It’s that time of year again where we start to get a substantial harvest of red currants. As usual I’m looking for ways to use them all rather than just making enough red currant jelly to supply the whole town.
Red currants do not have a flavour that goes well in pies, tarts etc on their own so I’m trying mixing them with other fruits to see how they taste. I’m sure they have great nutritional value and must be loaded with vitamin C, especially when freshly harvested. It would be a crime to let them go to waste.
Today I’ve tried a mix of rhubarb, red currants and ginger sweetened with our own honey. I used eight good sized stems of rhubarb with about 400 grams of red currants and a very generous chunk of fresh root ginger – about 100 grams. I simply cooked the whole lot gently on a low heat allowing it to drop into it’s own juices before adding honey to taste at the end.
I’ve got to admit I wasn’t at all sure about this when I set about making it and was half expecting it to be a little too potent (I had visions of using it to unblock drains!) but was pleasantly surprised. It really is rather nice. I will be eating it chilled with a nice Greek natural yogurt. It will be a part of my packed lunches that I take to work each day this week. A pleasant and healthy change from the norm.
I’d love to hear any ideas you may have for red currants. What do you do with yours?
