Hawberry (Crataegus laevigata og Crataegus monogyna)
There are plenty of hawberries on the commons, in hedgerows and scrubs. This year I couldn’t resist to pick some of them. When I got home, I found a recipe for ketchup based on hawthorn on Jonathan Wallace’s blog Self-sufficient in Suburbia.
Since I always have to try things a little different than stated in the recipe, I ended up making ketchup from: Hawthorn, kombucha, sugar, red wine vinegar, salt, garlic, black pepper, paprika, chilli and tarragon.
Hawthorn Ketchup
The result was 4 glasses of hawberry ketchup. The taste is great, quite similar to tomato ketchup. This is the first time I’ve used hawberries. With this experience, I could not dream of growing tomatoes for ketchup. It is easier to go out on a nice day and pick the small berries, than it is to grow a similar number of tomatoes from seeds, taking care of them spring and summer.
The process is simple. Rinse the berries, cover them with half vinegar and half water (here I used kombucha and a little vinegar). Gently boil them 30 minutes and press them through a sieve. Kernels and stem residues remain in the sieve, out comes a beautiful red mass. The spices are added and the ketchup boiled again, then poured on scalded glasses. I immediately turn the glasses, to let the heat of the content pasteurize the lids.
In the toad's garden 
October 8, 2012 at 09:47
look tasty, I tray next year make it
October 8, 2012 at 20:30
I’m sure you’ll like it!
October 10, 2012 at 05:37
This is some delicious alternative ketchup! This idea has never occurred to me, using things other than tomatoes for ketchup. By the way I have an interest to ask about one of your much older posts, but cannot find your email on the site.
July 12, 2013 at 11:19
What a nice idea! I’ve read that autumn olive (Elaeagnus umbellata) berries are good substitute for tomatoes in ketchup, but hawthorn is even better – the supply is virtually unlimited in my area.