I have mixed feelings about Autumn. I don’t like the colder weather, the rain or the wind. On the other hand, plums are still in season at the moment and they’re magnificent.
I love plums for their pretty hues, their friendly portability (they are great for lunch boxes) and their tart berry flavours. They’re lovely eaten just as they are but they’re equally good in a crumble or cake, too. Check out my Upside Down Plum Cake baked in honour of my childhood heroine, Anne of Green Gables.
I also like stewing plums. Refrigerated in an airtight container, stewed plums can be added to cereal or porridge in the morning, or to ice-cream, yoghurt, sago or rice pudding for a sweet treat. This dessert — Plum & Sago Pots — merely takes that simple idea one step further, adding a base of biscuit crumbs and simple nut and pomegranate seed garnish.
I make a variation of this dessert — see my Rhubarb Apple Yoghurt Pots — when I have people coming for dinner and I don’t have time to make a proper dessert. You simply cut up the fruit and stew it in a little water with spices and honey. Then once the fruit is cool, layer biscuits crumbs, your choice of middle (yoghurt, sago or rice pudding – you can buy ready-made in a pinch), and top with an appropriate nut and fruit garnish. Too easy, right? Keep these in the refrigerator until 10 minutes before you want to eat it.
There’s something very satisfying about an individually-portioned dessert – it appeases the greedy little kid in me who wants to wrap my arms around a full-sized dessert and yell, “MINE! MINE! IT’S ALL MINE!!” And if you do have any leftovers — which I can’t promise — these Plum and Sago Pots are great for breakfast the next day, too.
Enjoy! xx
Plum and Sago Pots
INGREDIENTS
- 800 grams plums
- 1/2 cup water
- 2 tablespoons honey or rice malt syrup
- 1 teaspoon vanilla bean extract or essence + 1 more teaspoon
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 1 packet gingerbread or ginger nut biscuits (approx. 200 grams)
- 1/2 cup tapioca/sago (about 90 grams)
- 1/2 cup sugar (about 90 grams)
- 3 cups milk
- 1 pomegranate – you’ll only need a 2 tablespoon of the seeds
- 50 grams roasted pistachios, shelled and chopped roughly
METHOD
- Stone plums and then cut into quarters.
- Place plums, water, honey, 1 teaspoon vanilla and cinnamon into a small saucepan and bring to the boil.
- Cover and simmer for 20 minutes.
- Meanwhile, bring tapioca, sugar, milk and 1 more teaspoon vanilla to boil in a small saucepan.
- Simmer, stirring occasionally, for around 20 minutes until tapioca is soft and translucent. Let cool.
- Meanwhile, use a food processor to grind biscuits to a fine crumb.
- To serve layer biscuit crumbs, sago, and fruit in four medium glasses and garnish with pomegranate seeds and pistachios.
- Cover with cling wrap and refrigerate until required.
NOTES
- Serves 4
- In Australia, sago and tapioca are sometimes labelled as the same thing. I used what was labelled ‘Sago (Seed Tapioca)’ for this recipe.
More Fruity Dessert Recipes
- Fig and Vanilla Bean Cheesecake
- Strawberry and Rhubarb Upside Down Cake
- Raspberry Pomegranate Layered Pavlova
- Sponge Cake with Berries and Cherries
- Passionfruit Sago Puddings
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