PLUM PUFFS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375°F Grease a 12-cup muffin pan.
• Mix together flour, baking powder, salt, 1/2 cup sugar, and 1/2 tsp cinnamon. Add 1 cup plum pulp (see instructions at end of recipe), cream, egg, and 1/4 cup melted butter and stir until combined (should still be lumpy, not smooth).
• Spoon batter into muffin cups to about 2/3 full. Bake about 20 minutes or until centers are set. Remove puffs from pan immediately.
• While puffs are baking, combine cinnamon and sugar. As soon as the puffs are removed from the pan, dip tops into melted butter, then into cinnamon-sugar mixture.
• To make plum pulp: Wash plums and place in a large pot. Add a little water (about 1/4 to 1/2 cup) to pot--just enough to make some steam. Cover and heat over very low heat until the fruit is soft. Pour the juice and some fruit into a colander set over a large bowl (to catch juices and pulp). Mash the fruit around with a potato masher (not too hard--you don't want to break the pits!) until most of the pulp and skins have been pressed through the colander. Discard the pits, add some more fruit to the colander, and repeat until all the fruit has been pressed through. 2 lbs of plums should yield about 3 cups pulp, which may be used for this recipe, frozen in containers or freezer bags, or made into jam. Look for European plums, not Asian plums as they are not as good for cooking.