Peppers stuffed with cheese cold appetizer. Appetizer of peppers stuffed with feta cheese, melted cheese and garlic

In mid-July, one of the most delicious and healthy berries, called serviceberry, ripens. Dark blue, with a sweet, honey taste, it has a beneficial effect on the functioning of the entire body. Eating irgi will strengthen the immune system, reduce blood pressure, have a slight sedative effect and improve digestion. In summer it is better to eat it fresh, but if you properly prepare shadberry for the winter, you can get a boost of vitamins and nutrients at any time of the year.

Harvesting methods

From the fruits of the serviceberry you can prepare delicious dishes for the winter - jam, compote, juice, jam and much more. In addition, the berries can be dried or frozen, which will preserve the maximum beneficial properties of the fruit.

Serviceberry jam

There are many recipes for making jam from serviceberry; it is cooked with the addition of fruits, citrus fruits and other berries; everyone finds a combination to suit their taste through trial and experimentation.

Classic recipe

To make the simplest jam, you only need 3 ingredients - the berry itself, water and granulated sugar. For 1 kg of irgi you will need the same amount of sugar and 300 ml of clean water.

The sequence of actions is as follows:

Sort the berries, remove spoiled specimens, rinse well, getting rid of dust and debris;
place in a separate pan;
in another saucepan, bring water to a boil, add sugar and cook, stirring continuously, until the sugar grains dissolve;
pour the still boiling sweet liquid over the berries and cook for 5 minutes, stirring the mixture all the time;
turn off the stove and cool the berry mixture;
repeat the process 3 times;
Pour the jam into a previously prepared glass container.

Jam prepared in this way can become sugary, so it is recommended to add a pinch of citric acid at the end of cooking or use the recipe below.

Saskatoon and lemon jam

Ingredients:

1.5 kg serviceberry;
700 grams of granulated sugar;
1 glass of water;
1 medium sized lemon.

Place the peeled berries in a cooking container, preferably in a wide enamel bowl with low sides.
Pour in water and put on fire until it boils.
Reduce heat to medium, cover the bowl and cook for half an hour, making sure the mixture does not burn.
After the above time has passed, add sugar to the shadberry and cook for another 30 minutes without a lid, constantly stirring the berries.
Wash the lemon well and pass through a meat grinder along with the peel. You can use a blender or cut into pieces with a knife, but then they will be felt in the finished jam.
Cook until the mixture thickens. It’s easy to check the readiness - you just need to drop a drop of jam on the saucer; if it doesn’t spread, the jam is ready.

Jam

Jam differs from marmalade in having a thicker consistency, but is just as easy to prepare:

clean ripe berries are lightly mashed with a spoon and covered with sugar;
leave for 2-3 hours, the irga will have time to soak in sugar and release juice;
Next, the berry mass is sent to the stove and cooked until thickened;
5 minutes before the end add a couple of grams of citric acid;
Store in sealed sterilized small jars.

Compote and juice

To prepare compote, you need to select slightly unripe fruits. They are blanched, placed in jars and filled with sugar syrup. Jars of compote are sterilized and sealed.

The juice from serviceberry is prepared using a different technology: the berries are pre-chopped and often prepared with the addition of other berries, such as currants.

Recipe: serviceberry juice

You will need:

1 kg of berries;
0.5 kg currants;
350 grams of sugar.

Cooking method:

To enhance the aroma and juiciness, the berries are spread in a thin layer on a flat surface and kept in a cool room, such as a basement or pantry, for a week. However, this is not a required step.
Next, they are blanched and passed through a juicer. If you don’t have such a device in your kitchen, you can grind the berries and squeeze the juice through cheesecloth.
Add sugar to the juice and heat over low heat until the sugar dissolves.
Distribute into sterilized jars and seal with lids.

Freezing

Frozen serviceberry berries retain their benefits and taste to the maximum. The frozen product is subsequently used to prepare compote, filling for baked goods and various berry desserts.

The freezing process is as follows:

the berries are sorted, the stalks are removed, washed and dried;
laid out in one row on a flat surface, such as a tray or baking sheet;
put in the freezer for 2 hours;
then laid out in small portions in bags or containers;
store in the freezer.

Drying

Serviceberry berries produce very tasty raisins, which can compete with grape raisins in their taste. It can be used as a healthy snack and added to sweet pastries and compotes.

Place the berries on a flat surface and dry in the sun or in the oven at 60-70 degrees.
Clean a spacious wooden, cardboard or plastic container and dry it well.
Cover the bottom with clean paper.
Lay out the dried berries and sprinkle them with sugar.
Cover with a clean cloth and place a heavy press on top.

Serviceberry marshmallow

Another delicacy that is obtained by drying.

1 kg serviceberry;
lubricating oil;
300 grams of sugar.

Cooking method:

The berries are blanched and ground.
Add sugar.
Spread in a thin layer (10 mm) on parchment, which must first be coated with oil.
Dry at 50 degrees, without closing the oven door.
The finished pastille does not stick to your hands.
The treat is rolled up and wrapped in a clean cloth.

Irga in its own juice without sugar

Distribute clean dry berries into jars.
Pour boiling water over it.
Add citric acid (2 grams per liter of liquid).
Sterilize and seal the jars.

Kvass from serviceberry

This drink is considered medicinal: it is used for hypertension, but you can also drink it simply as a useful preventive measure.

1 kg serviceberry;
10 liters of clean water;
30 grams of yeast;
2 glasses of honey.

Cooking method:

Grind the berries, add water, bring to a boil and remove from heat.
Cool and strain the broth.
Add honey and yeast to the liquid and leave to ferment for 12 hours.
Pour into bottles.

Strong drinks

You can make not only sweet drinks from serviceberry, but also excellent homemade wine, tinctures, and liqueur. Strong drinks have a pleasant taste and, if consumed in moderation, will not cause harm to the body.

Liquor

To prepare the liqueur, the berries are not placed completely in the jar, leaving space starting from the “hangers”. Sugar is poured on top and vodka is poured. Insist for at least two months in a dark place.

Wine

To make wine from serviceberry, you must first extract the juice from the berries. For 1 liter of juice, take 1 kg of sugar and 2 liters of water.

Cooking process:

Boil sugar syrup.
After the water and sugar have been boiled for 15 minutes, the mixture is poured into the berry juice, mixed and distributed into bottles.
The neck of the bottle is sealed with a cork.
When the wine becomes lighter, it is poured into a clean container, tightly closed and left for 90 days until ready.
The finished drink is filtered and distributed again into clean bottles.

Other blanks

In addition to the most popular preparation methods listed above, you can make berry marmalade, puree and syrup from serviceberry for the winter. Any recipe will allow you to delight yourself with tasty and healthy berries all winter!

The name of this product, unfortunately, does not mean anything to many. It is a pity that people do not know about more plants that grow, bloom and smell right under their windows.

This is a rather unusual plant that can actually be found under the windows of houses, in parks and even in your gardens. Many simply have no idea what it grows, what it blooms and what kind of fruit it bears.

The plant can also be called currant, Celtic apple tree or northern raisin. This is a small tree, or rather even a shrub, on which small berries up to 1 cm in size ripen. These berries are apples, if we consider the plant from a botanical point of view. The berries have a bluish coating - that is, they are matte, not shiny, making them more like berries. The fruits, sweet and edible, ripen in the second half of summer.

The irga blooms with small but very beautiful white or beige flowers.

There are about 19 varieties of serviceberry around the globe. The plant adapts very easily to environmental conditions, easily becomes wild and spreads quickly. The spread, by the way, is not complete without the help of birds.

The caloric content of serviceberry is 45 kcal/100 g. Among them, only carbohydrates are 11.4 g and the product also contains vitamin C, A, B, B2, mineral salts, tannins, carotene, microelements - copper, cobalt, iron, manganese and iodine .

Irga are berries that contain an incredible amount of useful elements. They can be eaten to treat atherosclerosis, cardiovascular diseases, vitamin deficiency and gastrointestinal diseases. Or simply to prevent such diseases.

Thanks to vitamin P in the product, berries will be incredibly beneficial for older people. This will help them with the prevention of varicose veins, normalization of sleep, myocardial infarction, help strengthen the walls of blood vessels and make them more elastic and simply strengthen the entire body as a whole.

In folk medicine, to cure varicose veins, a bandage is soaked in a decoction of the leaves and bark of the plant, and the area with the veins is tightly tied.

The juice of the product will have an astringent effect if necessary, and will also help with inflammation, gastrointestinal disorders, colitis and enterocolitis. In addition, serviceberry juice is quite often consumed as a dietary product.

Pods will help normalize the nervous system, calm you down and improve sleep. Make it long and strong. It will improve your mood and relieve depression and stress, if necessary.

The product contains a large amount of vitamin A, which has a very beneficial effect on the visual system. Thanks to this, you can cure night blindness, improve the quality of vision and prevent the development of cataracts.

If you squeeze the juice from fresh berries, they will relieve sore throat and even purulent stomatitis. Berry juice has a general strengthening effect and has a good effect on the entire body in terms of strengthening.

To cure stomatitis, you need to make a puree of berries and apply it to the painful areas of the mouth after eating. Hold for about 15 minutes and continue until the stomatitis goes away.

In cases of suppuration on the skin, you can also prepare a porridge from berries and put some on the wound. Wrap the area and leave for a while. Repeat twice a day until good effect occurs.

In addition to berries, leaves, bark of the plant and its flowers are also used for treatment.

If you prepare a decoction of irgi flowers and let it brew, then with the help of the infusion you can normalize heart function and even lower blood pressure.

Irga is used not only in medicine, but also in cosmetology. Masks, creams and various other cosmetics are prepared based on the product. With regular use, your skin will become smooth, soft and more elastic.

Wine has been made from serviceberry for a very long time, and compotes can be made from fresh fruits. You can dry the fruits to cook uzvar or eat them as dried fruits.

Berries can also be used to prepare sauces for meat and fish, jam, jelly, marshmallows and various creams. You can prepare vitamin cocktails based on dairy products (yogurt, kefir, milk, cottage cheese) and even homemade liqueurs and tinctures. Also add to baked goods, use as a dye or flavoring additive in the confectionery part of cooking.

If you dig deeper into the sweet part of cooking, then fresh berries can be added to biscuits, used as decoration for sweets, prepared jams, fillings for baked goods - croissants, buns, pies, cakes and so on.

The product is contraindicated for people who suffer from low blood pressure or other problems related to blood pressure. It is also better not to use it before driving or before responsible work. The product is very relaxing and it is better not to take risks before doing things that require concentration.

In addition, the product may be prohibited for use if you have an individual intolerance or allergy. In the second case, you need to contact a specialist and if everything is fine, then you can continue to eat the berries, but start with very small portions.

The product, by the way, is allergenic. So people who are prone to allergies should use it very carefully, again, starting with a small amount, constantly and gradually increasing the portion.

Another thing about irgi is that it is best not to combine it with dairy products. Of course, this can be done, but then you should expect serious stomach upset.

People who tend their gardens can plant shadberry on their territory solely for the purpose of “cleaning” the air, land and water.

This means that this plant accumulates harmful substances that it finds in the soil, water and air. And therefore, using berries for culinary and medicinal purposes is strictly not recommended. This could be garden decor or a personal “filter”.

To properly grow such an assistant in your garden, it is important to know that the best time for planting is spring and autumn. But many people believe that it is still better to plant only in the fall. The plant must be planted in a well-lit place, in an open area. The serviceberry must have constant access to light, and from each side. If you plant it in a closed place, the branches will begin to reach towards the light on their own, which will make the plant crooked. By the way, it is also important to know that the more illuminated the shadberry, the more fruit it will produce.

The soil at the planting site must be fertile so that the roots do not “look for a better life” somewhere on the side. There should be enough humus in the soil for the bush to grow well. If the groundwater flows very high in the place chosen for the shadberry, then it is better to change the place, since the roots of the plant will go about 3 meters underground.

The area for planting must be prepared in the spring - it must be cleared of weeds and kept fallow until the fall - until the tree is planted. Before planting, the area must be dug to a depth of 15 cm with the addition of fertilizers.

If there are several bushes, then it is better to plant them in a checkerboard pattern so that there is enough space for everyone. The distance between seedlings is from 50 cm to 150 cm. Planting should be done according to the principle of planting gooseberries, blueberries, raspberries and so on. After planting, cut off the above-ground part of the plant to 15 cm, leaving several buds on each of them.

Then you can forget about shadberry almost until the harvest. She does not need careful care. You just need to water it if necessary (if there is no rain), dig up the weeds around the bush and sometimes (seasonally) add the necessary fertilizers.

You can expect fruits by the second half of next summer if everything is done correctly with planting the bushes and you take good care of them. Don’t forget about shadberry completely; it needs support, like any other plant.

Irga is an unusual plant that few people know about. Here's a little more about him:

The product has been known in Europe since the 16th century. Its homeland is England, and then the irga “moved” to Holland;
Amelanchier is the full, botanical name of the plant;
The taste of serviceberry is similar to blueberries and it has a cinnamon flavor;
The Canadian serviceberry can reach a height of 18 meters;
If you eat a kilogram of berries at once, then you can immediately fall asleep;
Dried shadberry can be stored for no longer than two years.

Irga is a strange plant that few people know about. It is very useful and necessary for health. Therefore, you should definitely be interested in this product.

Over time, the berry becomes less and less used, although it is considered quite famous. In terms of its beneficial properties, it can easily compete with the most popular and expensive fruits and berries. Its use will help strengthen the immune system, recover after childbirth or surgery, and relieve fatigue and stress. This is not a complete list of the beneficial effects of fruits on the body. Find out from the article what properties irga has, what benefits this berry has, what contraindications there are, and what can be prepared from it.

Description, appearance and distribution

Irga is a medium-sized shrub with small blue and purple fruits. Ripe fruits secrete raspberry juice and contain seeds. The shrub has oval-shaped leaves of green and dark green color; with the onset of autumn they turn red.

In Russia, shadberry is usually planted for decorative purposes. In spring it blooms with small, white, odorless flowers. The plant can grow almost anywhere; it is unpretentious to the conditions. The most popular places where serviceberry grows: the Caucasus, North Africa, North America, Japan, Russia, Southern and Central Europe.

In forests the shrub grows wild. Its seeds are spread by birds. As a garden plant, irga most often grows next to fences. Gardeners needlessly ignore the benefits of using serviceberry. These berries are an amazing combination of taste and health benefits.

Composition and beneficial properties of irgi

The game is not such a well-known plant today, however, in ancient times these berries were widely used for medicinal and preventive purposes. Irga brings great benefits to the body thanks to its composition. This includes:

Phytosterols, which are part of the fruit, strengthen the walls of blood vessels and capillaries, reduce their fragility, have an anti-sclerotic effect, and prevent the appearance of atherosclerotic plaques.

Pectins improve the functioning of the gastrointestinal tract, increase appetite, and help remove toxins from the body.

Vitamin P - quite rare component in food products. Irga is one of the few products that contains this vitamin in sufficient quantities. Vitamin P improves heart function during coronary artery disease, maintains normal blood sugar levels, and prevents the formation of blood clots. The enormous benefits of this berry are largely due to this fact.

Juice from irgi berries helps relieve stress, calms the nervous system, and improves sleep. The berries are low in calories, which is why they are often used in weight loss and weight correction programs.

Not only Serviceberry fruits are used in folk medicine. This is also the bark, leaves, and flowers of the plant. A decoction of these components has a wound-healing, bactericidal, and anti-inflammatory effect.

For what diseases is irga useful?

Irga has long found its use in folk medicine and is successfully used in complex treatment of the following diseases:

As a preventive measure, the beneficial properties of irgi will be useful in the following cases:

eye ailments;
varicose veins;
vascular diseases.

Usually the berries are taken orally in fresh, dried or heat-treated form. Extremely useful for certain diseases decoctions from the leaves and bark of the plant, for example, for tissue regeneration and rapid wound healing. A decoction of these parts of the plant is soaked in compression bandages and applied to the wound. You can also make lotions for varicose veins or phlebitis.

Benefits for men and women

As you know, men in general live less than women. This often happens because fewer men take care of their health from a young age. Problems with blood vessels and heart often cause serious illness or even death in relatively young men. Improve overall health, relieve stress, improve heart function Irga will help. The healing properties of these berries improve the functioning of blood vessels, as well as improve appetite and sleep.

As women age, they feel more and more fatigued and lack of strength. It is not surprising, because unlike men who lose their health due to bad habits, women spend their energy on everyone except themselves. Irga will help restore health and also reduce the unpleasant consequences of menopause. During pregnancy, this berry is also irreplaceable.. Many women suffer from a whole bunch of diseases during pregnancy:

blood pressure surges;
irritability;
sleep disorders;
swelling and dilation of leg veins;
colds for which conventional medications are prohibited.

Eating shadberry during pregnancy will help reduce some of the unpleasant effects. However, when breastfeeding, irga is not always useful. If you have low blood pressure and a tendency to allergies, it is not recommended to take berries.

Contraindications

The health benefits of serviceberry are invaluable, however, you need to be aware of some contraindications and cases when the berry can only cause harm. This:

tendency to allergies (can cause skin rashes);
diabetes mellitus (berries contain a lot of carbohydrates, so they can cause an increase in blood sugar);
low blood pressure, hypotension (some components in the berry help lower blood pressure);
low blood clotting (promotes blood thinning);
obesity (berries are rich in carbohydrates).

Since the berry perfectly absorbs heavy metals and toxins, it is recommended to collect it only in areas far from roads and polluted areas.

It must be remembered that excessive consumption of shadberry may lead to some unpleasant consequences. Firstly, since shadberry has a sedative effect, a large amount of it can cause drowsiness, loss of strength, and fatigue. Secondly, the combination of fruits with milk and dairy products leads to bloating and indigestion. Thirdly, in people who have not previously suffered from allergies, it may appear for the first time.

What to cook from irgi

Of course, irga is delicious on its own. But nothing prevents you from using it to make jam, compote or medicinal tincture.

Compote

To prepare compote you will need the following products:

300–400 g serviceberry berries;
6–7 glasses of water;
50 g granulated sugar;
citric acid on the tip of a knife.

Bring water to a boil, add sugar and fresh or frozen berries. After boiling for a few minutes, reduce heat. Boil for a total of about 5 minutes. At the end you can add citric acid. Drink chilled.

Jam

Serviceberry jam It is cooked at the rate of one kilogram of sugar per kilogram of berries. Sort and wash the berries thoroughly before cooking. Pour the sugar into a large container and add several glasses of water. Heat the syrup and add the berries. Cook over low heat. Saskatoon jam turns out even tastier if you add other berries to it. Black and red currants go well with irga. These berries will retain some of the vitamins after cooking, which means they will not lose their beneficial properties.

Morse

For preparing fruit juice wash the berries and squeeze the juice through a strainer. Boil the cake for 5 minutes, add sugar and dilute with squeezed juice. Let the fruit drink brew and drink it cold.

Tea

Fresh serviceberry leaves are best for making tea, but dried leaves are also suitable. Several leaves of irgi are poured with boiling water and infused for 10–15 minutes. Flower tea is prepared in a similar way. It is recommended to drink tea in the evenings before bed. It calms the nervous system and promotes sound sleep.

Berry tincture

To prepare the tincture you will need high-quality vodka and glass containers. First, mash the berries using a pestle. Fill the jar three-quarters full with the resulting puree. Then add vodka to the jar, leaving 3-4 centimeters free to the edge. Infuse the mixture in a cool, dark place for two to three days. Then strain and discard the remaining berries. like this the tincture is taken for medicinal and prophylactic purposes one tablespoon before meals three times a day. The tincture should be stored in a cool place.

Useful plant irga