Orange, Thyme & South African Plums Toasted Brioche

There are so many benefits to eating food that is in season, for your health, as well as for your wallet. Another, and rather quite pleasant, side-effect of eating what is in season, is that you get a wider variety of foods in your diet. Those foods can broaden your tastes (good for all of the family to try new things), but they can also expose you to dishes and ingredients you may not have otherwise explored or even thought of trying. As a result, it can help you eat more of a well-rounded and balanced diet too. Winning, am I right? 

Many of us do eat seasonally by default, at least to a certain degree. I know that in spring and summer we love to have berries in our house (particularly strawberries as we grow our own). But then as summer turns to autumn we turn our attention to apples for things like crumbles, as well as pumpkins, and squash. Some of that will be that it is ‘just what you do’, but also because they’re seasonal and they’re easy to get your hands on, often making them a little cheaper. Expanding your horizons a little more can open your taste buds to more delicious food that you can get and prepare pretty cheaply.

So with that in mind, I’m sharing a recipe created by Nicola Millbank, using beautifully sweet and juicy South African Flavor King plums, that are perfectly in season and available in UK supermarkets until the end of April. Not only are they in season, but South African plums are high in fibre, an excellent source of vitamin A and C, low in fat, calories, cholesterol and sodium, and they are high in carotene and potassium; a superfood for sure!

The Flavor King plum is the highlight of the South African stone fruit season. It’s a unique hybrid between a red plum and an apricot, with an irresistible sweet bubblegum flavour.

The sheltered valleys between mountains in the Western Cape are ideal for the cultivation of fruit such as plums, peaches and nectarines, so if you see some South African stone fruit in your local supermarket, it is worth trying them out for their taste.

Orange, Thyme & South African Plums Toasted Brioche

Serves 2

Ingredients

• 3 South African Flavor King Plums
• Zest of 1/2 an orange
• 1 tbsp. brown sugar
• A sprig of fresh thyme
• 2 tbsp. soft goats’ cheese
• 1 tbsp. natural yoghurt
• 2 slices of brioche, lightly toasted
• Honey to drizzle
• Fresh pea shoots or rocket
• Salt and pepper to taste

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180C/ 200C fan.
2. Half and de-stone the Flavor King plums and lay skin side down onto a baking tray.
3. Scatter over the orange zest and add a sprinkle of brown sugar into the middle of each plum.
4. Scatter with fresh thyme and add a splash of water to the pan to stop the bottoms burning.
5. Bake for 10-12 minutes until soft and lightly golden.
6. In a bowl, combine the goats’ cheese and natural yoghurt and beat until smooth.
7. Spread generously over the toasted brioche and top with the baked plums, adding three halves per piece of brioche.
8. Drizzle honey over the toasts and top with fresh pea shoots or rocket. Sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste and serve warm.

Recipe found in Milly’s Real Food by Nicola “Milly” Millbank is available nationwide.

*this is a collaborative post