Midsummer Recipes

The summer solstice is this Saturday so it seems like a good time to share a few recipes for Midsummer's Day. All of these recipes are taken from Joanne Asala's Celtic Folklore Cooking.

Gooseberry Mackerel

I haven't had gooseberries in years. My grandfather used to grow them in his garden when he was alive. At fist I hated this sour, green, hairy fruit, but then I grew to like it.



The thought of gooseberries with fish is rather intriguing.

4 mackerel fillets
1 tbs butter
salt and pepper

For the stuffing:
4 tbs breadcrumbs
1 tbs parsley
2 egg yolks
grated peel of 1 lemon
pinch of nutmeg
salt and pepper

For the Sauce:
1/2 pound gooseberries
2 tbs sugar
1 tbs butter
2 tbs chopped fennel

Mix the stuffing ingredients together and place on each filleted mackerel. Fold over and secure with toothpicks. Rub a little softened butter over the fish and grill gently on both sides until the fish is tender.

Cook the gooseberries in 1/2 cup water with the other sauce ingredients. Heat just until they burst open. Serve hot over the fish.

Elderberry Wine

When I was in high school, I used to visit two elderly ladies who had been nurses/missionaries in Peru for years. I used to love hearing their stories about life with the Quechua Indians. They also had a wonderful herb garden and made elderflower cordial. This recipe reminds me of them.

1/2 bushel elderberries
6 gallons water
6 pounds Demerara sugar
2 pounds valencia raisins
1 tbs ginger
8 cloves
4 tbs fresh brewer's yeast
cognac

Pick the elderberries at midday on a hot sunny day. Clean the berries and pour the boiling water on them. Leave for 24 hours. Strain through a muslin cloth, breaking up the berries to extract the juice. Add the sugar, raisins, ginger and cloves, and boil, removing any scum that forms. Remove from the heat and leave the pot to stand until the contents are lukewarm. Strain through muslin into a cask and add 4 tbs yeast to each 9 gallons of wine. Leave to ferment for a fortnight. To every gallon of wine allow a quarter pint of Cognac. Seal and allow to ferment for 4 months before bottling.