The hawthorn and its fruits - harvest & processing

Hawthorn fruits: tasty with valuable ingredients

The harvest of the fruit

When the fruits hang bright red on the bush between the middle and the end of September, the optimal harvest time has come. The berries are then a little floury on the inside and taste slightly sweet.

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Since the hawthorn has many spines, you should protect your hands from injuries with gloves. Only pick the berries away from busy roads and intensively cultivated areas so that they are not polluted with exhaust gases and environmental toxins.

As the fruits often hang singly, harvesting is a bit tedious. Carefully strip the small berries from the bush and put them in a basket until you are ready to use them.

Small fruits with valuable ingredients

Despite the fact that the medicinal properties of hawthorn fruits have not yet been recognized in Germany, the quality of the berries is specified in the European Pharmacopoeia. They are traditionally used as a natural medicine that stimulates blood circulation and strengthens the heart muscle.

Hawthorn fruits - delicious in jelly and jam

The bitter almond aroma of the berries gives jams and jellies a special note. Since the berries contain pectin, the jelly is naturally thickened and you need a little less gelling sugar than usual to prepare it. Since the berries contain little juice, the seeds are only removed after cooking.

Cook the fruits in apple, pear, orange or grape juice until they are soft. This takes about ten to twenty minutes. Then rub the mass through a sieve to remove the seeds. Now boil the jam again with gelling sugar or a gelling agent of your choice and pour the jelly into clean glasses.