Today was the day when it was finally time to pick berries! I love having red currants in my yoghurt and smoothies. They are sour, even when they are ripe. My daughter don’t enjoy eating them straight from the bush (perhaps that is an acquired taste) but she loves the jam and lemonade I make.

I think ripe red currants looks like little jewels. They are packed with vitamin C and iron to only mention a couple benefits, if you need more reasons to indulge in them than looks and taste :)

I enjoyed a few handfuls here and there while picking the berries, but still managed to get some berries for the freezer. There are some black currants mixed in with the red ones. The red currant and black currant bushes are right next to each other, but only a few black currants were ripe, while on the other hand there were more red currants ready for picking than I had time to pick today. I planted four red currant bushes three years ago, and this was the first time they produced this abundance of berries. They have been producing a little bit year one, and a little more year two, but now there’s just SO much berries. Today was just the beginning of the berry picking season. Having access to all this goodness feels wonderful. I sometimes invite friends over so that they can fill up their freezer as well. It is very rare to find organic red currants, or red currants of any kind at a grocery store. It is possible to purchase dried red currants online, but they are every expensive. What kind of berries thrives in your area?

Maria

7 responses to “Red Currants, part 2”

  1. They sound tart like cranberries, which are delicious with just a bit of sweetener. Currants were discouraged here because of a pine rust issue of which they are host. I’ve noticed that wild ones are starting to creep back in. I wonder if we’ll be facing the same issue again in a few years?

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    1. They are somewhat similar to cranberries, but juicier. Nowadays there’s varieties of currants that are supposedly safe and doesn’t contribute to the pine rust. Hopefully people are being responsible.

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  2. We have blueberry bushes in my back yard that are most likely at least 70 years old. They don’t produce mush and the birds get everything (I have eaten a few). Blueberries grow wild around here and occasionally pick wild ones. I plant 3 new ones in the same row this year. We’ll see. There are also a lot of blackberries and raspberries around, but again the birds get them all. I am planting more so maybe we can occasionally have a few…

    I don’t think I ever had currents, black or red, until I had both in sorbet in Paris. Yum! Those two were by far my favorite sorbets every time I’ve visited!

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    1. Oooo yes they are excellent in sorbet! Blueberries are common here as well, both the cultivated ones and the wild ones. I hope you get to eat some this year :)

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  3. Beautiful pictures.

    I don’t like the regular sour ones but I have a different kind red currants here and they are now ripening here, too.

    Mine aren’t sour at all, they are very, very sweet. Sweeter than raspberries. I’ve been trying to find out more about this kind but can’t find anything about sweet red currants anywhere.

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    1. How interesting! I don’t have any really sweet red currants, but more like different kind of sour. If you do find out the name of the variety you have I would love it if you share it.

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