while visiting my daughter in germany, we were given a basketful of fresh red currants, a sweet-tart berry, and tried this recipe on a whim. it was wonderful! the currants kept their fresh flavor and the pie/cake was a perfect base. back home, i'm going to try the same recipe with fresh strawberries, then fresh blueberries, then fresh raspberries...

this was a mistake gone good. i wanted to make red currant jelly but there weren't quite enough currants for sale at the farmer's market where i buy my produce during the summer. so i bought all they had and thought i'd figure out the rest when i saw how much juice came from my purchase. i came up with 2 cups of currant juice from the 4 pints i bought, then just supplemented with first the pomegranate juice i had on hand, then some cranberry juice, then finally a little bit of water to get to the 6 1/2 cups of juice i needed. you could change the proportions to suit your needs or tastes, using all of one kind of juice or less or more of another juice, you just need 6 1/2 cups total juice for this recipe. prep time includes time to make juice from berries so about 10 hours can be subtracted for this step if you are using juice already made. typically jelly recipes call for you to check for gel 24 hours after processing but mine were a little 'squishy' the next day, then set up great after i forgot about them for a little while, just make sure your seals are good before putting them aside. great on english muffins, but also good as a meat accompaniment or used as a glaze on cornish game hens. the brilliant red colour makes it nice for gift giving, too.

recipe i came up with to serve with a chicken dish but i think it would be also suited to other poulty and game meats. i didn't use a great amount of sugar so the sauce retains a bit of tartness from the currants which was what i was after rather than anything too sweet. note that it's quite a thin sauce rather than a thick one, aimed at things like rice and battered items that will soak it up, but you could always thicken it with cornflour.

i love these, been making them for about 15 years now. a nice change from regular meatballs. everyone really likes them. i usually serve these as an appy or even a side dish for parties, but i wouldn't see why it couldn't be made as a main dish, too! :)

this recipe is a take on a dish served at a ny restaurant. the dish is seasoned with both asian chili paste and chili sauce (heinz or similar brand). the red chili paste gives the dish some heat and the chili sauce provides a sharp tomato flavor. the recipe suggests that this dish be served warm, not hot.

this is based on a recipe from a taste of thai’s “red curry paste?packet. i’ve been making this for years (and just last night) and i really love it. i’m planning to make it again next week so will try to get a photo. my only reservation with it now-a-days is that my husband is on a low-sodium diet and i’ll need to find a recipe for the red curry paste that has no salt added. when i run out of these packets i’ll search for a low-sodium recipe and post an update. note: be careful with the thai fish sauce; you may want to go shy of 3 tablespoons if you’ve never had any before; although i like it, i’ve found that many people comment on the “fishy?(not in a good way!) taste it adds. i added the carrots, canned corn, and cilantro garnish.