Where do you go once you've got strawberries under your belt? Raspberries are certainly the hipsters berry of choice, whilst the health conscious among us may plump for blueberries.
I'm now in my third year of what I consider to be the connoisseur's choice - blackcurrant.
Cast your mind back to your childhood. Ah yes, guzzling ribena in the height of summer, rejecting any attempt to ween you onto Sainsburys own-brand juice, yuk! Nothing matches the silky sweet, purple-rich nectar.
Well, blackcurrants are nothing like this. They're complex in flavour, sharp and bitter at first but given the right companions make a classy breakfast choice.
Today I spotted the first sign of joys to come on my blackcurrant plant:
And just like all the best plants, one rub of the leaf releases the scent of fruit...
Now, I must admit, I've not been especially prolific with them, but this year looks promising already. If anyone has good recipes for blackcurrants, perhaps a recipe for a chewy sweet (Chewits, I'm looking at you here), give me a shout.
And just like all the best plants, one rub of the leaf releases the scent of fruit...
Now, I must admit, I've not been especially prolific with them, but this year looks promising already. If anyone has good recipes for blackcurrants, perhaps a recipe for a chewy sweet (Chewits, I'm looking at you here), give me a shout.
1 comment:
I love blackcurrants as well - I've go two bushes in the fruit patch of my garden. Just small ones, but they've produced a surprisingly impressive amount of fruit for the past couple of years. The volume of leaf seems to work in their favour - hides the fruit from the birds.
Recipe-wise, I have to admit it's mostly a case of stewing them with apple for crumbles or just compote to eat with ice-cream. Haven't tried anything more ambitious than that yet.
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