Cape gooseberries.

[MarkPelican]

I've always found that they're not ripe enough to eat until they fall off

[bramble]

I have to say the fruits didnt drop off mine until much later in the season.
I was still able to let them ripen in the greenhouse.
I will try to overwinter them as well,

[Mbh]

The only problem I've found with these is that the developing fruit are hidden under the leaf, and they drop off as soon as they get anywhere near ripe, so very often the first you see of ripe fruit is when they're lying on the soil. Doesn't seem to affect the fruit though, and I'll definitely be trying to overwinter them this year.

[MarkPelican]

Lucky you. I like them on my cereal in the morning (along with raspberries, strawberries and dried apple).

[bramble]

Mark, just two plants.
My first time growing them.
They have been producing fruits the whole summer and still going strong.
I sowed the seeds sometime in February I think.

[MarkPelican]

Wow, how many plants have you grown? I've got two in a greenhouse and the greenhouse is almost full of plant but no fruit yet (and not a lot of fruit per plant).

[TrixC]

I’m from NZ and lots of people grow them there. They make great jam, I believe they’re quite high in pectin so you probably don’t need lemon juice. My grandma used to make a jam with cape gooseberries and passion fruit, it was amazing.

i have a couple of plants which I overwintered and they’re fruiting prolifically. Don’t think I’ll be making jam though because my toddler loves to pick and eat them...

[bramble]

Sounds delicious Nicos, thank you.

[Nicos]

Not a jam recipe but this clafoutis one suggests that cape gooseberries work well with strawberries!

https://www.angsarap.net/2013/04/30/...ry-flaugnarde/

[Nicos]

I'd love to know how whatever you decide to make turns out!

As you say -it's a learning curve for us all

[bramble]

Nicos, thank you for that information.
Never even thought about overwintring but I will certainly give it a try.
I also have some "second rate" strawberries that didn't make it into a desert so I will consider this as well.
We never stop learning, but that's the joy of gardening.

[Nicos]

Never had enough to make jam with them!
I've had a look at a few French recipes and they all add lemon juice from a whole lemon...then there's the choice of lemon zest if you want ...or add orange juice and grated orange zest.
Another said add chillies to make a savoury jam!
My thoughts are that they have such a delicate flavour it'd be easy to hide it behind zest.
I wonder if it would go well with a few strawberries?

I found a recipe which just suggests the lemon juice...plus an apple...


http://alessandrazecchini.blogspot.c...berry-jam.html

Remember you can overwinter the plants!!!! I only found out a couple of weeks after I'd composted mine They are supposed to Fruit more in the second year!

[bramble]

This is my first time growing Cape gooseberries.
I have had a great crop from them.
When I sowed the seeds I wasnt really thinking what I would do with them.
Now that they have been so productive I am looking to use them to make jam.
Has any peeps tried this.
I found a recipe on an Australisn site but I am looking to mix these in with some other fruit.
I have about a kilo.