Gooseberries are widely distributed in all European countries, countries of North America and Asia. In Russia, as in most European countries, from the beginning of the 17th century gooseberries were almost the most popular berry, but earlier it was called in a different way - birch-cap or borsen. From here Bersenevskaya embankment, located in Moscow thanks to the palace garden, where gardeners bred borsen, and got its name. However, with the onset of the 20th century, gooseberries underwent disease - a spherote (it is powdery mildew), and almost all varieties were destroyed. This gooseberry disease was brought from America. To this day survived and created by the subsequent selection of gooseberry varieties.
Gooseberries, like most garden berries, contain useful properties. Gooseberries are rich in pectin, organic acids, sodium, calcium, potassium, copper, magnesium salts and tannins. Gooseberries, with the exception of grapes, are considered the most caloric berries. In 100 grams of gooseberry contains more than 50ml. vitamin C, vitamins PP and B1, rutin, carotene, a lot of iron and phosphorus.
Chemical composition.
The fruits of gooseberry are rich in iron, ascorbic and folic acid. The fruits of gooseberries contain water - 88-98%, sugars - 7, 2-13, 5%, acids - 1, 2-2, 5%, pectins 0, 64-1, 1%, in addition, fragrant and tannic substances, mineral salts.
Healing properties of gooseberries.
The fruits of gooseberries have a diuretic effect, but they also have a slight choleretic and laxative effect. Berries of gooseberries also improve the blood and body condition in general, normalize metabolic processes in the body, strengthen the walls of blood vessels.
Gooseberries are recommended for use in hypertension, obesity, heart disease, anemia and atherosclerosis. Useful gooseberries and with skin rashes, anemia, in combination with honey with frequent hemorrhages, for stimulation of bile secretion, improvement of the intestine. Recommended gooseberry and those who suffer from liver, bladder and kidney diseases. Juice of gooseberry is an excellent refreshing remedy, besides it has a beneficial effect on metabolism.
Berries of gooseberries remove from the body toxic compounds, in particular, radioactive substances. Dried berries of gooseberries retain their properties almost completely.
People suffering from enteritis or peptic ulcer, especially in the acute stage, are advised to limit or exclude gooseberries from the diet altogether, since it contains a large amount of organic acids and fiber.
Use of gooseberries in medicine.
With diseases of the bladder and kidneys, it is advised to use fresh gooseberry as a good diuretic. With various diseases of the digestive canal, including chronic constipation, it will be useful to eat gooseberries.
The fruits of gooseberries also have a refreshing, choleretic, diuretic, hemostatic, anti-inflammatory and restorative effect.
Fresh fruits or fruits in the form of a decoction is prescribed if there is a shortage of iron, copper, phosphorus in the body, with hypovitaminosis, chronic constipation, bleeding, with various metabolic disorders (excess weight), gastroenterocolitis, hydrocephalus, skin diseases, beriberi A and C Gooseberries are also used to strengthen the walls of blood vessels.
Compotes from berries gooseberries lower the body temperature well and quench thirst.
To eat compotes is advised and with anemia, obesity, hypertension, heart disease. In the mature berries of gooseberries, two times more ascorbic acid than in green berries.
Eating.
The berries of gooseberries can be consumed both fresh and recycled. From the pods of this plant brew jelly, jam, pastille, compotes.
Recipes.
We make jam from berries of gooseberry. For the jam, the varieties of Mashek, Shchedry, Yarovoy, Green bottle, Malachite are excellent. For jam should take gooseberries slightly immature, then the berries are washed in cold water, remove the dry cups of flowers and stems. Small, as well as medium fruits of gooseberries are cooked whole, only it is necessary to prick them beforehand. On large berries we make a lateral incision and with the help of a pin or hairpin we clear them from seeds.
If for a jam you decide to take a green gooseberry, then in the water to soak and / or blanching you need to put the green leaves of the cherry. Thus, the green color of berries and jam is better preserved.
1 kilogram of berries of gooseberry, 1, 5 kilograms of sugar, two glasses of water.
The unripe berries of gooseberries are released from the rests of the corolla, the pedicels, with a lateral incision and using a pin or hairpin is cleaned of grains, washed and kept for about half an hour in cold water. When the berries are ready, put them in a basin, pour hot sugar syrup, hold for about 3 hours and only then cook the jam until ready. At the end of cooking jam, you can add a little vanillin. Further, to avoid the formation of a brownish-brown color, the ready-made jam is quickly cooled. This can be done by placing the basin with jam in a container of cold water, and changing the water as the water warms up.
We prepare the syrup for jam from the fruits of gooseberry on the extract from the leaves of the cherry: we take about three handfuls of cherry leaves, wash them and put them in a pan, pour cold water, put on a weak fire, bring to a boil, drain the water, strain and apply in the preparation of sugar syrup .
We prepare mors from gooseberry. 2 cups gooseberries, ½ cup sugar, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, 1 liter water, and on the tip ch. cinnamon (with sugar). Put the gooseberry in the juicer and get the juice. Juice is mixed with lemon juice, sugar, cinnamon and chilled water.
Gooseberries with orange. 1 kilogram of gooseberry, 1 orange, 1-1, 3 kg. Sahara. We pass through the meat grinder gooseberries and orange (remove the bones), add sugar, mix thoroughly, spread out on scalded jars, close with plastic covers and store in the refrigerator. Thus, all vitamins will be preserved.