prune plums

[Peter A. McGraw]

What people on the list are calling "prune plums" are what I know as
"Italian prunes" (not plums).  That's also what they're called in stores,
here and elsewhere to the best of my recollection.  That's what are called
Zwetschgen in German.  A little later in the season another kind
appears--they're the same shape but bigger than the Italian prunes, and I
forget what they're called.

I always figured that the difference between plums and prunes was that
plums were clingstone and prunes were freestone.  The only thing I have to
go by is that everything labeled "plum" that I have happened to buy in a
store seems to have been clingstone, and everything labeled "prune"
(including dried prunes, Italian prunes and this what's-its-name prune that
I can't remember) seems to have been freestone.  Also, most plums seem to
have sour skin and prunes have sweet skin, but I assume that's secondary.

Peter Mc.

--On Sunday, August 31, 2003 2:45 PM -0400 David Bergdahl
<einstein at FROGNET.NET> wrote:

> Prune plums in German are zwetschgen from which an open-faced torte
> called a zwetschgendatchi is made--delicious!!  Prune plums are
> longer--less round--similar in shape to roma tomatotes.  For a recipe
> google the name.



*****************************************************************
Peter A. McGraw       Linfield College        McMinnville, Oregon
******************* pmcgraw at linfield.edu ************************