Berries are an important food source and have been revered in literature
and history, but we take them for granted. Raspberries are red because
Zeus' nursemaid Ida, pricked her finger on the thorns, Mark Twain
immortalized huckleberries in his novel of 1884 and Robert Frost and
Sylvia Plath, amongst many other poets, wrote on the joys of berry
picking.
In the kitchen berries are all around performers, enhancing sweet and
savory dishes. They can be preserved as jams, jellies, curds, or
chutneys and bottled in sugar or alcohol. Cakes, biscuits, and puddings
are all better for the addition of a few berries and some dishes, such
as Eton Mess, fools, and clafoutis raise the berries to starring roles
themselves. This book will help you to grow all kinds of berries. Most
importantly, the book contains recipes: over fifty ways to use berries
in your kitchen, from Cranberry Roast Ham to Raspberry Brownies and
Blueberry Pancakes to Mulberry Gin.
Jane McMorland Hunter studied history at Edinburgh University. She
has written nine books including Quinces, Growing and Cooking in the
Prospect English Kitchen series. She works as a gardener and at
Hatchard's bookshop in London, England.
Sally Hughes studied literature at Canterbury University, New
Zealand. She ran her own café before going on to manage Books for Cooks,
the well-known cookbook shop in Notting Hill. She now works at the
National Archives at Kew. McMorland and Hughes met while working at
Books for Cooks, both sharing an enthusiasm for food and books.
