The Wonderful Cranberry, The Latest Superfood To Hit The Shelves!

What is the 'cranberry berry', and why is it a 'superfood'?

The Cranberry bush is a pleasant looking evergreen dwarf shrub normally grown in tart bogs in the cooler regions of northern climes.

The berry of the cranberry shrub starts as an uninspiring white colour, but as it ages and ripens it changes gradually to a dark crimson colour.

Although it is actually a member of exactly the same plant group as the blaeberry, whortleberry, whinberry and blueberry, the cranberry is marginally other tart, which seems to work well with the nice sweetness, a fact which puts it in that strange niche in the cooking world of fruits that can accompany savoury dishes as well as sweeter courses, such as cakes, cookies, fruits, pastries and candies.

Cranberries probably got their name as a result of the, perhaps mistaken, belief that they are often consumed by cranes - although many folk believe that the true etymology of the name is rooted in the fact that in the the early days of the bush's development, it resembles the outline of the crane. No matter what the real etymology, the name 'cranberry' is now established through the whole world.

Cranberries are now a massive financial cash-crop in many northern US States, and now have a special and historic place in Us culture as some experts believe that they were presented to hungry settlers by the native population. Because of this, cranberry sauce is a main ingredient in the old fashioned thanksgiving meal prepared by the majority of Americans every year.

The majority of the annual cranberry yield is converted to juice and cranberry jelly, but more and more of it is nowadays traded in its raw and unprocesed state due to health claims that cranberrries are one of the 'superfoods', and believed to have very good nutritional content and antioxidant characteristics.

In the past, these versatile and tasty berries were grown in cranberry beds in moisture rich wetlands, however latterly cultivation has moved to highland locations with an 'easy to access' water table. In these more modern cranberry beds, contrary to the percieved wisdom, the cranberry beds are not kept submerged but are continually irrigated to maintain a raised moisture content in the cranberry beds.

Cranberry juice is now sold the four corners of the world, and as well as the well known 'red' juice, is also sold in a clear or 'white' form which is made from the younger berries.

Medical benefits of cranberries

Some people think that the juice of the cranberry is blessed with medical properties that seem to help in preventing bacteria growth of the urinary tract.

Additionally, it has been helpful in treating divevrse range of other conditions and illnesses, such as a treatment for open wounds, bowel complaints, diabetes, stomach aches, and as an aid to a damaged liver. Some medical research has been done that suggests that daily doses of cranberry berry juice might help to lower the chances of heart problems.

Of course, as with all such claims, you need to practice great skepticism - qualified professional opinion is varied and the best reason for eating cranberries is the undeniable fact that they actually taste good! As noted earlier in this article, these versatile berries are used to make both desserts and main course dishes, with the best known use being as an accompaniment to the old fashioned roast turkey. Don't let this 'good old fashioned' use put you off though, these tasty berries are also quite superb when used in sweet dishes.

If you want to try cooking some mouth-watering cranberry recipes there are many of them on the internet, but to start you off properly, here is a flavorful cranberry recipe:

A recipe for quick cranberry crumble

Recipe ingredients

one Thick-skinned orange

water (one cup)

half a cup Granulated sugar (or equivalent low carb sugar substitute)

4 cup These versatile and tasty berries

one tablespoon Dairy butter

1 x pack Dough for biscuits (to make 8 biscuits).

Preparation

Grate the rind of the orange, and reserve. Put the rest of the orange through a juicer. Combine juice of the orange, the grated orange rind, moisture, granulated sugar replacement, cranberries and butter (far better than margarine) in a deep non-stick pan. Bring to a boil and simmer gently for one minute to produce a nice rich cranberry sauce.

Divide the cranberry sauce equally amongst eight buttered baking dishes or a medium sized casserole dish. Spoon the biscuit dough on top of the cranberry sauce.

Oven bake at 230 degree c (450 f) for ten min, lower heat setting and cook at 180 c (350 f) for 20 minutes longer.

serves 8.

98 calories per portion