Frozen cranberry compote: recipe. The he alth benefits and harms of cranberries

2024 Author: Isabella Gilson | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:14

A real storehouse of vitamins - that's what they say about the old cranberry. Due to its healing properties, it is widely used in traditional medicine. And for the aroma and tart taste, the berry is used in a wide variety of culinary dishes, from cranberry compotes to meat sauce.

Northern Lemon

Cranberries originally grew only in northern latitudes, although for a long time Europeans considered Russia to be their homeland. However, back in the 12th century, the Vikings imported the berry to Europe, who valued it for its healing properties and pleasant taste. Cranberry is a spherical or ellipsoid red berry. Grows on evergreen shrubs.

Cranberries can actually be found in any country where swampy forest soil prevails, moss and tundra swamps are common. In Russia, it is found almost everywhere, only in the Republic of Karelia about 22 species of this berry grow. Until about the 19th century, the berry was harvested by hand. And so painstaking work was complicated by the fact that we had to wander through the swamps. But breeders solved this problem by breeding cranberry varieties that can be grown on plantations in Belarus, Canada, the USA and harvested.automated way.

For the high percentage of vitamin C and quinic acid, which gives bitterness, cranberries were called the northern lemon. In Russia, only wild berries are harvested, which contain an order of magnitude more vitamins than selective ones.

Useful properties of berries

Cranberry has antipyretic, analgesic and bactericidal and healing properties. The berry is used to treat coughs, the juice helps with gastritis, is used to prevent diseases of the genitourinary system, and lowers cholesterol. Proanthocyanidins contained in cranberries prevent the development of caries and inflammation of the gums. Regular intake of berries in any form, for example, according to your favorite recipe for frozen cranberry compote, stimulates brain function, prevents the appearance of cancer cells, and improves blood circulation.

The action of antibiotics is enhanced by the chemical composition of cranberries. Listing all the substances and trace elements of cranberries, one might be surprised how one small berry can hold all this. Citric, quinic, benzoic, oleander, succinic acids, vitamins of groups B, PP, K1, C, zinc, tin, potassium, phosphorus, iodine, silver - and this is not a complete list of all the components of the miracle berry.

Contraindications

Together with the benefits of cranberries and harm to he alth, unfortunately, there is. Berries will have to be avoided by people with duodenal disease. Also, due to the high degree of acidity, cranberries can exacerbate complex gastritis. Elementary intolerance to components can harm. Although the berryprevents cavities and bleeding gums, but high levels of citric acid can damage tooth enamel and lead to tooth sensitivity.

Processing methods. Freezing cranberries

Enjoy he althy and tasty berries all year round? There is nothing easier. Housewives and large-scale industries actively use the freezing method, which retains all the properties in their original form, thanks to benzoic acid. There are different ways to freeze cranberries. The most common of them is packing in bags in the form of pancakes. To begin with, a berry is chosen, thoroughly washed with warm running water and dried to get rid of excess water when frozen. Then the berries are poured 100-200 grams into separate bags and rolled out in an even layer, trying to blow the air out of the bag as much as possible. Then stack the bags in the freezer on top of each other. Some housewives pre-sprinkle the berries with sugar. When re-defrosting, the berry should be cooked or eaten within a few hours, avoiding long-term storage.

In addition to freezing, cranberries are also dried, rubbed with sugar and preserved for the winter.

Frozen cranberry compote

If fresh fruits and berries are available to a person in summer to maintain vitamin balance, then in the cold season it is much more difficult to do this.

But the problem can be solved by taking note of the frozen cranberry compote recipe.

Ingredients:

• Berries - 300 grams.
• Water - 1.5 liters.
• Sugar - 150gram.

Pour berries into a saucepan, pour water and add sugar, and boil frozen cranberries. As soon as the var boils, reduce the gas and leave for another 3 minutes. After that, remove from heat and let it brew. If desired, you can strain.

Spicy compote of frozen cranberries and apples

Fruit and berry tandem is perfect in any dish, and especially in the popular recipe for frozen cranberry compote with apple.

For cooking you will need:

• Apples - 200 grams.
• Frozen cranberries - 150 grams.
• Water - 1.5 liters.
• Sugar - 4 tablespoons.

First you need to pour water into a saucepan, add sugar and put on fire. While the water comes to a boil, peel the apples from the peel and core, cut into small pieces. Add apples and cranberries to boiling water, then reduce the heat and cook with the lid closed for about 20 minutes. You can drink the drink hot, or you can pre-cool it.

Cranberry compote with cherries and zest

Another frozen cranberry compote recipe that any gourmet will love. For a drink you will need:

• cranberries - 200 grams;
• cherries - 200 grams;
• half a lemon;
• tangerine zest;
• water - 3 liters;
• vanillin;
• sugar to taste.

First of all, pour water into a saucepan, add sugar and boil on fire. While the water is being prepared, it is necessary to peel the cherries from the stones. If the berryfrozen and pitted, then simply mix immediately with cranberries. Then very finely dice the lemon with the peel. As soon as the water boils, put the berries and lemon in a saucepan and let it boil for about 15 minutes over low heat. A few minutes before the readiness, add the tangerine zest and vanilla.

What will make compote even tastier and he althier

When preparing compote, housewives crush cranberries, thinking that this way it will give more vitamins, and they are mistaken. Boiling in water, the berry already gives away all the useful elements, and the crushed berries will only spoil the consistency, and the compote will have to be filtered. Unfortunately, all good things end quickly, as well as useful properties in compote, so you should refuse to store the drink for a long time, reducing it to two days in the refrigerator.

Add berries, fruits and spices to pamper your taste buds. Apples, raisins, dried apricots, wild rose, sea buckthorn, cloves and mint go well with cranberries. When experimenting in the kitchen, do not forget that cranberries can both benefit and harm he alth.