Plum marmalade

My friend Lani sent me this awesome plum marmalade recipe, and I knew it would be great when I read it. It is!!! Our golden plum tree is bursting with ripe fruit and so I made 2 batches of marmalade. The first batch didn't set very well (my error) but the 2nd batch did. They both taste GREAT, though!

Here's the recipe as Lani sent it:

1 pound plums
1 dried ancho chili *
3 cm fresh ginger or 1 Tablespoon ground ginger *
1 vanilla bean *
0.85 cups (6 oz) jam making sugar blend
2 Tablespoons dark rum *

1. Rinse, pit, and dice the plumbs. I do not peel them because I am too lazy. It all turns to mush anyhow.
2. If you're using the chili, soak it for a few minutes in warm water, then remove the seeds and chop finely.
3. If you're using fresh ginger, peel it and chop finely.
4. If you're using the vanilla bean, cut it lengthwise and scrape the inside with a sharp knife to loosen the seeds. (Cook the plums with both the seeds and the bean pod, but fish out the bean pod at the end.)
5. Put the plums and your choice of flavorings (except the rum) in a large pot. Bring to a boil, then lower the temperature and simmer for 15-30 minutes until the plums turn to mush.
6. Raise the heat, add the sugar blend, and cook at a rolling boil for 2-3 minutes.
7. Skim carefully.
8. Remove from heat and let stand for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
9. Fish out the vanilla bean and add the rum.
10. Pour into jars.
11. It's best to let it sit for a few days to allow the flavor to develop before tasting.


My modifications:
1. I DID peel my plums. They have really tough skins and it just ruins jam.
2. Instead of a dried ancho chili, I used 1/4t ancho chili powder (from Penzey's) per lb of plums.
3. The first time I used fresh ginger, and the 2nd time I used ground ginger, but since the Penzey's ground ginger is very strong, I used 1/2 tablespoon per lb of plums.
4. I used Penzey's vanilla extract instead of the vanilla bean (it was what I had on hand) and I used 2t/lb plums.
5. Lani lives in Sweden where you can get "jam making sugar blend". Here, you can't. So, I used 3/4c sugar per lb plums, plus 1/2 pkg of pectin for low/no sugar recipes per lb plums (this was for the batch that actually set :)!). I had 4 lb plums, so used 3c sugar and 2 pkg pectin.