Allotments 4 All

I have grown some gooseberries but don't know what to make. I would be grateful for any ideas or recipes, please?

Jam .gooseberry jam is to die for

I have just finished making 12 jars of gooseberry jam and 12 gooseberry  and strawberry jam. I will have to fib about how much I have made as all the family love it and would take a couple of jars each leaving me not a lot to see me through to next year go on have a go really easy and very hard to buy in shops :P :P

I like gooseberry and strawberry fool.  I cook the gooseberries with some apple juice (or sugar if you like that sort of thing) and then sieve them and add strawberries either in bits or mashed l- ovely.   Looks nice if you add the mashed strawberry in swirls rather than mixing it in.  Swirl in cream or yoghurt if you fancy it as well.

You could try this:

GOOSEBERRY CHUTNEY (4lb)
3lb gooseberries
8oz seedless raisins
8oz onions
½oz mustard seeds
½oz mixed spice
1 tbls ground ginger
1oz salt
1 pint vinegar
12oz brown sugar

Prepare gooseberries and chop onion.  Put all ingredients (except sugar) in pan and simmer 30 mins, or until fruit is tender.  Add sugar, stirring until dissolved.  Simmer for 30 mins until chutney is thick and smooth.  Pot into warm jars and cover.

valmarg

Haven't tried any yet, but there are some lovely recipes on this site

http://www.pickleandpreserve.co.uk/

Weed-Digga

Quite a lot of mine never make it as far as the kitchen! :-[
They're quite delicious straight off the bush!!

I just cook mine with a bit of water and sugar (or honey and/or elderflower cordial), once soft and cooled I just have big ladle full with ice cream or natural yogurt... :P (i'm drooling now ::))
If I feel like doing extra effort I put bit of potatoflour mixed with cold water and pour it in boiling goose berries to thicken the sauce.

Gooseberry and elderflower fool..

http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/gooseberryandelderfl_6907

you can make a sauce which is lovely with oily fish...
but I'm with Grawc..  straight off the bush!  :)

There's a lovely and very simple recipe for Rhubarb Cake which I find works equally well with gooseberries, and gets eaten very quickly. You can make it with frozen gooseberries too. It's basically an ordinary cake mixture spread out in a tin, gooseberries mixed with sugar scattered thickly over the mixture, and a crumble mixture on top of everything, cooked for an hour or so in a medium oven.

You can get more precise meaurements by googling "rhubarb cake" eg: http://www.allotments4all.co.uk/smf/index.php/topic,66204.0.html

They are actually nice in a crumble but you really need to mix with apples or they are too tart.
I also had a recipe somewhere for a gooseberry meringue pie!

My sous-chef ("She who must be obeyed") does a gorgeous Crunchy Gooseberry Trifle:

Stew gooseberries with golden caster sugar & leave to cool.

Heat butter in a frying pan and add porridge oats, mixed spice & muscovado sugar and cook - stirring continuously - until coloured & becoming crisp (about 5 minutes). Leave to cool.

Place half the gooseberries in a glass trifle bowl; cover with nearly half the oats. Cover with a layer of custard, preferably home-made. Cover that with whipped double cream and add the rest of the oats as a garnish.

As you can see, virtually cholestral-free!

Or, my contribution is Raised Gooseberry Pie. (Made the same way as Pork Pie, but obviously the filling is different.) I think it's the most delicious thing I've ever tasted in my entire life!

Quote from: notts_phil on June 14, 2011, 22:35:16
Jam .gooseberry jam is to die for

Yes Mrs Stick makes a very fine one - good in crumbles too

Gooseberry and elderflower jam, gorgeous  ;D

Gooseberries stewed with a very little sugar, then drizzled with runny honey on the plate, are pretty good underneath my breakfast muesli. Add yoghourt/milk to taste.

Last year I made Goosegog fool, a couple of tarts, 12 jars of jam and a couple of demijohns of wine

Oh thanks everyone. I am spoilt for choice! I k now I am a bit thick but do you just top and tail them, leaving the skin and hairy bits on. I always feel as thought I ought to skin them?

Do you have a recipe for the Gooseberry/ elderflower jam, Manicscouser? I have lots of elderflowers on my tree. How do I use them? Do I pick off the flowers, stalks and all and use the whole lot? Would the flowers survive being washed?

I need everything spelling out, don't I LOL!!!!

If you do an elderflower search on here, there's loads of recipes, here's the thread about the jam  ;D
http://www.allotments4all.co.uk/smf/index.php/topic,67462.0.html

Last week i picked 7 pounds of desert gooseberries, and still have them all over the place!

I've frozen a few for crumbles in the winter, muched my way through too many to mention and used a pound to make an experimental batch of jam.  Its the first time I've ever made jam and i'm impressed with myself!  Very simple to do.  The jam is a bit tart, so I'm hoping to get some strawberries for a more balance second batch!