Stewed plums with honey have no refined sugar, just a spoonful of honey to bring out the natural sweetness of the fruit. They are are delicious as an easy healthy dessert, or for breakfast. This healthy plum compote is a great way to use up seasonal plums, or to enhance supermarket fruit that might need a little extra flavour.
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Why you'll love this healthy recipe
- With a gorgeous rich flavour and colour, stewed plums with honey will enhance your porridge, healthy pancakes and oatmeal waffles. Or serve with custard or yogurt for a simple dessert.
- These stewed plums are made with no refined sugar, there is just one spoonful of honey in the whole recipe to enhance the natural sweetness of the fruit.
- A delicious way to enjoy one of your 5 a day. Plums are rich in antioxidants and also contain vitamin C and a number of other vitamins and minerals.
- Healthy plum compote with honey is very quick and easy to make with just a few everyday ingredients.
- Stewed plums can be stored in the fridge for up to 5 days, and they also freeze well. If you've got a glut of home-grown plums (lucky you!), plum compote is a perfect way to freeze them - they'll take up a lot less freezer space than uncooked fruit!
Ingredients for plum compote
Plums. You can use any variety of plums for poaching. If your plums are slightly underripe, this recipe is a great way of increasing their flavour and sweetness.
If your plums are very ripe, you can still stew them, but they'll lose their shape. Halve the water in the recipe if your plums are very ripe, and try them after 5-6 minutes of cooking time.
Honey. You'll just need a tablespoon of honey for this recipe which serves 4. There's no sugar, as the honey will naturally sweeten the plums. For vegan stewed plums, you could substitute maple syrup.
Water. Adding just a little water will mean that the poached plums have a delicious ruby red syrup to serve alongside.
Cinnamon is optional in this recipe, depending on whether you like the flavour. A cinnamon stick is perfect - you'll only need half of one as it's quite a strong flavour. Or you could add half a teaspoon of ground cinnamon.
Variations
If you're not a fan of cinnamon, you might want to try some other spices which go well alongside honey poached plums. Cardamom is delicious - just add a couple of cardamom pods to the poaching liquor. Or you could also try ginger or star anise.
Alternatively try some herbs - either bay leaf or a couple of sprigs of thyme will both complement stewed plums with honey.
Grated orange zest or vanilla extract are other options you might like to try.
How to make stewed plums with honey
Give the plums a quick rinse, then cut them in half from top to bottom. You should be able to see where the stem was attached on the top of the plum - cut from here lengthwise down to the base.
Twist the two halves apart, then prise out the stone. If your plums are a little underripe, you might need to carefully remove the stone with the point of a knife.
Add the water and honey to a pan, along with any spices that you are using. Place on a low heat, and once the honey has melted, add the plums.
Cover the pan with a lid and simmer gently for 8-10 minutes until the plums are soft. The cooking liquid will be slighter thicker, syrupy and a deep rich red.
Serving ideas
Easy stewed plums with honey and no refined sugar go perfectly with your favourite breakfast cereal. I love them with spiced porridge, or add them to your granola. Or layer the poached plums into this almond and yogurt parfait.
For dessert, sugar free stewed plums and custard are a marriage made in heaven (here's a dairy free custard with oat milk if you need it!).
For a more polished dessert, why not use honey poached plums instead of rhubarb on this healthy rhubarb custard tart? Or how about a healthy cheesecake with plum compote?
If you've got some extra plum syrup left over, it makes a delicious cordial which you can serve with sparkling water.
Frequently asked questions
Yes! Plums are rich in antioxidants as well as other vitamins and minerals. They are also a good source of fibre and can help to stabilise blood sugar levels. However, some plum compote can be high in added sugar. This stewed plums with honey recipe has no refined sugar and just one spoonful of honey between 4 portions.
It's much easier not to! If you really don't want to eat the skins, it's much quicker to remove them after the plums are cooked as they'll pull away easily. But unless there's a specific reason that you can't eat them, try to leave the skins on. As with many fruits, plum skins are particularly rich in antioxidants and fibre, so it's healthier to include them in your diet.
If your plums are fairly ripe, it should be quite easy to remove the stones or pits, either with your hands or the point of a knife. But if the plums are quite hard, and you've got lots of small plums it can be more difficult. In which case you can make the plum compote with the stones still left in. I find it best to count the plums as I put them in the pan, then you know how many stones to look for afterwards!
Stewed plums with honey will produce a thick syrupy liquid when cooked. It's ideal for drizzling over the cooked plums. But if you want to thicken the liquid further, use a cornflour slurry. Just mix a teaspoon of cornflour into a tablespoon of cold water in a small cup. Then add the mixture to the syrup and bring up to a gentle simmer for a minute. The syrup will thicken further and take on an opaque colour.
Other low sugar stewed fruit recipes
Why not try these other seasonal healthy stewed fruit recipes? They are all naturally sweetened and made without refined sugar.
If you're a fan of sweet juicy stone fruits, you might also like this peach and raspberry crumble recipe.
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Recipe
Stewed Plums with Honey
Equipment
- sauce pan with lid
Ingredients
- 450 g plums approx 8 plums
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 3 tablespoon water
- ½ cinnamon stick optional
Instructions
- Halve the plums from stem to base and remove the stone.450 g plums
- Add the water, honey and cinnamon (if using) to a lidded pan and place on a low heat until the honey is melted.1 tablespoon honey, 3 tablespoon water, ½ cinnamon stick
- Add the plums to the syrup. Cover the pan and simmer gently for 8-10 minutes until the plums soft but still keeping their shape. If your plums are under ripe, you might need to add a couple more minutes to the cooking time for them to become soft.
- Serve warm or cold.
Notes
- If it's really difficult to remove the plum stones, make the plum compote with them in and remove after cooking. Make sure you know how many stones you need to look for!
- If you don't like cinnamon, you could also try cardamom or ginger. You could also flavour your stewed plums with a bay leaf, orange zest or vanilla.
Nutrition
Please note nutritional information is per serving and is provided for guidance only.
Linda Walsh says
The plums stewed in honey cinnamon & water were just divine. Made this recipe yesterday and we had to have it again. First time we topped it with Greek yogurt natural. Now will use it porridge for breakfast and keep the rest for a dessert with cold custard. Thank you!!!
Wendy Faulkner says
Mmm, stewed plums and custard - my favourite!!
Caroline Papillon says
Wow. Exactly what I wanted after my plum tree had a bumper harvest. Absolutely delicious.
Can you freeze? And how long does it keep in the fridge?
Wendy Faulkner says
Thank you. I'm very envious of your harvest:) You can store stewed plums for 3 or 4 days in the fridge, and yes, you can freeze them too.