Spoon it

A jam or syrup made of sea buckthorn is commonly found in Eastern European markets. The small orange berries, called oblepikha in Russian, are quite astringent and tart in their raw form.

But when they're cooked with sugar, the resulting conserve is smooth, slightly funky and reminiscent of tropical fruit - even though the sea buckthorn shrub grows in colder climates.

We like to spoon the jam over toast, waffles and blini or swirl it into black tea; it also plays well drizzled over ice cream or shaken into whiskey or vodka cocktails. As an added bonus, the berries are said to be high in vitamin C, antioxidants and omega fats.