Autumn's red gems

The different varieties of plums available mean they have a fairly long season, with some not ripening until well into autumn. Blood plums are a great eating fruit but also perfect for cooking. The high pectin content makes them well suited to jams and thick sauces.

Plum, blackberry and hazelnut shortcake

This has a really natural, old-fashioned feel to it. The fruit makes for a gooey, jammy core and the rich, crumbly shortcake is packed with flavour. It's great warm from the oven with a dollop of cream. It becomes more cake-like the next day and is delicious cold.

Filling

8 large ripe blood plums

3 tbsp light brown sugar, plus extra to garnish

½ lemon, juiced

1 punnet fresh blackberries

1 handful toasted hazelnuts, roughly chopped

Shortcake

150g plain flour

30g cornflour

1½ tsp baking powder

100g hazelnut meal

½ tsp ground cloves

160g butter, at room temperature

140g castor sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 egg

1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees. Grease and line a 22- to 24-centimetre springform tin.

2. For the filling, slice the plums in half and pit. Place the halves into a ceramic dish and toss with brown sugar and lemon juice. Allow to sit, cut-side down, for 10 minutes, then bake for 25 minutes or until the plums are just starting to collapse. Remove plums and set aside on kitchen paper.

3. For the shortcake, mix the flour, cornflour, baking powder, hazelnut meal and cloves together.

4. In a large bowl, beat the butter, sugar and vanilla extract until pale and light. Beat in the egg, then add the flour mix and thoroughly combine to a thick paste.

5. Scoop two-thirds of the shortcake into the tin and press into the base and up the sides in the shape of a shallow basin. Place the plums on the dough, cut-side up, scatter over the blackberries, and dab pinches of the remaining shortcake over the top, leaving some of the fruit showing.

6. Sprinkle some extra brown sugar and the hazelnuts on the shortcake blobs and bake for 30-40 minutes or until light golden. Allow to cool a little before unmoulding and slicing.

Drink Rutherglen muscat.

Serves 8

Spiced blood plum sauce

This sauce is perfect with roasted and grilled poultry or pork, and as a dipping sauce for fried wontons or spring rolls. Make it when plums are abundant and bottle some gift-size jars for friends.

2.5kg blood plums, pitted and roughly chopped

350g red onion, finely diced

6 large cloves garlic, finely grated

15cm piece ginger, peeled and finely grated

3 large red chillies, sliced, seeds in

700g light brown sugar

300g castor sugar

3 tsp ground ginger

2 bay leaves

4 star anise

2 tsp brown mustard seeds

1 tsp dried chilli flakes

2 tbsp salt flakes

800ml red wine vinegar

2 tbsp shrimp paste

300g tamarind puree

1. Add all the ingredients, except the shrimp paste and the tamarind, to a large, heavy and wide-based pot and bring to the boil. Stir well, reduce to a simmer and cook for 1½ hours.

2. Flatten out the shrimp paste in a piece of foil, wrap and add to a small frying pan over medium heat for 2 or 3 minutes, being careful not to dry it out too much. Remove from the foil and add to the sauce, along with the tamarind puree. Stir through and continue cooking for another 25 minutes or until the sauce is thick and syrupy.

3. Pour the plum sauce into clean jars and store for at least 24 hours in the fridge before using.

Makes about 2 litres

Walnut meringue kisses with roasted blood plums

This is my kind of dessert. Although there is a little technique involved, everything is done well before dinner and a quick assembly results in an elegant and pretty dish.

Roasted plums

12 ripe blood plums, split and pitted

4 tbsp muscovado or light-brown sugar

1 lemon, juiced

double cream, to serve

1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees. Place plums in a ceramic dish, mix with sugar and lemon juice, let sit for 10 minutes cut side down. Bake for 25 minutes or until the plums are fully cooked and starting to collapse.

2. Take the plums from the liquid; reduce liquid in a saucepan on the stove until syrupy.

Brown-sugar meringues

80g light-brown sugar, plus extra to garnish

4 large egg whites

100g castor sugar

2 tsp ground cloves

2 tbsp toasted walnuts, finely chopped

1. Preheat oven to 100 degrees fan-forced or 120 degrees conventional. Line two baking trays with baking paper.

2. Sift brown sugar into a bowl. Set aside.

3. Beat egg whites to soft peaks. Rain the castor sugar into the whites in three lots, beating as you go, until the whites are glossy and thick. With the motor still running, steadily rain in the brown sugar, then mix for five more minutes on high speed.

4. Spoon teaspoon-sized blobs of meringue onto the lined trays, leaving space between.

5. Sprinkle over the ground cloves, toasted walnuts and extra brown sugar.

6. Bake for about 90 minutes or until the meringues are dehydrated and crisp. Turn the oven off and leave the door ajar until the meringues are quite cold.

7. Serve the plum halves in glasses with a splash of the plum syrup, a dollop of cream and the walnut meringue kisses on top.

Drink: Blush a glass of fizz with some of the plum syrup (if you want it sweeter, you can add more sugar syrup).

Serves 8