Raspberry recipes on The Cottage Smallholder site
Posted by Fiona Nevile in Desserts, Fruit, Liqueurs | 6 comments
Raspberry close up. Mouthwatering to the initiated!
I love raspberries. Could eat them every day. When I was working in London and dining out a lot, I would often order fresh raspberries with a sprinkle of castor sugar for dessert. Friends tucking into waist expanding desserts would think that I was mad or on an impromptu diet. They didn’t realise that each savoured mouthful took me into the heart of a long summer’s day.
Luckily for me, raspberries are packed with vitamins and minerals and are classed as a super food. But the time that it takes to harvest them makes them rather expensive to buy – poor Danny had to spend hours picking them as a child and quickly developed an aversion to this fruit. We grow them here at the cottage and down on the allotment and I am happily the sole picker. Raspberries freeze very well too – if you fast freeze them on trays they can be grabbed by the handful when you need them. Frozen raspberries can be used to make liqueurs, vinegar, jellies and even wine.
Although it will be a few weeks until our raspberries will be ripe, I’ve noticed that UK raspberries are already in the shops. So I thought it might be handy to outline all the raspberry recipes that we have on the site to date.
I’m planning to add raspberry cordial (an old fashioned one using vinegar and sugar) and raspberry jam recipe to the site when our raspberries ripen this year. Incidentally Darina Allen’s raspberry jam recipe which I made when on a bread making course at Ballymaloe is excellent. It needs to be made in small batches as it doesn’t keep for a long time.
Liqueurs (these are fruit infused spirits with added sugar according to Wikipedia)
Raspberry gin
Raspberry vodka
These are excellent – very gluggable and everyone adult seems to love them. They can be drunk straight in a shot glass or topped up with fizzy water for a refreshing longer drink. Danny’s raspberry aversion fades very quickly when given a glass of this grog.
Desserts:
Elderflower and Raspberry jellies
Homemade raspberry jellies
Two easy prepare in advance desserts for entertaining
Vinegar:
Raspberry vinegar
This is wonderful mixed with olive oil and a little honey as a special summery salad dressing.
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I really miss raspberries. They are rarely available here. And when they are, they come in tiny punnets with literally about 100 g of raspberries in them for 3 euros or so. I do buy them sometimes — I love them in trifle (I make Nigel Slater’s 30-minute one with mascarpone “custard”, raspberries and bananas — it’s wonderful!).
Oh How very kind, Danny. For both the invite and for the kind comments about my blog.
Cheers.
Hello, TB – you have a lovely blog.
I could not resist visiting the blog of a lady who drinks raspberry vodka from a jamjar. My kind of gal! 🙂
You will fit in very quickly if we ever have the honour of a visit by you at ours.
Give my regards to Wickla.
Sláinte maith,
Danny
Hi Fiona,
I have been reading your blog for a number of years and never commented before. Mainly because i have recently started blogging myself and have begun to understand how nice to have followers and comments.
I have been making your raspberry vodka for three years now, and because we live in the mountains, my family (who often get a gift of a bottle at Christmas) call it my ‘raspberry moonshine’. My first taste of a new batch is out of a jam jar at Halloween. Just wanted to thank you for the idea and recipe that is to become a tradition in our little family. Seeing this post gave me the perfect opportunity. If you visit my blog please say hello!
Very few of our raspberries make it to the kitchen… perfect for ‘grazing’ on as I walk past!
Celia
x
Looking forward to your jam and cordial recipes.. I looove raspberries too, on their own or as a treat with homemade gooey meringue and clotted creammmmmmmmm! I don’t grow them at home, but am allowed to scrump them from my place of work (I’m a gardener). Make raspberry vodka regualarly and, like yours, it does’t last long. You can taste the sunshine!