There's nothing quite like a large fruit bowl bulging with beautiful, luscious stonefruit at this time of year. We were lucky enough as children to have a rambling country garden full of old fruit trees. Old-fashioned plums, peaches of all varieties, cherries and nectarines were all treasured. I remember sitting under the plum tree as a child, gorging on the fallen fruit, then climbing high into the tree and stretching out along a wobbly branch just to smell and pick the freshest and juiciest pieces of fruit.
Perched high above the ground we would then hurl the plums deemed rotten or bruised over the fence to the farm pig, much to his delight and Mum's dismay; they would have stewed up beautifully.
Indeed, it was all hands on deck in the kitchen as boxes and boxes of summer fruit were peeled, stewed, bottled and stored in colourful rows in the back pantry ready to be turned into yummy crumbles through the winter months.
Summer stonefruit are not only delicious straight off the tree, they play a leading role in many desserts, and work well with meat and poultry dishes. For the simplest of sweets, halve and grill with a bit of brown sugar and liquor. And, of course, there's nothing more delicious at breakfast than some lightly stewed fruit with your favorite cereal and yoghurt.
