Mark Hix recipe: Plum cheese with cobnuts

Serves 10-1

Plum cheese with cobnuts (Jason Lowe)

This is a great thing to make when plums are in season and plentiful, or when you grow them and want some alternatives to jam. You can use a single plum variety or a mixture, up to you. It works beautifully with any kind of cheese, but I particularly like it with blue cheeses such as Stilton, Cornish blue or Blue Monday.

500g plums, halved and seeded
450g caster sugar
25-30 shelled cobnuts, roughly chopped
3 leaves of gelatine (9g)

Soak the gelatine in cold water for 2-3 minutes, then squeeze out. Put the plums, sugar and gelatine into a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan and gently bring to the boil, stirring continuously. Remove any scum that rises to the surface.

Allow to simmer for 1 hour, then pass through a fine-meshed sieve. Pour into a mould or Kilner jar and leave to set in a cool place.

Serve spooned out on to a plate or turn the jelly out and cut it into chunks. Any that you don't eat straight away will keep in the fridge, or can be stored in the Kilner jar.