And not only cooked, Ed...what about DRIED? I contend that the best raisin on earth is no better than than a poor substitute for a dried black currant! I did not know about the white pine blister rust there, but red and black currants are all over the place in northern Italy (possibly because the Roman legionaries cut down all of the trees on their way to conquering Gaul, England and Spain! :) ). Red currants are one of the "frutti di bosco" found in Italian sweets, the one which obviously delivers the tartness. Like you, the Italians and French, no doubt among others, are cooking (and distilling) their black currants. Our British brethren, however, use dried black currants to excellent effect in candies and cookies. Indeed, one of my favorite cookies, the Garibaldi biscuit (still made by Crawford's in the UK, but nothing compares to homemade), is dramatically better when made with dried black currants instead of raisins. (Apologies to the Sunshine Golden Raisin Biscuit, may it rest in peace after being summarily executed by Keebler following its purchase of Sunshine.) At least one source that I saw also claims that dried black currants have far more potassium than bananas, four times the Vitamin C of oranges, twice the antioxidants of blueberries, fiber and a host of other essential minerals...
Dried currants have been underpraised in The Art of Eating! I can find only two recipes that call for them (in pound cake and a walnut tart). But in fact they’re not the same as black currants. They’re made from Black Corinth grapes, which isn't obvious from the taste.
Now, I do not want to take my life into my hands and disagree with Ed Behr on his home turf, but yes, there are "black currants" made from Black Corinth grapes (which seem to be a cottage industry in Greece these days, by the way), and I would not be surprised to hear that said product dominates anything claiming to be black currants in the UK, but there are dried and freeze-dried actual black currants (usually ribes nigrum) as well. I am in possession of both, along with some other dried fruits, as I will soon embark upon creating the Platonic ideal Garibaldi biscuit!
I'm a fan of the Communard — crème de cassis and Beaujolais... delicious!
And not only cooked, Ed...what about DRIED? I contend that the best raisin on earth is no better than than a poor substitute for a dried black currant! I did not know about the white pine blister rust there, but red and black currants are all over the place in northern Italy (possibly because the Roman legionaries cut down all of the trees on their way to conquering Gaul, England and Spain! :) ). Red currants are one of the "frutti di bosco" found in Italian sweets, the one which obviously delivers the tartness. Like you, the Italians and French, no doubt among others, are cooking (and distilling) their black currants. Our British brethren, however, use dried black currants to excellent effect in candies and cookies. Indeed, one of my favorite cookies, the Garibaldi biscuit (still made by Crawford's in the UK, but nothing compares to homemade), is dramatically better when made with dried black currants instead of raisins. (Apologies to the Sunshine Golden Raisin Biscuit, may it rest in peace after being summarily executed by Keebler following its purchase of Sunshine.) At least one source that I saw also claims that dried black currants have far more potassium than bananas, four times the Vitamin C of oranges, twice the antioxidants of blueberries, fiber and a host of other essential minerals...
Dried currants have been underpraised in The Art of Eating! I can find only two recipes that call for them (in pound cake and a walnut tart). But in fact they’re not the same as black currants. They’re made from Black Corinth grapes, which isn't obvious from the taste.
Now, I do not want to take my life into my hands and disagree with Ed Behr on his home turf, but yes, there are "black currants" made from Black Corinth grapes (which seem to be a cottage industry in Greece these days, by the way), and I would not be surprised to hear that said product dominates anything claiming to be black currants in the UK, but there are dried and freeze-dried actual black currants (usually ribes nigrum) as well. I am in possession of both, along with some other dried fruits, as I will soon embark upon creating the Platonic ideal Garibaldi biscuit!
Aha! I'm out of my depth.
Not in this lifetime, Mr. Behr...
And not that anyone should care, but the Black Corinth "currants" are called "Zante currants" in Europe for some reason...