It's September! For the past month I've cooked incessantly with plums, raspberries, blackberries, and now, new season apples. Corn on the cob features heavily, too, this time of year. I should be cooking with tomatoes as well, but the tomatoes I am trying to grow in my garden are still a shameful green!

I've always suspected that plums make exceptionally good chutney, but in the past when I have made plum chutney I have gotten a bit carried away with adding other seasonable vegetables and fruits - heady combinations of fresh courgettes, onions, apples etc. - which have diluted the taste of the plums to the point where I can't really tell if they are there. So, this year the rule is, as it was with my gooseberry chutney (which I am enjoying very much, by the way, with strong cheddar in my frequent, solitary ploughman's lunches): keep it simple; that is, keep the flavors simple. So, here is my original plum and ginger chutney from this season, which has turned out, I am pleased to say, very fruity and plummy indeed:

Plum and Ginger Chutney

1 kilo plums (stoned weight - I used Victoria plums, but other varieties would do also)
250 grams onions, chopped
250 grams sultanas or raisins
300 grams light brown sugar
1 eating apple (I used a cox), diced
2 pieces stem ginger in syrup, chopped
50 grams dates, chopped
1 tablespoon ground ginger
1 tablespoon corinader seeds
350 mls cider vinegar
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
2-4 tablespoons ginger syrup, depending on taste

Put everything into a large, deep pan. Bring to the boil, then turn it down and let it simmer for a couple of hours, until the chutney becomes thick to the point where you can see the bottom of the pan when you stir it with a spoon. Mostly this should be done without the lid on the pan, but sometimes I sneak the lid on half way for a little while, just to help us all cope with the smell of cooking vinegar! Pack into clean, hot jars, and seal.