Dried currant

Also called currant raisins and, sometimes, simply currants, dried currants are not, as you might expect, made from drying fresh black or red currants. Currants are miniature raisins, produced by drying a very small grape of the Zante variety. Zante grapes originated in the eastern part of the Mediterranean in Corinth, Greece (the word currant comes from the name Corinth), and dried currants are known as Corinth raisins in Europe. Currants are frequently used in baking and are often used to decorate cookies, especially gingerbread figures. Because currant raisins have their own distinct flavor, black raisins (although aside from being much larger may otherwise look the same) should not be used as a substitute. Currants, like other dried fruits, are often macerated in a spirit or liqueur, or plumped in boiling water, before they are combined with the other ingredients in a recipe, to impart a particular flavor and/or to soften them. Dried currants may be stored at room temperature for many months.