It'll Be All White On The Night

This, my friends...

is The Whitecurrant.

Sometimes referred to as the pink or yellow currant, it is a member of the genus Ribes (This is why Ribena is called Ribena). The flowers are a pale yellow-green, maturing into translucent berries with a pink to white hue. White currant berries are a bit smaller and sweeter than red currants. They are sometimes used to make "pink" jams and jellies (a mixture of white and red). The white currant is actually an albino cultivar of the red currant, but is marketed as a different fruit.

So what can one make with whitecurrants? Well, pretty much anything you can make with blackcurrants. I bought some a few weeks ago and made a raspberry and whitecurrant crumble, which didn't even need any extra sugar, the berries are that sweet.

Gordon Ramsay may be a loudmouthed obnoxious arrogant prick to some, but he does know his nosh. Here is a link to a recipe for his Redcurrant, Whitecurrant and Cherry Fool. http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/food_and_drink/recipes/article1962827.ece

And here's a recipe for Whitecurrant Wine...

WHITECURRANT WINE 

3 lbs whitecurrants 

2¾-3 lbs finely granulated sugar 

7 pts water 

1 tsp yeast nutrient 

1 pkt Burgundy wine yeast 

Put the fruit in primary and crush. Add 1 quart water and crushed Campden tablet and stir. Cover and set aside for 12 hours. Strain pulp through nylon straining bag, squeezing firmly. Suspend a jelly bag over a bowl and pour the strained juice into the bag. Allow this to drip-drain without squeezing. Do not rush. When all juice is through, pour into stainless steel saucepan and bring to boil. Reduce to simmer and hold for 5 minutes, removing any scum that rises. Meanwhile, add half the sugar to 1 quart of water and bring to boil while stirring to dissolve. Pour both the sugar-water and boiled juice into clean primary, stir in yeast nutrient, cover, and set aside to cool. Add activated yeast, recover and stir daily for 10 days. Bring another quart of water to boil and stir in remaining sugar until dissolved. Set aside to cool and then add to primary. Cover as before and set aside another 3-4 days. Transfer to secondary, top up with water and fit airlock. Rack, top up and refit airlock every 30 days until wine clears and leaves no further deposits. Stabilize, bulk age 3 months under airlock, and rack into bottles. Age 6 months before tasting. WARNING: Do not boil juice until it has passed through jelly-bag without squeezing or wine will not clear.

Note: Campden tablets = sodium metabisulphite.

And how about some preserves?

WHITE CURRANT JELLY

4 pounds fresh whitecurrants

1 cup water

7 cups white sugar

4 fluid ounces liquid fruit pectin

Directions

Place the currants into a large pot, and crush with a potato masher or berry crusher if you have one. Pour in 1 cup of water, and bring to a boil. Simmer for 10 minutes. Strain the fruit through a jelly cloth or cheese cloth, and measure out 5 cups of the juice.

Pour the juice into a large saucepan, and stir in the sugar. Bring to a rapid boil over high heat, and stir in the liquid pectin immediately. Return to a full rolling boil, and allow to boil for 30 seconds.

Remove from heat and skim off foam from the top. Ladle or pour into sterile 1/2 pint jars, filling to within 1/2 inch of the top. Wipe the rims with a clean damp cloth. Cover with new sterile lids and rings. Process covered in a bath of simmering water for 10 minutes. Makes 8 x 1/2 pint jars. Goes great with duck or venison, apparently. 

OK, so what's the new Name This Food! food?

Yes, they are apples, I know. But which variety? (I know my peeps will know this one...)