More aronia berries are being grown every day and organizations such as the Midwest Aronia Association have sprung up as the berries popularity increase. I checked on their website and found these recipes

Here is a link that might be useful: Additional Aronia Recioes

Superberries is one of the companies promoting aronias and here is a link to recipes on their website

Here is a link that might be useful: Superberries recipes

Here are a few more aronia recipes you might be interested in
http://www.raintreenursery.com/recipes.html
http://coldbrookfarm.net/recipes.html
http://aroniaberryservicesofneiowa.com/recipes.html
http://www.organicaronia.com/Bellbrook_Aronia_Farm-Organic_Aronia/Recipes.html
http://aroniaberrytips.wordpress.com/2013/07/19/useful-tips-for-aronia-berries/
http://www.aronialife.com/content/recipes

Thanks, Clark.
Not common here; I managed to snag about a quart of berries from a public planting 2 years ago; did a simple vodka extraction - you can extract 'em 3 or 4 times- there's a lot of color in there. Nice flavor, with a slight astringent bite.
Have started planting a few here.

We've got lots of those in the landscape around these parts. Reckon I should really try one. I hear they're quite good. The birds do seem to know this also!

+oM

They are not good. But they are extremely nutritious, very productive and trouble-free. Mine are eaten mostly by squirrels, I don't even have enough left for the vodka infusions that Lucky mentions. My wife makes a gallon or so infusions every year, tart cherries and blueberries mostly, but also lemon peel, mixed berries and peach.

I sell aronia at the nursery I work at primarily for the ornamental market. The past few years I get more requests each year by clients who want them for the fruit.

I sell plain species A. melanocarpa and also the selection
'Iroquois Beauty'. Both taste awful to me raw but my clients
tell me they are great in smoothies.

I do know the birds sure like Iroquois Beauty as the fruit ripens as flocks of them stop here to strip off the fruit.

Not sure how 'Nero' and 'Viking' compare on fruit quality.

Here is my personal recipe I worked out this morning using no sugar.
Boiled my jars 15 minutes to sterilize
Used an 8 quart sauce pan for berry juice and boiled it for an hour and half
2 gallons of aronia = approximately 3 cups of juice
I used a jack lalanne juicer to juice all fruits
skimmed a quart + of froth off juice while boiling

Juice I used
3 cups aronia berry juice
10 cups of Bartlett pear juice (sweet)
13 cups granny smith apple juice (sour)
17 cups red delicious apple juice (sweet)

Used a water bath canner for 8 quart jars of berry juice and cooked for 30 minutes. (7 qts per batch)

Remaining quart could be canned separate or keep it out to drink later.

I realize 4 cups = 1qt and that this recipe has 43 cups but remember to deduct for your froth and boil off 43/4 = 10.75 - 2.75 qt froth and boil off = 8 qts

This post was edited by ClarkinKS on Thu, Sep 4, 14 at 13:07

I should have posted a picture of the bush already for those who are not familiar with it. This variety is Viking and they bear over a gallon per bush. I have approximately 3 acres of this variety.

Over a 3-4 year period these bushes grew from 3" to 2-3' so they are very slow growing in Kansas soil due to our heavy clay and loam and frequent droughts. My Viking and Mckenzie Aronias came from wild plum nurseries addie@hhwildplum.com 412-649-1837. They sell wholesale or retail. When they reach their full height I would not be surprised to pick a 5 gallon bucket per bush. The berry is wonderful made into the juice I mentioned above.

This post was edited by ClarkinKS on Thu, Sep 4, 14 at 13:03

I bet that frozen, mixed with other berries, they would go great in smoothies and in yogurt.

Lucky_p I have heard of People using blackthorn to make sloe gin but had never considered vodka. Glib that sounds good ! Wisconsitom people love them or hate them fresh. The rule typically is if you like sweet wine you will hate Aronia and if you love dry wine you will love Aronia.spartan_apple I'm glad people are buying them they are one of the healthiest berries I know of

My standard infusion recipe - for almost anything - is: fill a quart jar with berries, add 2 Tbsp sugar, fill with cheap vodka, seal. Agitate daily for anywhere from 3 days to 2 weeks or more.
Blueberries & aronia, I'll 'extract' at least twice, pouring off the original vodka, adding more sugar & vodka, and going another round with them.
I've done stuff like Autumn olive, flowering quince, elderberry, watermelon(gotta drink it fast - it will GO OFF!)

Have some blackberry, crabapple, and Asian pear brandies working right now (1/2 gallon jar full of fruit(I quartered the crabapples, cut the pears into similar-sized pieces), 1 cup sugar, fill with vodka, agitate daily for 3 months). Looking forward to cracking the top on those jars about Thanksgiving.

Wow Clark...you certainly stay busy. I've never had one of these although I've heard / read a good deal about them.

Thanks for the recipe lucky_p! Appleseed70 the Aronia seems to be pretty uncommon though like a pawpaw it's a native. My family has grown pawpaws over a hundred years that I know of and likely longer but few have heard of them to this day because they don't ship well. Aronia are typically used in wine or cooked in other things but to American taste buds we prefer a berry we can pick and eat. In Europe and Russia Aronia they got from the United States were improved because they saw their value for cooking and other processing. Finally Aronia are being used here in many juices to bump up the nutrient level. I'm not sure if people will go back to raising their own fruits and veggies again though if they do they will likely grow aronia. In my family fruit growing has been passed down to me through many generations but with that said I have a lot to learn.

I've started growing aronia, enjoyed just a few berries this year. Viking, Nero, and native aronia starts have been put into nursery rows and a few planted out. Aronia is more suited to processing with other fruit/sweetener, unless you're have a very tough/masochistic palate. I'm excited to put my eventual harvests towards mixed fruit jams, tincture/infusions, and fruit wine or (hard)cider. Try a basic wine recipe with some of those berries, in a year you'll be enjoying your own vino! I make blueberry, elderberry, highbush cranberry, they are easy and turn out great. I think the astringent qualities of aronia make it a great candidate for straight or in a blend.
Adding a few pounds to a batch of cider could make up for not using 'real' cider apples(bittersharps, etc), and give the finished product some real backbone and a nice color.
You must have some commercial aspirations with that planting, ClarkinKS. There is plenty of buzz about aronia these days, I'm curious about your plans. Also more about your pawpaws, are they grown in zone 5? Maybe that's another topic.
I guess Viking and Nero are technically 1/2 european mountain ash hybrids, don't know about 'iroquois beauty.'

Our recipe is the same as Lucky, at the start. But we do 1 month infusion in pure alcohol (my wife has to drive to Illinois for work occasionally, and when she does she buys a gallon of 90 Proof), then add sugar and water after removing fruits.

It becomes good after six month maturation. She then places one or two small (6 ounce) bottles, formerly balsamic vinegar bottles, of the stuff in the freezer (the rest of the brew stays in the basement for further maturing). It is great to have a thimbleful of the stuff after dinner, and possibly (given quantity, antioxidants and lack of yeasts and gluten) the healthiest way to drink in moderation.

I did forget to mention in my previous post that aronia melanocarpa is also used in wine! Very common in northern Europe to mix in aronia juice with grape juice to
make into wine.

Years ago I sold aronia plants to a winery in Minnesota just for this purpose. On a fishing trip with that gentleman afterwards (walleye on the Mississippi river), he treated me
to some of his wine with the aronia juice blended in. Mighty
good stuff. Not sure what percentage of aronia juice but
under 5%.

JesseSt growing pawpaws as you are likely aware in zone 5 is difficult but if you have shade and water it can be done. The cold does not kill them here but rather like kiwis it's the lack of water that does. If you have a pond or creek grow them beside it in the shade of another tree. Aronia we know are a super fruit perhaps even the healthiest berry in the world. Wineries , consumers, canneries etc. Will always want them but everything else is just details to work out. At this time I'm still testing their usefulness and am determining their marketability. One thing I've learned from others who I see sell them is like anything you can't sell an unfinished product. Selling raw berries is not a good idea here in the United States because we like sweet things. Concerns with Asian spotted wing fruit flys movement has me pretty concerned. They have not arrived in Kansas yet to my knowledge but when they do blackberry , Aronia etc may lose their appeal.