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Alcohol. In northern Québec, cloudberries are made into a traditional liqueur called Chicoutai. At Le Grand Lodge in Mont-Tremblant (Québec), it makes for a perfect après-ski warmer. Cloudberries are also used to make Lakkalikööri, a sweet Finnish liqueur.
Bakeapples. In Newfoundland and Labrador, cloudberries are called bakeapples, so named by a French explorer who asked its name: “baie qu’appelle” (in English: berry who's calling).
Cheese. In Finland, cloudberries are eaten with a local cheese called leipäjuusto, sugar and cream.
Duck. At Salmigondis restaurant in Montreal, the kitchen serves a duck tartare made with a duck egg yolk, cloudberries, pear and brown bread. At Canoe in Toronto, the berries are part of the foie gras parfait appetizer with wild cranberries and a burnt onion crumble.
Eskimo Ice Cream. That’s what cloudberries are called when mixed with sugar and seal oil or caribou or reindeer fat by Arctic Yupik, indigenous peoples in areas of Alaska and Northeastern Russia.
Finland. The berries grow wild in Canada and North America but are also native to Finland and other Scandinavian countries.
Golden. The fruit’s golden colour when ripe pairs with its honey and apricot flavour. When unripe, the berries are red. In autumn, they turn amber.
Harvest. Cloudberries are generally harvested from July to August.
In demand. Since they’re delicate fruit and more often found wild than cultivated, demand is often greater than supply, like in Norway where fruit is both grown and imported from Finland.
Jam. Newfoundland company Dark Tickle makes bakeapple jam, spreads, juice, sauces and chocolates sold throughout the province and available online.
Knotberry. In England, the fruit is called knotberry or knotberry, possibly named for the knotty joints of the stem.
Low-Bush. In Alaska, cloudberries are referred to as ‘low-bush salmonberries,’ though the fish don’t eat the fruit.
Marsh blackberries. In addition to Arctic tundra, the berries grow wild in peat bogs and marshes in cool, boreal forests. In Quebec, they’re called mûres de marais in French, or marsh blackberries.
National Currency. The Finnish version of the 2002 two-euro coin features cloudberries.
Oil. Cloudberry seeds can be pressed to produce an oil rich in Vitamin E.
Preservation. Cloudberries can be crushed and preserved in their own juices without spoiling, as long as they’re stored in a cold place. This is because of their high benzoic acid content. No water bath canner required.
Quidi Vidi. You might find bakeapple jam at brunch at Mallard Cottage, located in the Quidi Vidi Village in St. John’s, NL. Chef Todd Perrin’s locavore menus feature local jams, wild meats, seal and seafood.
Rare. Each cloudberry plant produces a single berry.
Sweet-and-sour. Cloudberries are naturally sour, so they’re often sweetened and made into jams, jellies and syrups. When they’re over-ripe, they become sweet and creamy.
Tundra. The berry is an important source of vitamins and antioxidants in sparse, northern climates, generally from latitude 55˚N to 78˚N.
Unripe fruit. In some northern European countries, it’s illegal to pick unripe cloudberries. In Norway, anyone can pick and consume wild cloudberries, but only locals can take them home and only the ripe ones.
Vitamins. Cloudberries are high in Vitamin C and Vitamin A.
Whipped cream. In Norway, cloudberries are mixed with whipped cream and sugar to make a dessert called Multekrem. According to the recipe in The Nordic Cook Book by two-Michelin-Star chef Magnus Nilsson, Norwegians eat it at Christmas for dessert with almond wreath cake or sweet almond wafers.
X and Y. Cloudberry plants are either male or female and both are needed for pollination and for a fruit to form. Only female plants produce fruit and not every year.
Yoghurt. Cloudberry yoghurt is available in Norwegian grocery stores.
Zabaglione. Chef Tina Nordstrom’s recipe for cloudberry zabaglione is available on the website New Scandinavian Cooking.
