Drunken Prunes Recipe
- 1 tablespoon Darjeeling or other black tea leaves
- 2 cups boiling water
- 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
- 1 1/4 pounds chopped dried plums
- 1 cup Armagnac or cognac
- 1 vanilla bean, cut in half
- Stir tea and water in a small bowl; let steep for 5 minutes. Strain into a medium saucepan; stir in brown sugar. Bring to a boil over high heat; boil until slightly thickened, about 2 minutes. Place prunes in a large bowl; stir in hot syrup. Set aside to cool to room temperature, about 1 hour.
- Meanwhile, sterilize two 1-pint canning jars by steaming them upside down, their lids alongside, in a closed steamer for 10 minutes; or place in a large pot and cover by 1 inch of water and boil for 10 minutes.
- Drain prunes, reserving liquid separately. Whisk Armagnac (or cognac) into the liquid. Pack each sterilized jar with half the prunes. Nestle half the vanilla bean in each jar. Pour 1/2 cup of the Armagnac mixture into each jar. Seal and turn upside down to blend ingredients. Set right side up and store in the refrigerator for 1 week to plump.
