Polish dried fruit compote is a dessert of stewed fruit eaten year-round in Poland, but it is especially popular in the fall and winter. It uses summer's bounty that has been preserved by drying, and then reconstituted with sugar, water and spices.
It is a traditional Christmas Eve (wigilia) dessert and originally was made with 12 dried fruits to represent the 12 apostles (I wonder which one was Judas?). When made thicker, it's great dolloped on toast or ice cream. It's also a great edible gift, but it must be refrigerated. It keeps for about 1 week.
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Makes 12 servings of Dried Fruit Compote
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Ingredients:
- 1 1/2 pounds dried fruits (prunes, apricots, figs, apples, peaches, pears, berries)
- 8 cups water
- 8 whole cloves
- 2 cinnamon sticks
- Lemon zest, optional
- 1 cup sugar, or to taste
Preparation:
- In a large saucepan, place fruit, water, cloves, cinnamon, zest, if using, and sugar. Bring to a boil, stirring frequently, and simmer, covered, for about 20 minutes or until fruit is tender and syrup has thickened slightly. Add more water if you like a liquidy consistency or reduce by further simmering for a thicker compote.
- Cool in an ice water bath and transfer to impeccably clean containers. Refrigerate for up to 1 week.
