March 2, 2024 • 30 mins
These small, tart fruits love the cold but are extra useful when they’re heated up. Anney and Lauren dig into the science and history of lingonberries.
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Speaker 1 (00:08):
Hello, and welcome to Savor production of iHeartRadio. I'm Annie Reese.
Speaker 2 (00:11):
And I'm Moreen vogel Baum, and today we have an
episode for you about Lingenberry's.
Speaker 1 (00:16):
Yes, which I love that you responded to my claim.
I could have sworn we already had done this with that,
you searched it and cling on? Was that showed up?
Because that helps me remember how to spell it?
Speaker 2 (00:34):
Oh? Yeah, yeah, ling on cling on? Yeah absolutely. If
you ever need to rhyme cling on with anything, you're welcome.
And yeah, yeah, that was the only hit that I
got in our meta spreadsheets. So here we are.
Speaker 1 (00:49):
Was there any particular reason this was on your mind? Lauren?
Speaker 2 (00:53):
It had been languishing in our ideas sheet for goodness
knows how long. Thanks, by the way, to listener, I'm
for the suggestion. I don't know if you still listen, but.
Speaker 1 (01:05):
We appreciate you. Yes, yes, we do. I cannot say
I've ever had these.
Speaker 2 (01:15):
Oh really, not even like at Ikea.
Speaker 1 (01:19):
No, I've only been to Ikea once.
Speaker 2 (01:23):
Really, how have you it.
Speaker 1 (01:29):
With everything I have? Lauren, that's no experience. But during
I know, during National Novel Writing Month, you know, RAMO
in Atlanta, they used to hold the opening ceremony where
you would go and write at Ikea, and so I
had many ambitions to go and they would have it
(01:52):
at the food court in which you might enjoy this berry.
Is it a berry? Oh no, I've been burned before.
You have? Oh no, well where you could go and
enjoy it? And I never I've never eaten the food
court at Akia.
Speaker 2 (02:11):
Okay, all right, well, yes, well, yes, that is probably
the first time that I encountered it. And then uh yeah,
I think a roommate got me a jar of jam
one time when they were at Ikea and I was not.
I don't think I've ever opened that jar. And that
(02:32):
was a solid ten plus years ago. So wow, canned
goods are Canned goods are sturdy.
Speaker 1 (02:40):
However sturdy, Well, maybe you should seek it out see
if it is still good. You can see your past
episodes on cloudberries, cranberries.
Speaker 2 (02:58):
Have we done it on blueberries? I feel like we have,
I think, so yeah, yeah, I love blueberries. So I'm
pretty sure I think we talked about blueberries for sALS.
So here we are, Yes, here we are. I guess
that brings us to our question. Sure, linganberries, what are they? Well?
(03:20):
Linganberries are a type of small, bright red fruit that
grow in cold, harsh climates. Yes, they are botanically a berry.
They're a juicy sweet tart with an emphasis on the
tart and a little bit bitter. So they're often sweetened
and cooked down into like a compote or jam or syrup,
and then used to bring a bright touch to everything
from sweet drinks and creamy desserts to savory meats and
(03:43):
other heavy dishes. They're like, they're like cranberries, smaller, rounder,
even more northern cousin, and they're like, they're like this
tiny bright flash in the deep dark of winter woods.
Speaker 1 (04:00):
Sounds intriguing, all right.
Speaker 2 (04:06):
Botanical name Vaccinium vitis idae idae, Sure, I don't know Latin. Yeah,
linconberries are in the heath or heather family. They share
that genus with a lot of other tasty little buddies
like cranberries, blueberries, billberries, and huckleberries, and there is argument
about whether they all belong together like that, and research
(04:27):
into genetics and ancestry is ongoing, but anyway, Yes, lincoln
berries grow on this kind of low shrubby evergreen plant
that spreads in clusters based on underground rhizomes and shooting roots.
The plant will have above ground glossy dark green leaves
just over like half an inch oval that's like a
centimeter or so. They'll tint deep burgundy in the winter,
(04:49):
when they're less likely to need green chlorophyll because there
won't be much sun. Because they do love these cold
far north like temperate tuboreal to even tundra envirals with
like kind of permanently damp, chilly sort of soils, they
survive best where snowfall blankets them and keeps them warm
over winter. The rhizomes help store nutrients for use during
(05:12):
that time, and the leaves are like pretty cute, so
the plant is sometimes used as an attractive ground cover.
It also blooms in the summer with clusters of these small,
pinkish bell shaped flowers that remind me a little bit
of like pink snowdrops, and in those flowers, if pollinated
usually by bees, will develop each into a single small fruit.
(05:36):
Given a long enough spring in summer, some types will
bloom and bear fruit twice a year. However, like many
plants with underground storage, they'll only start flowering and fruiting
during their second year of life. They spend that first
year building up their resources in those rhizomes. The fruit's
thin skin is this bright crimson red when they're ripe,
and the flesh inside will be kind of pinkish and
(05:58):
sort of spongy juicy, with a few tiny pockets. For
even tinier edible seeds. They are quite tart, but will
get sweeter the longer that they're the longer that they're
left on the plant, or the colder that it gets.
They're also a little bit puckery tannic. Yeah, they are
often collected in the wild, they're not that widely cultivated.
(06:19):
There is also a specialized tool for hand harvesting them.
It's a handrake, a kind of like scoop bucket with
a handle on top and this large comb along the
underside with a rounded prongs sticking out on one end.
So it helps like separate the berries and lift them
off the stems without having to pluck each tiny fruit,
which sounds very tedious, so huzzah, good for a handbrake.
(06:42):
The berries can be and in fact are pressed for juice,
which can be added to drinks like lemonade or made
into wine or liqueurs. However, Lincoln berries combination of acidity
and having lots of pectin means that they're really useful
in cooking because they naturally thicken. Pectin is this fiber
that's found in the cell walls of some plants, and
(07:05):
it's pretty happy to like form up into a matrix
that can trap and hold onto water and this form
a gel from soft to pretty stiff, and a low
pH helps that process. So being acidic is cool. Yeah.
Lincoennberries are thus good for adding to other fruits if
you're making jams or jellies or compots. Because they are
(07:26):
sweet tart, lingenberries are often cooked into condiments for rich
savory dishes to bring that like punch of fruity brightness in.
In Nordic cultures, a lincoennberry jam or compote often accompanies sausages,
game meats, and potato dumplings. That's just one example. These
condiments are also good paired with dairy as an ice
creams or yogurt, or desserts like crepes or baked goods
(07:48):
or chocolates, or just like on top of a breakfast
porridge something like that. They might be used pretty much
on their own like as they are probably sweetened a
bit or paired with season like orange or lemon, zest
or juice, warm spices like black pepper, allspice, or ginger
herbs like rosemary, thyme or juniper, or like a head
(08:09):
of a gin or sherry, Yeah, sherry, which makes sense
given the herbs that I just listed. They can also
be pickled for a tangy rather than a sweet condiment,
and I have not had them in that preparation, and
I'm fascinated. You need to know about it, Okay anyway, yeah,
etymology note, there are a lot of different local names
(08:29):
for lingenberries, many of them in English kind of start
with the word cranberry and then differentiate them somehow, as
in a mountain cranberry or moss cranberry, as they often
grow on mountaintops or around mosses. But then there are
a whole series of other animal based names in English
(08:52):
for them, which I don't, I can't, I'm not sure.
So okay, you've got like foxberry, partridge berry, cawberry, wolfberry,
q whale berry, beaver berry, cougar berry. I don't know.
I guess you know those are Northern Ish animals.
Speaker 1 (09:11):
I have to say, in researching this episode, this was
kind of a panic inducing moment. Oh no, because I like,
do I need to search the history of each one?
I didn't. I will be straightforward and say I did not.
(09:35):
I did do like a little dabbling, but that was
just too much, too much listeners.
Speaker 2 (09:42):
Yeah, yeah, it is a lot. I feel like I
haven't found I feel like we haven't covered a plant
that has quite that many names in different local cultures
as this one. And that was and I was only
covering English. There are a a lot of other languages
in the world other than English, despite what many English
(10:03):
speakers seem to think. So yeah, yeah, also fun with etymology.
In parts of Sweden and Finland, you might refer to
your menstrual cycle with a word that literally means your
lingenberry week. You're like a week of lingolnberry.
Speaker 1 (10:21):
I like that.
Speaker 2 (10:22):
Yeah, yeah, it's.
Speaker 1 (10:25):
Fun, all right. Well what about the nutrition.
Speaker 2 (10:29):
Yes, we are extensibly a food show by themselves. Linonberries
are pretty good for you, not too sugary, and with
a good punch of fiber and a good spread of
micro nutrients, so they'll help fill you up, but do
keep you going. Pair with a protein and a fat
of course, once you add like a whole bunch of sugar.
That's a kind of different thing. But yeah, yeah, they
have long been used medicinally, including for preventing scurvy, which,
(10:52):
of all things, will definitely work. Other things probably need
a little bit more research before we can say definitively.
Some studies in mice have found that consuming unsweetened lingoennberry
products can have positive effects on kidney function. I didn't
look too deep into other studies that are being done.
Other studies are being done, but in general, you know
(11:15):
saber motto, our bodies are complicated. More research does need
to be done. Before ingesting a medicinal amount of anything.
You should consult a medical professional. And that's not us, no, no, no,
tis not. It is here for funzies, Yeah, funzies and
money and the love of the job.
Speaker 1 (11:38):
Well, we do have some numbers for you.
Speaker 2 (11:42):
We do, okay. In the wild, these berries are scattered
and a popular food for birds and mammals other than humans.
As of two thousand and three, only some ten to
forty percent of wild lingen berries were being harvested. Sweden
was the largest producer at that time, though because they
are harvested wild, the amounts harvested per year can vary
(12:04):
like a lot, like some two thousand tons in some years,
some twenty thousand tons in other years. Most harvested there
and in Finland, which is another major producer, is for
local consumption. However, at the time as much as ten
percent of the local food exports out of Finland were
lingenberry products, so yeah, still a major major product. Russia
(12:28):
rounded out the top three producers then, But yeah, lingenberries
are also found anywhere else that's cold and northern enough,
really like North America, Japan, Germany.
Speaker 1 (12:38):
Again.
Speaker 2 (12:39):
As of two thousand and three, Swedes we're consuming about
two pounds of lingenberries each every year, Fins about two
point six pounds. However, the cultivation and markets for the
fruit in other places a little bit further south we're
growing at the time.
Speaker 1 (12:58):
Yes, yes, and there's quite a history, quite a history
behind these berries, which I'm very glad to learn that
they are actually berries.
Speaker 2 (13:09):
I'm like nearly positive there was like one thing that
said that they were false berries. But I don't I
don't think. I think I understand botany, and I think
that they're berries.
Speaker 1 (13:19):
Oh well, I'm gonna I'm gonna cling to their.
Speaker 2 (13:22):
Okay, I love that them and bananas right there, same thing. Yeah, okay,
botanically speaking, mm hmm.
Speaker 1 (13:29):
Well they've got quite a long history, is what I'm
trying to say.
Speaker 2 (13:35):
They do, they do, they do, and we are going
to get into that history as soon as we get
back from a quick break for a word from our sponsors.
Speaker 1 (13:51):
They were back. Thank you sponsorh yes, thank you. So
if you couldn't tell there is still some discussion happening
about Lingolnberry's. I read multiple dense research papers about the
genetic history of Lincoln Berry's. I got to the end,
(14:12):
and I can tell you they are old. That's essentially
what I left with. I think someone more well versed
in a lot of those graphs and a lot of
that terminology could give you a lot more so if
you want to find that, you can. But I will
say I'm not alone because the general consensus at the
end of these papers seemed to be that there are
(14:34):
still questions.
Speaker 2 (14:35):
Yeah, yes, yes, that is absolutely the thing. And like
part of the issue from the brief things that I
was reading is that like different genetic duplication events happened
in some of their ancestors multiple times, so like everyone
is kind of like this is hard to track down.
Speaker 1 (14:54):
Yeah, pretty much, but it is really fascinating. It's really
fascinating stuff. But yes, as you said, research is ongoing
into it. But yeah, I can say that they're very
old and that different varieties of Lingoennberry's originated where they
grow in the wild. Now, that seems to be the
(15:15):
general idea that they came away with from these research
papers that are read, so that would be parts of Europe,
Asia and North America that fit the climate that they
thrive in. Also, yes, there are a lot of varieties,
so that kind of makes it tricky.
Speaker 2 (15:31):
Yeah. Yeah, in the past they were more separated, but
then I feel like more recent research has shown that
they shouldn't really be separated out that much. But the
plants are a little bit botanically different. So yeah, we.
Speaker 1 (15:46):
Mysteries histories, yes, Botany's. Yeah, yes, we need another saying
for Botany's what rhymes with botany. We'll get back to
you on that lingolnberry they do. You have a long
history of being used by indigenous peoples in the areas
that it does grow naturally, and it was consumed a
(16:06):
host of boys. It was used as a relish, as
a juice in desserts, frozen, preserved in jams, or as
an accompaniment to meat some fish. These berries were likely
used medicinely as well, along with the leaves for a
range of issues. They also might have been used to
dye things or as a decoration or maybe something to
(16:28):
add to tobacco. Yes, a few sources I read suggested
that Lincoln berries were popular amongst Russian royals, though Catherine
the Great often gets the credit for being the first
to grow the plant just for the berries are, rather
ordering her staff to do it. Probably yeah, probably, yes.
(16:49):
Apparently she really liked them to go alongside meat dishes
in the summer, and so her subordinates collected lingenberry plants
around Saint Petersburg and transplanted them so that they would
grow in the royal summer gardens so that she could
have them. I did have a lot of trouble finding
definitive dates and sources for lingenberries, but it seems that
(17:12):
in areas where they grow naturally they were particularly popular
in jams and alongside meat. Perhaps one of the most
famous examples for many of us in the US would
be in places like Sweden, Yes, where the jam is
served Next to things like Swedish meatballs, amongst a lot
of other stuff. But for us in the US, I
think that's probably one we think of. A recipe for
(17:35):
lingennberry syrup goes back to an eighteen thirty seven Swedish
cookbook and a seventeen forty two document out of Sweden
references trading of Lincoln berries. Okay, and it does make
sense that the jam form took off there. It's an
easy way to preserve them. They are a bit tough
to eat without doing at least something to soften them up,
(17:57):
not to mention they're like tartan bitter, so adding the
sugar help. So jam. Another source I've found said that
cutting down trees and letting in sunlight into places that
had previously been shielded in Sweden and the early nineteen
hundreds allowed for prolific growth of lincolnberries. So you got
more lingoberries, you're making more jam.
Speaker 2 (18:20):
Yeah, they do like sunlight from what I've read, So
there you go.
Speaker 1 (18:24):
Yeah, and I guess this brings us to our very
brief ikia Swedish meatballs a side, okay, yeah, so yes,
if you don't know the huge multinational furniture plus other stuff,
Swedish corporation Ikia has a food court and it serves
things like Swedish meatballs with lingoennberry jam. They've been serving
(18:48):
food at their locations since the nineteen sixties is the
way to keep customers in their stores longer. But it
was in nineteen eighty five the Swedish meatballs were introduced
to their menu with this lingenberry jam. Okay, so apparently
in twenty eighteen there was a hubbub on social media
about the fact that Swedish meatballs served did Aikia weren't
(19:09):
actually traditionally Swedish, but everyone seemed to agree that the
lingenberry jam was traditionally Swedish.
Speaker 2 (19:18):
Yeah, I think more traditionally there are other ground meat
like like spiced ground meat dishes that are not what
we think of when we think of Swedish meatballs, which
are this very specific ground meat in a gravy situation.
Yeah that there are other sausage esque like fresh sausage
(19:38):
esque dishes that lingoenberry jam would be it would go
along with.
Speaker 1 (19:42):
But yeah, yeah, I would love to come back and
revisit this one day. I never really thought about how
interesting it is that they have a food Court. I
did visit their headquarters when I was in Sweden. No,
at the time, I was interning with the European Union.
I can't remember why I was there, but I remember
(20:05):
that the headquarters were very, very nice. Okay, there was food,
and there were drinks and there were massages.
Speaker 2 (20:12):
Wow.
Speaker 1 (20:13):
Okay, I did not get the massage they were available.
So if anybody's been or knows about that.
Speaker 2 (20:23):
Food of ikea different episode, yeah, definitely, definitely.
Speaker 1 (20:28):
So I have a couple of random varietal facts here,
so Kerala, I hope I'm pronouncing that right. The first
cultivated variety was chosen in Holland in nineteen sixty nine,
so that's how recent we're talking about when we're talking
about cultivating cultivated.
Speaker 2 (20:44):
Yeah. Yeah, most of the varieties that I saw were
dating from the eighties, so right.
Speaker 1 (20:52):
And soon after that, German breeders of Lincoln Berry's they
fall at suit and they arrived at a handful of varieties,
and one of them Ernst Sagan Earns. Sagan apparently was
named from by a man who was walking his dog
in Germany and he saw this variety with particularly big berries,
which I love. That every version I read of this
(21:14):
was like he was walking his dog. He was walking
his dog. And I'm not saying it's wrong, but so
many of these kind of historical stories, I'm like, uh.
Speaker 2 (21:25):
I mean, it's a good time to look at plants.
Speaker 1 (21:28):
Truth. Truth. I've tried. I've tried to get more. I've
tried to go back outdoors more. And I today I
was out and I saw so many people walking their
dogs and just looking at plants. I was like, so
this is possible, Yeah, fairly possible. I'm just saying I
really only found that there's nothing else I could do
(21:50):
to verify that back. Yes, And unfortunately that's how much
of this history section is. I couldn't really find much
to verify or get more than this, but I would
love to hear from listeners if you have any information recipes. Unfortunately,
(22:12):
my greatest source was like wow, wow, Yeah, a couple
of other things, but they were very They were much
more like in the how to grow them right right, right, Yeah.
Speaker 2 (22:25):
I think that this is one of those you know,
locally grown products that right because it was it still
is harvested wild so much of the time. So much
of its culture depends on these remote, isolated peoples who
we don't necessarily have written histories from all the time, right,
(22:47):
But to reiterate, there are scientists who are doing a
lot of work to sequence genetically.
Speaker 1 (22:55):
Lincolnberry's didn't really help me with the history, but it
was fascinating. So there's stuff being done. There's still stuff
being done, is what I'm saying.
Speaker 2 (23:05):
Absolutely, And yeah, if you have, oh my goodness, if
you have anything to help us fill in any of
these blanks, we would love to hear from you.
Speaker 1 (23:11):
Yes, oh my gosh. Yes. In the meantime, we do
have some listener mail all ready for you.
Speaker 2 (23:18):
We do, and we're going to get into that as
soon as we get back from one more quick breakforward
from our sponsors.
Speaker 3 (23:31):
And we're back. Thank you, sponsor, Yes, thank you, And
we're back with liststen like snow.
Speaker 1 (23:45):
Yeah, your descriptions always inspire me. Lauren al I wrote,
apple butter is my favorite jam jelly preserve type. Topping
the variety in flavorings depending on the apples and spices used,
(24:05):
how chunky or smooth makes it so much fun. It
is one I'll just eat a spoonful of. As you mentioned,
it does work well on a cheese plate. Try it
on latkas instead of apple sauce. I would be interested
in trying some of that apple butter with the cimon
red hots to see what it does. More cheese, please,
(24:27):
I love gorgonzola as well as all of the blue
cheese is stinky. Cheese is wonderful. We'll make sure we
have all kinds of cheese platters at the feast. I
like using gorgonzola on top of chicken. Marinate a boneless,
skinless breast in balsamic, vinegar, salt, and herb de provence
(24:48):
for at least four hours. Grill the chicken over a
medium high heat, turning once. Cooking time will depend on thickness,
et cetera. When coming to the last two minutes of grilling,
place some thin slices or peas gorganzola on top, Drizzle
a touch of balsamic on top, and let it finish cooking.
I love how well the flavors mix. Flaming cocktails are interesting.
(25:12):
It can be fun, but I only ever order when
you can tell the bar is not being overworked so
they will have time. There was one I remembered from
the path that I can't find the name of, but
thought it was along the lines of Lampandina Lambandina. It
was a coffee of the core cocktail, served in a
Martini glass, thin layer of one fifty one port on
(25:32):
top light and then put out with a thin layer
of cold sweet cream. Again, only order flaming drinks from
the bar is slower, and I personally always ask the
bartender if they feel like making it. N that's a
good good advice, good advice.
Speaker 2 (25:49):
Yeah, yeah, be aware, be aware of what the bar
is up to when you're ordering complicated drinks that involve
setting fire to something.
Speaker 1 (25:56):
Yeah that's yeah, that really made my brain freeze for
a second, because complicated drinks that involve setting fire to something,
we get up to a lot of stuff, we really do.
I also, I have I bought gorgonzola after our episode
(26:19):
on it. I have a lot of it, and tonight
I'm going to try to make like a pasta sauce
out of because I need to use it. It's more
gorgonzola than a single lady needs with a chast night.
I'm very excited about it, but I'm not sure how
it's gonna melt because a lot of things I'm reading
are implying to me I need a lot more liquid. Okay,
(26:45):
but I'll report back. I'm very excited. I think it's
gonna taste great, but it's going to be an experiment. Yeah.
Speaker 2 (26:51):
No, I love an experiment and yeah, those I think
I said earlier that, Yeah, like as a pasta sauce
was one of the most intriguing things to make. I've
definitely never done that, and that sounds so good.
Speaker 1 (27:04):
Yeah, it does sound really good. I just I'm very
excited to do it, but I don't know quite how
it's going to turn out because most people use heavy cream, sure,
and I don't have any heavy cream. But I'm going
to make it work.
Speaker 2 (27:20):
Yeah, you'll work it out, thank you.
Speaker 1 (27:24):
I will, I will. And yes, uh, apple butter onlock
because sounds pretty good, right right?
Speaker 2 (27:37):
Why have I never thought of that? Heck, I mean
just fried potatoes in general. But yeah, it's some spiced
apple so good. Huh Okay, Okay, Kelsey wrote, you barely
mentioned Groundhog Day in the Apple butter episode, so here
is an unasked for lunchbox comic themed around that holiday.
(28:00):
It's not really a holiday, I guess, but special day
where we collectively consider ground dwelling rodents is way too
much of a mouthful, and and the comic, the little
single panel comic is attached, and and it's this this
groundhog who it looks like is really living its best life.
Like it's it's it's got like it's got it's out
(28:20):
like a park.
Speaker 1 (28:21):
It's got like.
Speaker 2 (28:22):
A blanket and like a book and some snacks and
uh and you know, some like music playing and a
hula hoop maybe to deal with later and uh. And
there's a couple of mice and one of them is
going like, WHOA, what a groundhog and the other is like,
no kidding, It is that groundhog's day.
Speaker 1 (28:44):
I feel like it's the rodent version of like man's brain.
It's taking he's taking up a lot of space, he's
hogging the ground, but he's having a wonderful time. He
is his day.
Speaker 2 (28:57):
He is he is being a groundhog. That is very true.
But earnestly it's his day man.
Speaker 1 (29:07):
And it looks slowly. Yeah, I like this vibe of
you know, I'll read when I want, I'll nap what
I want, I'll listen to this music. I got the
snacks ready to go. It's a good life if you're
only coming out like once a day to like look
at the weather. Might as well.
Speaker 2 (29:28):
Once a year, Yeah yeah, yeah, might as well make
the most of it.
Speaker 1 (29:31):
Come on, oh well, Thank you so much to both
of those listeners for writing in. If you would like
to try to us, you can Our email is hello
at savorpod dot com.
Speaker 2 (29:46):
Oh, we're also on social media. You can find us
on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram at saber pod, and we
do hope to hear from you. Savor is production of iHeartRadio.
For more podcasts from my Heart Radio, you can visit
the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to
your favorite shows. Thanks as always to our super producers
Dylan Fagan and Andrew Howard. Thanks to you for listening,
and we hope that lots more good things are coming
(30:06):
your way
Hello, and welcome to Savor production of iHeartRadio. I'm Annie Reese.
Speaker 2 (00:11):
And I'm Moreen vogel Baum, and today we have an
episode for you about Lingenberry's.
Speaker 1 (00:16):
Yes, which I love that you responded to my claim.
I could have sworn we already had done this with that,
you searched it and cling on? Was that showed up?
Because that helps me remember how to spell it?
Speaker 2 (00:34):
Oh? Yeah, yeah, ling on cling on? Yeah absolutely. If
you ever need to rhyme cling on with anything, you're welcome.
And yeah, yeah, that was the only hit that I
got in our meta spreadsheets. So here we are.
Speaker 1 (00:49):
Was there any particular reason this was on your mind? Lauren?
Speaker 2 (00:53):
It had been languishing in our ideas sheet for goodness
knows how long. Thanks, by the way, to listener, I'm
for the suggestion. I don't know if you still listen, but.
Speaker 1 (01:05):
We appreciate you. Yes, yes, we do. I cannot say
I've ever had these.
Speaker 2 (01:15):
Oh really, not even like at Ikea.
Speaker 1 (01:19):
No, I've only been to Ikea once.
Speaker 2 (01:23):
Really, how have you it.
Speaker 1 (01:29):
With everything I have? Lauren, that's no experience. But during
I know, during National Novel Writing Month, you know, RAMO
in Atlanta, they used to hold the opening ceremony where
you would go and write at Ikea, and so I
had many ambitions to go and they would have it
(01:52):
at the food court in which you might enjoy this berry.
Is it a berry? Oh no, I've been burned before.
You have? Oh no, well where you could go and
enjoy it? And I never I've never eaten the food
court at Akia.
Speaker 2 (02:11):
Okay, all right, well, yes, well, yes, that is probably
the first time that I encountered it. And then uh yeah,
I think a roommate got me a jar of jam
one time when they were at Ikea and I was not.
I don't think I've ever opened that jar. And that
(02:32):
was a solid ten plus years ago. So wow, canned
goods are Canned goods are sturdy.
Speaker 1 (02:40):
However sturdy, Well, maybe you should seek it out see
if it is still good. You can see your past
episodes on cloudberries, cranberries.
Speaker 2 (02:58):
Have we done it on blueberries? I feel like we have,
I think, so yeah, yeah, I love blueberries. So I'm
pretty sure I think we talked about blueberries for sALS.
So here we are, Yes, here we are. I guess
that brings us to our question. Sure, linganberries, what are they? Well?
(03:20):
Linganberries are a type of small, bright red fruit that
grow in cold, harsh climates. Yes, they are botanically a berry.
They're a juicy sweet tart with an emphasis on the
tart and a little bit bitter. So they're often sweetened
and cooked down into like a compote or jam or syrup,
and then used to bring a bright touch to everything
from sweet drinks and creamy desserts to savory meats and
(03:43):
other heavy dishes. They're like, they're like cranberries, smaller, rounder,
even more northern cousin, and they're like, they're like this
tiny bright flash in the deep dark of winter woods.
Speaker 1 (04:00):
Sounds intriguing, all right.
Speaker 2 (04:06):
Botanical name Vaccinium vitis idae idae, Sure, I don't know Latin. Yeah,
linconberries are in the heath or heather family. They share
that genus with a lot of other tasty little buddies
like cranberries, blueberries, billberries, and huckleberries, and there is argument
about whether they all belong together like that, and research
(04:27):
into genetics and ancestry is ongoing, but anyway, Yes, lincoln
berries grow on this kind of low shrubby evergreen plant
that spreads in clusters based on underground rhizomes and shooting roots.
The plant will have above ground glossy dark green leaves
just over like half an inch oval that's like a
centimeter or so. They'll tint deep burgundy in the winter,
(04:49):
when they're less likely to need green chlorophyll because there
won't be much sun. Because they do love these cold
far north like temperate tuboreal to even tundra envirals with
like kind of permanently damp, chilly sort of soils, they
survive best where snowfall blankets them and keeps them warm
over winter. The rhizomes help store nutrients for use during
(05:12):
that time, and the leaves are like pretty cute, so
the plant is sometimes used as an attractive ground cover.
It also blooms in the summer with clusters of these small,
pinkish bell shaped flowers that remind me a little bit
of like pink snowdrops, and in those flowers, if pollinated
usually by bees, will develop each into a single small fruit.
(05:36):
Given a long enough spring in summer, some types will
bloom and bear fruit twice a year. However, like many
plants with underground storage, they'll only start flowering and fruiting
during their second year of life. They spend that first
year building up their resources in those rhizomes. The fruit's
thin skin is this bright crimson red when they're ripe,
and the flesh inside will be kind of pinkish and
(05:58):
sort of spongy juicy, with a few tiny pockets. For
even tinier edible seeds. They are quite tart, but will
get sweeter the longer that they're the longer that they're
left on the plant, or the colder that it gets.
They're also a little bit puckery tannic. Yeah, they are
often collected in the wild, they're not that widely cultivated.
(06:19):
There is also a specialized tool for hand harvesting them.
It's a handrake, a kind of like scoop bucket with
a handle on top and this large comb along the
underside with a rounded prongs sticking out on one end.
So it helps like separate the berries and lift them
off the stems without having to pluck each tiny fruit,
which sounds very tedious, so huzzah, good for a handbrake.
(06:42):
The berries can be and in fact are pressed for juice,
which can be added to drinks like lemonade or made
into wine or liqueurs. However, Lincoln berries combination of acidity
and having lots of pectin means that they're really useful
in cooking because they naturally thicken. Pectin is this fiber
that's found in the cell walls of some plants, and
(07:05):
it's pretty happy to like form up into a matrix
that can trap and hold onto water and this form
a gel from soft to pretty stiff, and a low
pH helps that process. So being acidic is cool. Yeah.
Lincoennberries are thus good for adding to other fruits if
you're making jams or jellies or compots. Because they are
(07:26):
sweet tart, lingenberries are often cooked into condiments for rich
savory dishes to bring that like punch of fruity brightness in.
In Nordic cultures, a lincoennberry jam or compote often accompanies sausages,
game meats, and potato dumplings. That's just one example. These
condiments are also good paired with dairy as an ice
creams or yogurt, or desserts like crepes or baked goods
(07:48):
or chocolates, or just like on top of a breakfast
porridge something like that. They might be used pretty much
on their own like as they are probably sweetened a
bit or paired with season like orange or lemon, zest
or juice, warm spices like black pepper, allspice, or ginger
herbs like rosemary, thyme or juniper, or like a head
(08:09):
of a gin or sherry, Yeah, sherry, which makes sense
given the herbs that I just listed. They can also
be pickled for a tangy rather than a sweet condiment,
and I have not had them in that preparation, and
I'm fascinated. You need to know about it, Okay anyway, yeah,
etymology note, there are a lot of different local names
(08:29):
for lingenberries, many of them in English kind of start
with the word cranberry and then differentiate them somehow, as
in a mountain cranberry or moss cranberry, as they often
grow on mountaintops or around mosses. But then there are
a whole series of other animal based names in English
(08:52):
for them, which I don't, I can't, I'm not sure.
So okay, you've got like foxberry, partridge berry, cawberry, wolfberry,
q whale berry, beaver berry, cougar berry. I don't know.
I guess you know those are Northern Ish animals.
Speaker 1 (09:11):
I have to say, in researching this episode, this was
kind of a panic inducing moment. Oh no, because I like,
do I need to search the history of each one?
I didn't. I will be straightforward and say I did not.
(09:35):
I did do like a little dabbling, but that was
just too much, too much listeners.
Speaker 2 (09:42):
Yeah, yeah, it is a lot. I feel like I
haven't found I feel like we haven't covered a plant
that has quite that many names in different local cultures
as this one. And that was and I was only
covering English. There are a a lot of other languages
in the world other than English, despite what many English
(10:03):
speakers seem to think. So yeah, yeah, also fun with etymology.
In parts of Sweden and Finland, you might refer to
your menstrual cycle with a word that literally means your
lingenberry week. You're like a week of lingolnberry.
Speaker 1 (10:21):
I like that.
Speaker 2 (10:22):
Yeah, yeah, it's.
Speaker 1 (10:25):
Fun, all right. Well what about the nutrition.
Speaker 2 (10:29):
Yes, we are extensibly a food show by themselves. Linonberries
are pretty good for you, not too sugary, and with
a good punch of fiber and a good spread of
micro nutrients, so they'll help fill you up, but do
keep you going. Pair with a protein and a fat
of course, once you add like a whole bunch of sugar.
That's a kind of different thing. But yeah, yeah, they
have long been used medicinally, including for preventing scurvy, which,
(10:52):
of all things, will definitely work. Other things probably need
a little bit more research before we can say definitively.
Some studies in mice have found that consuming unsweetened lingoennberry
products can have positive effects on kidney function. I didn't
look too deep into other studies that are being done.
Other studies are being done, but in general, you know
(11:15):
saber motto, our bodies are complicated. More research does need
to be done. Before ingesting a medicinal amount of anything.
You should consult a medical professional. And that's not us, no, no, no,
tis not. It is here for funzies, Yeah, funzies and
money and the love of the job.
Speaker 1 (11:38):
Well, we do have some numbers for you.
Speaker 2 (11:42):
We do, okay. In the wild, these berries are scattered
and a popular food for birds and mammals other than humans.
As of two thousand and three, only some ten to
forty percent of wild lingen berries were being harvested. Sweden
was the largest producer at that time, though because they
are harvested wild, the amounts harvested per year can vary
(12:04):
like a lot, like some two thousand tons in some years,
some twenty thousand tons in other years. Most harvested there
and in Finland, which is another major producer, is for
local consumption. However, at the time as much as ten
percent of the local food exports out of Finland were
lingenberry products, so yeah, still a major major product. Russia
(12:28):
rounded out the top three producers then, But yeah, lingenberries
are also found anywhere else that's cold and northern enough,
really like North America, Japan, Germany.
Speaker 1 (12:38):
Again.
Speaker 2 (12:39):
As of two thousand and three, Swedes we're consuming about
two pounds of lingenberries each every year, Fins about two
point six pounds. However, the cultivation and markets for the
fruit in other places a little bit further south we're
growing at the time.
Speaker 1 (12:58):
Yes, yes, and there's quite a history, quite a history
behind these berries, which I'm very glad to learn that
they are actually berries.
Speaker 2 (13:09):
I'm like nearly positive there was like one thing that
said that they were false berries. But I don't I
don't think. I think I understand botany, and I think
that they're berries.
Speaker 1 (13:19):
Oh well, I'm gonna I'm gonna cling to their.
Speaker 2 (13:22):
Okay, I love that them and bananas right there, same thing. Yeah, okay,
botanically speaking, mm hmm.
Speaker 1 (13:29):
Well they've got quite a long history, is what I'm
trying to say.
Speaker 2 (13:35):
They do, they do, they do, and we are going
to get into that history as soon as we get
back from a quick break for a word from our sponsors.
Speaker 1 (13:51):
They were back. Thank you sponsorh yes, thank you. So
if you couldn't tell there is still some discussion happening
about Lingolnberry's. I read multiple dense research papers about the
genetic history of Lincoln Berry's. I got to the end,
(14:12):
and I can tell you they are old. That's essentially
what I left with. I think someone more well versed
in a lot of those graphs and a lot of
that terminology could give you a lot more so if
you want to find that, you can. But I will
say I'm not alone because the general consensus at the
end of these papers seemed to be that there are
(14:34):
still questions.
Speaker 2 (14:35):
Yeah, yes, yes, that is absolutely the thing. And like
part of the issue from the brief things that I
was reading is that like different genetic duplication events happened
in some of their ancestors multiple times, so like everyone
is kind of like this is hard to track down.
Speaker 1 (14:54):
Yeah, pretty much, but it is really fascinating. It's really
fascinating stuff. But yes, as you said, research is ongoing
into it. But yeah, I can say that they're very
old and that different varieties of Lingoennberry's originated where they
grow in the wild. Now, that seems to be the
(15:15):
general idea that they came away with from these research
papers that are read, so that would be parts of Europe,
Asia and North America that fit the climate that they
thrive in. Also, yes, there are a lot of varieties,
so that kind of makes it tricky.
Speaker 2 (15:31):
Yeah. Yeah, in the past they were more separated, but
then I feel like more recent research has shown that
they shouldn't really be separated out that much. But the
plants are a little bit botanically different. So yeah, we.
Speaker 1 (15:46):
Mysteries histories, yes, Botany's. Yeah, yes, we need another saying
for Botany's what rhymes with botany. We'll get back to
you on that lingolnberry they do. You have a long
history of being used by indigenous peoples in the areas
that it does grow naturally, and it was consumed a
(16:06):
host of boys. It was used as a relish, as
a juice in desserts, frozen, preserved in jams, or as
an accompaniment to meat some fish. These berries were likely
used medicinely as well, along with the leaves for a
range of issues. They also might have been used to
dye things or as a decoration or maybe something to
(16:28):
add to tobacco. Yes, a few sources I read suggested
that Lincoln berries were popular amongst Russian royals, though Catherine
the Great often gets the credit for being the first
to grow the plant just for the berries are, rather
ordering her staff to do it. Probably yeah, probably, yes.
(16:49):
Apparently she really liked them to go alongside meat dishes
in the summer, and so her subordinates collected lingenberry plants
around Saint Petersburg and transplanted them so that they would
grow in the royal summer gardens so that she could
have them. I did have a lot of trouble finding
definitive dates and sources for lingenberries, but it seems that
(17:12):
in areas where they grow naturally they were particularly popular
in jams and alongside meat. Perhaps one of the most
famous examples for many of us in the US would
be in places like Sweden, Yes, where the jam is
served Next to things like Swedish meatballs, amongst a lot
of other stuff. But for us in the US, I
think that's probably one we think of. A recipe for
(17:35):
lingennberry syrup goes back to an eighteen thirty seven Swedish
cookbook and a seventeen forty two document out of Sweden
references trading of Lincoln berries. Okay, and it does make
sense that the jam form took off there. It's an
easy way to preserve them. They are a bit tough
to eat without doing at least something to soften them up,
(17:57):
not to mention they're like tartan bitter, so adding the
sugar help. So jam. Another source I've found said that
cutting down trees and letting in sunlight into places that
had previously been shielded in Sweden and the early nineteen
hundreds allowed for prolific growth of lincolnberries. So you got
more lingoberries, you're making more jam.
Speaker 2 (18:20):
Yeah, they do like sunlight from what I've read, So
there you go.
Speaker 1 (18:24):
Yeah, and I guess this brings us to our very
brief ikia Swedish meatballs a side, okay, yeah, so yes,
if you don't know the huge multinational furniture plus other stuff,
Swedish corporation Ikia has a food court and it serves
things like Swedish meatballs with lingoennberry jam. They've been serving
(18:48):
food at their locations since the nineteen sixties is the
way to keep customers in their stores longer. But it
was in nineteen eighty five the Swedish meatballs were introduced
to their menu with this lingenberry jam. Okay, so apparently
in twenty eighteen there was a hubbub on social media
about the fact that Swedish meatballs served did Aikia weren't
(19:09):
actually traditionally Swedish, but everyone seemed to agree that the
lingenberry jam was traditionally Swedish.
Speaker 2 (19:18):
Yeah, I think more traditionally there are other ground meat
like like spiced ground meat dishes that are not what
we think of when we think of Swedish meatballs, which
are this very specific ground meat in a gravy situation.
Yeah that there are other sausage esque like fresh sausage
(19:38):
esque dishes that lingoenberry jam would be it would go
along with.
Speaker 1 (19:42):
But yeah, yeah, I would love to come back and
revisit this one day. I never really thought about how
interesting it is that they have a food Court. I
did visit their headquarters when I was in Sweden. No,
at the time, I was interning with the European Union.
I can't remember why I was there, but I remember
(20:05):
that the headquarters were very, very nice. Okay, there was food,
and there were drinks and there were massages.
Speaker 2 (20:12):
Wow.
Speaker 1 (20:13):
Okay, I did not get the massage they were available.
So if anybody's been or knows about that.
Speaker 2 (20:23):
Food of ikea different episode, yeah, definitely, definitely.
Speaker 1 (20:28):
So I have a couple of random varietal facts here,
so Kerala, I hope I'm pronouncing that right. The first
cultivated variety was chosen in Holland in nineteen sixty nine,
so that's how recent we're talking about when we're talking
about cultivating cultivated.
Speaker 2 (20:44):
Yeah. Yeah, most of the varieties that I saw were
dating from the eighties, so right.
Speaker 1 (20:52):
And soon after that, German breeders of Lincoln Berry's they
fall at suit and they arrived at a handful of varieties,
and one of them Ernst Sagan Earns. Sagan apparently was
named from by a man who was walking his dog
in Germany and he saw this variety with particularly big berries,
which I love. That every version I read of this
(21:14):
was like he was walking his dog. He was walking
his dog. And I'm not saying it's wrong, but so
many of these kind of historical stories, I'm like, uh.
Speaker 2 (21:25):
I mean, it's a good time to look at plants.
Speaker 1 (21:28):
Truth. Truth. I've tried. I've tried to get more. I've
tried to go back outdoors more. And I today I
was out and I saw so many people walking their
dogs and just looking at plants. I was like, so
this is possible, Yeah, fairly possible. I'm just saying I
really only found that there's nothing else I could do
(21:50):
to verify that back. Yes, And unfortunately that's how much
of this history section is. I couldn't really find much
to verify or get more than this, but I would
love to hear from listeners if you have any information recipes. Unfortunately,
(22:12):
my greatest source was like wow, wow, Yeah, a couple
of other things, but they were very They were much
more like in the how to grow them right right, right, Yeah.
Speaker 2 (22:25):
I think that this is one of those you know,
locally grown products that right because it was it still
is harvested wild so much of the time. So much
of its culture depends on these remote, isolated peoples who
we don't necessarily have written histories from all the time, right,
(22:47):
But to reiterate, there are scientists who are doing a
lot of work to sequence genetically.
Speaker 1 (22:55):
Lincolnberry's didn't really help me with the history, but it
was fascinating. So there's stuff being done. There's still stuff
being done, is what I'm saying.
Speaker 2 (23:05):
Absolutely, And yeah, if you have, oh my goodness, if
you have anything to help us fill in any of
these blanks, we would love to hear from you.
Speaker 1 (23:11):
Yes, oh my gosh. Yes. In the meantime, we do
have some listener mail all ready for you.
Speaker 2 (23:18):
We do, and we're going to get into that as
soon as we get back from one more quick breakforward
from our sponsors.
Speaker 3 (23:31):
And we're back. Thank you, sponsor, Yes, thank you, And
we're back with liststen like snow.
Speaker 1 (23:45):
Yeah, your descriptions always inspire me. Lauren al I wrote,
apple butter is my favorite jam jelly preserve type. Topping
the variety in flavorings depending on the apples and spices used,
(24:05):
how chunky or smooth makes it so much fun. It
is one I'll just eat a spoonful of. As you mentioned,
it does work well on a cheese plate. Try it
on latkas instead of apple sauce. I would be interested
in trying some of that apple butter with the cimon
red hots to see what it does. More cheese, please,
(24:27):
I love gorgonzola as well as all of the blue
cheese is stinky. Cheese is wonderful. We'll make sure we
have all kinds of cheese platters at the feast. I
like using gorgonzola on top of chicken. Marinate a boneless,
skinless breast in balsamic, vinegar, salt, and herb de provence
(24:48):
for at least four hours. Grill the chicken over a
medium high heat, turning once. Cooking time will depend on thickness,
et cetera. When coming to the last two minutes of grilling,
place some thin slices or peas gorganzola on top, Drizzle
a touch of balsamic on top, and let it finish cooking.
I love how well the flavors mix. Flaming cocktails are interesting.
(25:12):
It can be fun, but I only ever order when
you can tell the bar is not being overworked so
they will have time. There was one I remembered from
the path that I can't find the name of, but
thought it was along the lines of Lampandina Lambandina. It
was a coffee of the core cocktail, served in a
Martini glass, thin layer of one fifty one port on
(25:32):
top light and then put out with a thin layer
of cold sweet cream. Again, only order flaming drinks from
the bar is slower, and I personally always ask the
bartender if they feel like making it. N that's a
good good advice, good advice.
Speaker 2 (25:49):
Yeah, yeah, be aware, be aware of what the bar
is up to when you're ordering complicated drinks that involve
setting fire to something.
Speaker 1 (25:56):
Yeah that's yeah, that really made my brain freeze for
a second, because complicated drinks that involve setting fire to something,
we get up to a lot of stuff, we really do.
I also, I have I bought gorgonzola after our episode
(26:19):
on it. I have a lot of it, and tonight
I'm going to try to make like a pasta sauce
out of because I need to use it. It's more
gorgonzola than a single lady needs with a chast night.
I'm very excited about it, but I'm not sure how
it's gonna melt because a lot of things I'm reading
are implying to me I need a lot more liquid. Okay,
(26:45):
but I'll report back. I'm very excited. I think it's
gonna taste great, but it's going to be an experiment. Yeah.
Speaker 2 (26:51):
No, I love an experiment and yeah, those I think
I said earlier that, Yeah, like as a pasta sauce
was one of the most intriguing things to make. I've
definitely never done that, and that sounds so good.
Speaker 1 (27:04):
Yeah, it does sound really good. I just I'm very
excited to do it, but I don't know quite how
it's going to turn out because most people use heavy cream, sure,
and I don't have any heavy cream. But I'm going
to make it work.
Speaker 2 (27:20):
Yeah, you'll work it out, thank you.
Speaker 1 (27:24):
I will, I will. And yes, uh, apple butter onlock
because sounds pretty good, right right?
Speaker 2 (27:37):
Why have I never thought of that? Heck, I mean
just fried potatoes in general. But yeah, it's some spiced
apple so good. Huh Okay, Okay, Kelsey wrote, you barely
mentioned Groundhog Day in the Apple butter episode, so here
is an unasked for lunchbox comic themed around that holiday.
(28:00):
It's not really a holiday, I guess, but special day
where we collectively consider ground dwelling rodents is way too
much of a mouthful, and and the comic, the little
single panel comic is attached, and and it's this this
groundhog who it looks like is really living its best life.
Like it's it's it's got like it's got it's out
(28:20):
like a park.
Speaker 1 (28:21):
It's got like.
Speaker 2 (28:22):
A blanket and like a book and some snacks and
uh and you know, some like music playing and a
hula hoop maybe to deal with later and uh. And
there's a couple of mice and one of them is
going like, WHOA, what a groundhog and the other is like,
no kidding, It is that groundhog's day.
Speaker 1 (28:44):
I feel like it's the rodent version of like man's brain.
It's taking he's taking up a lot of space, he's
hogging the ground, but he's having a wonderful time. He
is his day.
Speaker 2 (28:57):
He is he is being a groundhog. That is very true.
But earnestly it's his day man.
Speaker 1 (29:07):
And it looks slowly. Yeah, I like this vibe of
you know, I'll read when I want, I'll nap what
I want, I'll listen to this music. I got the
snacks ready to go. It's a good life if you're
only coming out like once a day to like look
at the weather. Might as well.
Speaker 2 (29:28):
Once a year, Yeah yeah, yeah, might as well make
the most of it.
Speaker 1 (29:31):
Come on, oh well, Thank you so much to both
of those listeners for writing in. If you would like
to try to us, you can Our email is hello
at savorpod dot com.
Speaker 2 (29:46):
Oh, we're also on social media. You can find us
on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram at saber pod, and we
do hope to hear from you. Savor is production of iHeartRadio.
For more podcasts from my Heart Radio, you can visit
the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to
your favorite shows. Thanks as always to our super producers
Dylan Fagan and Andrew Howard. Thanks to you for listening,
and we hope that lots more good things are coming
(30:06):
your way
Savor News
Hosts And Creators
Dylan Fagan
Anney Reese
Lauren Vogelbaum
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