several recipes for plum jam will read like this one: "Stir in sugar. Return heat to high and bring back to a rolling boil while constantly stirring. Add dry pectin and return to a boil while stirring. Continue to stir and boil for 1 minute, then remove from heat." Plum jam is one I don't add pectin to at all, I just cook longer and it sets reliably. Have you tried testing a bit on a plate in your freezer for about 1 minute to see if it jells? Or a spoon dipped in and coated can give you a clue too, if the jam hangs off the edge of a spoon instead of dripping off its a good indication its going to set. Let us know what happens.

I haven't done that, but here's a recipe from Delena Tull's book Edible and Useful Plants of Texas and the Southwest. Plum Jam 1 pound fresh ripe plums 1 tablespoon pectin 1 1/2 cups sugar Slice open the plums and remove the pits. Place the plums in a pot, and barely cover the fruit with water. Simmer for 5 minutes. Push the pulp through a sieve to remove the skins, or leave the skins in the jam. Place the pulp in a clean pot, add the pectin, and heat to a rolling boil. Add the sugar and reheat. Boil vigorously and stir continuously for 1 to 3 minutes. Pour the jam into jars.