Visions of sugar plums delight in summertime: Italian-style dessert (2024)

The sugar plums that ripen in summertime aren’t the ones that sweeten children’s dreams on the night before Christmas. Those sugarplums are candies made of dried fruit, sugar and spices. But the fresh, European-style plums of the same name are just as tantalizing, with their unusual oval shape, varying colors and delicate flavor. Once you discover how good they are for baking, you’ll have visions of Italian plum cake, too.

The dominant plum varieties in America, descendants of an Asian species, bring a dazzling array of colors to late-summer produce stalls. We all know the classic American plum, its maroon skin so dark it’s almost black. But cousins of the same plum can be pale yellow, red with pink flesh or even speckled pink and white in the case of the Dappled Dandy, a Pluot, or plum-apricot hybrid. They share one thing in common, though: a cute, round shape.

Visions of sugar plums delight in summertime: Italian-style dessert (2024)

FAQs

Are sugar plums the same as Italian plums? ›

In America, we call them sugar or Italian plums, and we grow them primarily to dry into prunes. (In France, the word for plum is actually prune.) Their high sugar content makes them ideal for drying and preserving.

Are sugar plums healthy? ›

Sugar plums are a source of potassium to balance fluid levels within the body, vitamin C to strengthen the immune system while boosting collagen production within the skin, and calcium to build strong bones and teeth.

Why are sugar plums associated with Christmas? ›

Sugar plums are widely associated with Christmas, through cultural phenomena such as the Sugar Plum Fairy in The Nutcracker (composed by Tchaikovsky, 1892), as well as the line, "The children were nestled all snug in their beds/While visions of sugar plums danced in their heads," from Clement C.

What is a nickname for a sugar plum? ›

Term of endearment: sweetheart, darling.

Why are they called sugar plums? ›

Instead “plum” referred to the word “good.” “Sugar plum” equals “good sugar.” Given the cost and time involved in producing them, the sugar plum was also associated with money. If someone was giving a bribe, they were said to be stuffing that person's mouth with sugar plums.

Can diabetics eat sugar plums? ›

Can People with Diabetes Eat Plums? Yes! Plums can be part of a healthy eating plan to manage blood glucose (blood sugar) levels—and their fiber content can improve digestive health and bowel regularity, support a healthy gut, and aid in weight management efforts by enhancing feelings of fullness.

How many plums can you eat in a day? ›

An adult can eat 4 to 6 fresh plums in a day depending on how big the fruits are. Children however should eat only 2 to 3 plums a day. You should avoid eating too many plums at one go. Since it is rich in organic acids, excessive consumption of plums can cause diarrhea or other gastrointestinal disorders.

Are plums a laxative? ›

Plums, like prunes, can also help keep things moving through your system. They have a lot of sorbitol, a sugar alcohol that acts as a natural laxative. High blood pressure and stroke. The potassium in plums is good for blood pressure control in two ways.

What does it mean to call a girl sugar plum? ›

A round or oval sweet/piece of candy made of boiled sugar. Wiktionary. Term of endearment; sweetheart, darling.

What is the saying sugar plums? ›

'Plum' was also 18th-century slang for a large amount of money.” The word “plum” also came to have a similar “pleasing” definition, which gave us phrases like a “plum job.” And to have a “mouth full of sugar plums” was to speak sweet words that were deceitful and insincere.

What is another name for Italian plums? ›

This plant goes by a wide variety of names including Italian Prune, Italian Prune Plum, and Fellenberg Plum. It is a European Plum variety, prunus domestica 'Italian,' that is popular in home orchards throughout the country. This stone fruit has smooth, purple skin with a dusting of powdery blue.

What can I substitute for Italian plums? ›

Although the torte is at its irresistible best when using Italian plums, standard-issue red plums and black plums — the juicier, the better — are wildly successful substitutes. Pluots, too.

What kind of plum is a sugar plum? ›

This variety of plum produces small elongated oval fruit with deep red skin and very sweet juicy yellow flesh. Semi clingstone. Needs another European variety to cross-pollinate.

Are Italian plums high in sugar? ›

Plums are low in sugar (1 cup contains 16 grams compared to 1 cup of grapes which has 23 grams) and therefore also low on the glycemic index, meaning they have only a small effect on blood sugar.

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