The Cranberry shrub is a nice looking evergreen shrub generally found growing wild in bitter lowlands in the cooler parts of the northern parts of the USA.
The berry of the cranberry shrub begins as an uninspiring white colour, but as it grows older and becomes ripe it turns a stunning crimson color.
Even though it is a member of the same plant family as the blueberry and the whortleberry, the cranberry is marginally several bitter, which seems to balance out the pleasing sweetness, giving it access to that strange niche in the cooking world of ingredients that can be served with savoury meals and cakes, cookies and fruit desserts.
Cranberries in all probability get their name from the belief that they are often consumed by cranes (ie 'craneberry') - although some folk think that the name actually comes from the fact that in the the early days of the flower's growth, it seems to resemble the shape of a crane. Whatever the true reason, the name is now well established throughout the known world.
Cranberries are now a significant financial crop in many northern US States, and have a unique place in Us culture as they were believed to have been given to starving colonists by the native people. Because of this, cranberry sauce is a vital part of the traditional thanksgiving meal consumed by innumerable Americans every year.
The majority of the yearly cranberry production is turned into juice and cranberry jelly, but a greater proportion of it is nowadays being traded in its raw berry form due to health claims that it is one of the 'superfoods', believed to have extremely useful nutritional content and antioxidant 'reducing agent' qualities.
In early days, these versatile berries were mostly cultivated in 'cranberry beds' located in shallow marshland, however in more recent times cultivation has moved to upland locations with a water table that is on the shallow side. In these regions, contrary to the percieved wisdom, the cranberry beds are not kept underwater but are continually irrigated to ensure that there is a raised moisture content in the ground.
Cranberry juice is now easily available all round the world, and as an alternative to the recognisable 'red' juice, is also sold in a 'white' form made from less mature fruit.
Cranberries' health properties
Many people believe that cranberry juice possesses medical benefits which aid in preventing bacterial infections of the urinary system.
Also, it has been useful in dealing with many other health concerns, such as a poultice for open wounds, bowel complaints, diabetes, tummy aches, and as an aid to a healthy liver. A little research has been done that proves that habitual doses of cranberry juice may even help to lower the risk of heart disease.
As with all similar health claims, one should exercise exceptional care - professional opinion is not unanimous and the most sensible reason for eating these versatile berries is the undeniable fact that they really actually taste delicious! As noted previously, cranberries are used in both sweet and savoury meals, with the most widely known use being as an accompaniment to the traditional roast turkey. Don't let this 'regular' use put you off though, cranberry berries are also quite superb when used in sweet dishes.
If you are looking for some appetizing cranberry recipes you can find plenty of these tasty recipes on the web, but to start you off, here is a delicious cranberry recipe:
A recipe for cranberry cobbler
Ingredients
1 x Thick-skinned orange
one cup of water
half a cup Granulated sugar (or equivalent sugar substitute)
4 x cups These tasty berries
1 x tablespoon Dairy butter
one pack Dough for biscuits (to cook eight biscuits).
Directions
First grate the orange rind. Put the rest of the orange through a juicer. Mix the orange juice, the grated rind, water, granulated sugar (or equivalent low carb sugar substitute), these versatile and tasty berries and unsalted butter in a deep saucepan. Bring to a rolling boil and heat for one minute until you have a thick cranberry sauce.
Divide the cranberry sauce equally between 8 greased oven-proof baking dishes or, for one large portion, into a casserole dish. Spoon the biscuit dough on top of the cranberry sauce.
Bake at 450 f for 10 min, turn down setting & bake at 180 c (350 f) for another 20 mins.
serves 8.
Only 98 calories per helping !
Roger is a recipe contributor at: "recipe-ideas", which offers cooks and chefs a selection of healthy cranberry recipes that are easy to prepare at home.
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