They take 2 minutes to prepare and 2 weeks to ‘pickle’… Pineapple! Pineapple!’s boozy prunes will have you ooohhhhing and ahhhhing with delight. You can eat them from the jar as a boozy treat, add them to desserts or have them with your favourite ice cream!! deeellich
‘No thank-you I’ve had enough’ will say no one ever once they try these prunes!
A few Christmases ago my friend gave me a small clip-close jar filled to the brim with what appeared to be some brown stuff . . . ‘Oh wow thanks!’ I said, very closely inspecting the jar. Nope, even after close inspection I had no clue what it contained, so after a few minutes I asked ‘What is it?’
‘Prunes!’ She said, ‘In gin, it’s amazing!’
I tried not to look confused. Prunes in Gin?
Fast forward a few years and I am now the person handing out little jars of prunes in gin at Christmas time, because trust me, everyone should have boozy prunes in their life! Seriously, I insist you drag out that old pickling jar right now and fill it with gin and prunes. Do it!
If I was to try and persuade you from a nutritional/medicinal point of view, I might inform you that many people believe that gin soaked prunes help relieve arthritis symptoms. Now, I’m not sure if that’s down to the juniper berry that gin is made from, which is supposed to have many medicinal properties, or maybe it is just because they taste so good that they have a placebo effect! Either way, whether you believe it or not it seems like a pretty good reason for having a little boozy treat!
So, the method is simple, you should buy the juiciest prunes that you can. I purchase ones that are in a packet, they are California pitted prunes and are very juicy. The brand is ‘Cinderella’. The brand of gin isn’t important, I use whichever isn’t too expensive, currently I am using ‘Gordons’ and it works a treat. I do add some triple sec to mine, just a good splash, not a huge amount. I found that when I didn’t use triple-sec it just didn’t taste quite as nice, it’s still delicious, but I think the triple-sec does add a little va-va voom.
You want to make sure that you fill the prunes to the top of the jar, but leave room for the alcohol to completely cover the prunes. Pack ’em in! Then once you have closed the jar you need to turn it once a day for 2 weeks. Don’t miss out this step! I make sure to leave the jar somewhere I will see it each day, so that I don’t forget.
Once you have turned them for 2 weeks they are ready to eat. I find that they last a really, really long time in the fridge once opened. I sometimes eat them after dinner as a little treat, and I use them in my cooking in energy balls, in slices, in cakes or just served with coconut ice cream. The boozy syrup that surrounds them is delicious too. They are not child friendly though so keep that in mind!
Make a batch before Christmas and give them to your friends as gifts. They will love you for it!
- 1 packet semi dried prunes (juicy ones not dry)
- gin
- cointreu/triple sec (optional)
- 1 medium sized preserving jar (I use a clip jar)
- Sterilise your preserving jar. I do this by using a very hot setting on the dishwasher and then leaving it on a rack to dry.
- Pack the prunes into the jar about 1cm from the top of the jar.
- Cover the prunes with gin and, if you have it, a dash of cointreau/triplesec. If you don't have cointreau/triple sec, then just cover the prunes completely with gin.
- Make sure that all of the prunes are completely covered and that the alcohol goes right to the top of the jar.
- Close the jar
- Keep out of the sun and make sure that you turn the jar each day for 2 weeks.
- Once opened keep in the fridge!
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