Drink sensibly! Our Cassis is perfect in many cocktails, but they don't have to be strong! Just add a measure to a glass of lemonade, or to soda water with a slice of lemon, a dash of brandy and loads of ice and you have a delicious cocktail with a bit of kick.

Cassis is very versatile; drink it, cook with it, add it to desserts, even spice up the family Christmas dinner with it. But most of all enjoy it! We have taken time to make it truly beautiful in its packaging and presentation so why not treat a friend too. Our steeped Blackcurrants in Cassis make a lovely gift!

This year we've expanded the range to embrace the essence of a Herefordshire summer in our drinks. Choose from our British Fraise, British Poire or British Framboise. All of these are produced in the same way as our British Cassis and have a lovely balance of flavours to whisk you away to a sunny orchard and blue skies!

For further recipes see our cocktails, and our foodie ideas below. For our cocktails, make them longer just by adding soda water, or lemonade - yum!

Fraise and Tonic and .... Kir with a twist - British Blackcurrants in Cassis

 

Click here for our Cocktail ideas

Click here for our Dinner recipes

Click here for delicious Dessert ideas

Click here to spice up Christmas!

 

JO HILDITCH BRITISH CASSIS COCKTAILS

 

All measures for cocktails are based on 25ml or 2.5cl.

 

Kir Royal

  1. Add the blackcurrant cassis to a chilled champagne flute.
  2. Add the champagne while stirring with a cocktail stirrer to mix the two.
  3. Serve immediately.

Download this recipe in pdf format

 

Jo's Cassis Tequila

Shake ingredients up with ice.

 

Jo's Party Mix

Combine all ingredients and pour into glass.

 

Jo's Cassis Fizz

  1. Pour Gin, Lemon Juice, and Sugar into shaker.
  2. Fill a Collins glass almost full of ice cubes, and dump ice into shaker.
  3. Shake well and pour drink into Collins glass.
  4. Add Soda and stir well.
  5. Drop the Jo Hilditch British Cassis into the centre of the drink, and do not stir.

 

Jo's Black Devil

Pour vodka and Jo Hilditch British Cassis in cocktail glass and fill with lemonade. If it is too sweet, try soda water. A slice of lemon compliments the drink quite nicely.

 

Jo's Rum Mix

  1. Fill a shaker half full with ice cubes.
  2. Pour all ingredients into shaker and shake well.
  3. Strain drink into a Cocktail Glass.

 

Russian Punch

  1. Fill a shaker half full with ice cubes.
  2. Pour all ingredients into shaker and shake well.
  3. Strain drink into a Cocktail Glass.
  4. Shake together with crushed ice serve strained into a tumbler.

 

Fruits of the Glen

Mix the Whisky and Cassis together in a High ball glass with Ice, top up with cranberry juice and garnish with Blackcurrants in Cassis

 

Mulled Cider

Gently warm all the ingredients and serve in a wine glass with the cinnamon stick.

 

Lion Heart

Shake together with crushed ice and strain into a cocktail glass.

 

Blood-tini

In a shaker put all the ingredients in with ice shake and serve in a cocktail glass.

 

RECIPES USING BRITISH CASSIS

Don't forget our Christmas recipes further down the page.

Duck with Jo Hilditch British Cassis and Ginger Sauce (Serves 4)

  1. Marinate the duck in the soy sauce, honey and ginger for at least 6 hours.
  2. Fry the duck, skin side down, until golden, place on a baking tray and cook for 15mins at 180c.
  3. Fry the onion and garlic in a little oil with a little butter added until soft and lightly coloured.
  4. Add the marinade and Cassis, allow to reduce by half and then add the stock.
  5. Reduce again until you have a glossy sauce.
  6. Spoon over the duck breasts and serve with new potatoes and green vegetables.

Download this recipe in pdf format

 

Goats Cheese and Red Onion tart, garnished with Blackcurrants in Cassis in Cheese Pastry (Serves 6)

Tartlet Filling:

Cheese Pastry:

  1. Rub together the flour, butter and cheese until breadcrumb consistency, add water to bind together. Chill for 20 mins.
  2. Roll out the pastry and line 6 Tartlet tins with false bottoms. Blind and bake until set (15 mins approx).
  3. Peel and slice the onions in a thick bottomed saucepan, add some of the cassis from the blackcurrants and the sugar.
  4. Cook until soft to make an onion marmalade.
  5. In the bottom of each tartlet put a piece of Goats cheese, spoon a small amount of the Onion marmalade on to the cheese and a tea spoon of Blackcurrants and a small sprig of Rosemary.
  6. Bake in a hot oven for 3-5 mins until the cheese and onions have melted together.
  7. Serve with a Rocket and Parmesan salad.

 

Oxford Blue Cheese, Blackcurrant, Beetroot and Rocket Salad

  1. Dice bread into small cubes and gently fry in oil.
  2. Cut the beetroot into thin strips and the cheese into 1 cm size pieces and mix with the rocket.
  3. To make the dressing, use the olive oil, white wine vinager and two spoons of Blackcurrants in Cassis.
  4. Gently whisk the ingredients together, being careful not to break the blackcurrants.
  5. Pour over the Salad, add the croutons and serve.

 

DESSERTS USING OUR NEW BRITISH BLACKCURRANTS IN CASSIS

 

Lemon Tart with Blackcurrant Compote

  1. Line a 9 inch pastry ring and blind bake the pastry.
  2. Mix the lemon juice and sugar whisk until the sugar has dissolved.
  3. Add the eggs and whisk, stir in the cream then pour into the pastry case and cook for 45 mins at gas 2 300F 150C.
  4. Cool for 2-3 hours.
  5. Cut with a warm knife and serve with a spoonful of Blackcurrants in cassis and whipped cream.

 

Vanilla Panna Cotta

  1. Mix the cream and milk.
  2. Warm half the cream and milk.
  3. Mix in the sugar and having scraped the Vanilla pod infuse for 10mins.
  4. Cover the gelatine with cold water when soft mix into the warm cream add the rest of the cold cream mix.
  5. Pour into individual moulds set in the fridge for 2 hours.

To serve, spoon the Blackcurrants in Cassis into a bowl. Dip the Panna Cotta mould into warm water and shake out to place on the blackcurrants.

 

Summer Pudding (serves 6)

  1. Cut 12 rounds out of the bread crust 6 slices of bread and cut them in half.
  2. Peel, core and cut the apples.
  3. Cook with half the cassis from the jar and the sugar.
  4. Cool and add the soft fruit including the blackcurrants and Mint.
  5. Soak the cut bread in the Cassis from the Jar and the 100ml bottle.
  6. Line the moulds with the bread starting with a round in the bottom and two strips around the side.
  7. Fill the moulds with the fruit mixture and put the other bread round on the top.
  8. Cover in cling film and push hard to squeeze the pudding together.
  9. Chill overnight turn the pudding out onto a plate, drizzling over any left-over Cassis.
  10. Serve with whipped cream.

 

Blackcurrant Meringues

Meringue:

  1. Whisk egg white gradually adding the caster sugar and whisk until soft peaks form.
  2. Pipe on to a baking sheet with parchment.
  3. Cook in a low oven for 3-4 hrs.
  4. (4 egg whites makes about 10 meringues, or you could just cheat and buy ready made meringues)

 

Blackcurrant Chantilly Cream:

  1. De-seed the vanilla pod into the cream, add the icing sugar and whisk slowly so the icing sugar incorporates.
  2. Turn up the speed to whip the cream.
  3. Spoon or pipe onto the meringue, spoon over the blackcurrants and drizzle with the Cassis.

 

Vanilla Cheesecake rolled in Ginger Biscuits topped with Blackcurrants in Cassis

  1. Mix the cream cheese sugar and vanilla together.
  2. Whip the cream fold into the cheese mixture.
  3. Soak the gelatine in cold water when soft warm in a pan with a spoonful of cream.
  4. Add the gelatine to the cheese mixture and beat for 1 min.
  5. Fill round dessert rings with the cheesecake set in the fridge overnight.
  6. Cut round the side of the rings and roll the cheesecake in ginger biscuit crumb, place on a plate and top with Jo Hilditch Blackcurrants in Cassis.

 

CHRISTMAS RECIPES USING OUR BRITISH BLACKCURRANTS IN CASSIS

 

Christmas Blackcurrant, Sage, Rosemary and Nut Stuffing

  1. Finely chop the onion. Pull all the springs off the Rosemary and chop with the sage - add to the breadcrumbs and the chopped nuts and the suet.
  2. Mix in the egg to make a paste then fold in the Blackcurrants.
  3. Cook the stuffing either in the oven on it's own or inside your bird.

 

Blackcurrant Mince Meat Mince Pies

This recipe is a zesty alternative to the traditional mince pie.

For the mince meat:

  1. Wash the dried fruit thoroughly in a colander under the cold tap.
  2. Tip the fruit on to clean tea towels and dry by patting in the cloths.
  3. Put the dried fruit in a very large bowl with the apples, suet, almonds, sugars and spices.
  4. Drain the jar of blackcurrants and add to the fruit mixture, keeping the cassis aside.
  5. Grate the zest of the lemon into the bowl, then squeeze in the juice. Tip in the peel and the alcohol.
  6. Mix all the ingredients very thoroughly - it's easiest to do this with your (very clean) hands.
  7. Cover and leave to stand for 24 hours, asking the family to stop and give it a good stir with a spoon when they pass by.
  8. Pack the mincemeat into sterilised or dishwasher-clean jars (Kilner jars are ideal) and top with greaseproof paper jam covers.
  9. Seal the jars tightly and store in a cool place.
  10. The mincemeat will last from one year to the next, but it’s best used within 6 months.

For the Mince Pies

  1. Sift the Flour and Icing sugar together, rub in the butter, mix in the egg yolks to make a paste.
  2. Chill the pastry in the fridge for 20mins before use.
  3. Make mince pies as usual, and serve with a dash of the Cassis that was left when you drained off the blackcurrants and a swirl of whipped cream.

 

Cranberry and Blackcurrant Sauce

This is a slightly unusual variant on the usual Christmas Cranberry sauce, but in our household we think it is a great alternative as the blackcurrants combine really well with the cranberries, both in colour and in taste, but compliment the turkey meat brilliantly. Serve with either hot or cold meat.

  1. Place the Cranberries, sugar and the Cassis from the Blackcurrants in to a pan and bring to the boil.
  2. Reduce the heat to a simmer for 3 mins.
  3. Add the blackcurrants to the cranberries and stir gently.
  4. Put in to sterilised jars or serve warm with your Christmas Turkey.

 

Poached spiced Pears in Blackcurrant mulled wine

  1. Drain the blackcurrants and add the juice, red wine, half the Cassis from the drained blackcurrants, sugar and spices into a pan.
  2. Add the pears and simmer until cooked.
  3. When cooked, hold the Pear by the stalk slice the Pears from top to bottom making at least 10 cuts.
  4. Holding the stalk twist the Pear and put on the Plate.
  5. Take out the spices from the warm the juice.
  6. Mix the arrowroot with some juice and add a little at a time to thicken the juice.
  7. Add the Blackcurrants to the juice and spoon over the Pears.
  8. Serve with Vanilla Ice Cream.

And don’t forget to use that other half of Cassis in a Kir Royale as an aperitif!