Plums Please!

I have no control! I've eaten 3 plums already...and I'm contemplating my 4th! They are just so purple and delicious, I cannot get enough. Sweet + Tart, Crisp + Juicy...my taste buds have been dancing all afternoon. There are a varieties of plums {see below}, though the one I've been snacking on all day is the Damask Plum. The skin is a deep purple and very tart, the flesh is a yellowish sweet and sweet + juicy.

• Damson, or Damask Plum
• Greengage (Firm, green flesh and skin even when ripe.)
• Mirabelle (Dark yellow, predominantly grown in northeast France.)
• Satsuma plum (Firm red flesh with a red skin.)
• 'Victoria' (Yellow flesh with a red or mottled skin.)
• Yellowgage, or Golden plum (Similar to Greengage, but yellow.)

When I was in Santori's today buying produce for this weeks Catering adventures, I picked up a bag of plums...something that I usually just pass by. I am usually disappointed by most plums- too mushy, too sweet. But my gut-foodie-instincts were telling me to grab a bag. I couldn't wait, I opened the bag in the car and bit into one of these heavenly fruit...and I haven't looked back since. I'm getting ready for work now, debating over whether to take one or two plums to work with me....

A Bit About Plums...

There are few fruits that come in such a panorama of colors as the juicy sweet tasting plum. The plum season extends from May through October with the Japanese varieties first on the market from May and peaking in August followed by the European varieties in the fall.

Plums belong to the Prunus genus of plants and are relatives of the peach, nectarine and almond. They are all considered "drupes," fruits that have a hard stone pit surrounding their seeds. When plums are dried, they are known as prunes.

One of the unique things about plums is that there are so many varieties available. Not only do over 2,000 varieties of plums exist, but over 100 are available in the United States alone. So, if you are looking for a juicy, sweet tasting fruit that comes in a panorama of colors, plums are for you.

Plums are classified into six general categories-Japanese, American, Damson, Ornamental, Wild and European/Garden-whose size, shape and colors vary. Although usually round, plums can also be oval or heart-shaped. The skins of plums can be red, purple, blue-black, red, green, yellow or amber, while their flesh comes in hues such as yellow, green and pink and orange-a virtual rainbow.

Plums are rich in Vitamin C, Vitamin A, dietary fiber, VitaminB2 and Potassium.