Wine-Stewed Prunes and Mascarpone Recipe (2024)

This is what a good boxed red wine is made for! I now always have a jar of these prunes in syrup in my fridge. I like it spooned over plain Greek yogurt, and my husband loves it on ice cream. It is a gorgeous color and a wonderful, easy way to end a meal.

I'll second the sugar comment -- reducing the sugar to 1/2 c works just fine (not sure why the NYT tends to routinely make things so sweet!). And in the absence of cinnamon sticks, I've successfully used whole star anise here; indeed, it's become our preference.

Metric conversions for ingredients:Prunes: 1 pound = 450gramsSugar: 1.25 cups = 130grams (I use about half this)Red wine: 2.5 cups = 590mlsMascarpone: 8 ounce container = c.225grams

This was delicious and mascarpone made it sublime! Everyone at the table devoured it ! How often can you say that when you offer someone a prune or two? I too decreased the sugar to 1/2 cup.

Tastes exactly like the delicious red wine stewed prunes from Frankie’s in Brooklyn. So easy and so impressive

I was so excited to try this recipe, being a daily consumer of prunes and someone who loves the Frankies restaurants, but it just didn't do it for me. The prunes became unpleasantly chewy and the syrup was overly...acidic? It burned the back of my throat. I used a star anise for the last few minutes because I only had one cinnamon stick...I wouldn't do that again. I am toying with the idea of adding some orange peel and a clove if I make it again. The mascarpone is essential here.

Had this dessert at Frankie's Brooklyn....delicious! And it's equally delicious when you make it at home!

Can this be made in advance and reheated?

Metric conversions for ingredients:Prunes: 1 pound = 450gramsSugar: 1.25 cups = 130grams (I use about half this)Red wine: 2.5 cups = 590mlsMascarpone: 8 ounce container = c.225grams

This was delicious and easy to make. It is quite strong so not much is needed for one portion. Don’t leave out the mascarpone – it is definitely need to balance the sweetness from the prunes. The desert keeps well in the fridge and we had our leftovers a few days after it was cooked. This time we whipped some heavy cream with the mascarpone. It worked really well.

This is what a good boxed red wine is made for! I now always have a jar of these prunes in syrup in my fridge. I like it spooned over plain Greek yogurt, and my husband loves it on ice cream. It is a gorgeous color and a wonderful, easy way to end a meal.

Thought this looked delicious — and, like many recipes here, too sugary. I tried it with roughly half the sugar, followed the rest of the recipe, but added in a scant tsp of five spice powder. Maybe ended up with less syrup, but the prunes were amazingly delicious. Will definitely make this again. Don’t leave out the mascarpone — though good cream cheese blended with a little butter and milk or cream will do in a pinch.

So happy this was published! We had been enjoying it for years at Frankies 457 Spuntino on Court Street in Carroll Gardens, Brooklyn. Now that we no longer live on the east coast, all the more important to be able to relive this memory! I have never made it where it did not spark wide-eyed looks of surprise and delight.