Dried White Mulberries (Toot Safed)

Dried white mulberries are small pale gold berries with a papery little stem still attached. They are much drier and lighter than most dried fruit, so the bite is crisp before it turns chewy, almost like a puffed cereal, and the flavour is soft honey and dried fig with a faint vanilla note and almost no acidity.

These are the pale sibling of our dried black mulberries. The black ones are dark, dense and jammy, with a winey tang and a much stronger flavour. White mulberries are the mild ones: lighter in colour, lighter in texture, and sweet in a gentle, honeyed way rather than a sharp one. They are the better choice for anyone who finds black mulberries too intense, and for baking where you do not want the fruit to stain the crumb.

How to use them

They are mostly eaten straight from the bag, or handed round with green tea and on Nowruz and Eid dried fruit platters with pistachios, almonds and green raisins. Scatter them over yogurt, porridge, muesli and granola, blend them into smoothies, or bake them into cookies, muffins, energy bars and banana bread. They also work on a cheese board with something soft and salty, and in a trail mix with walnuts. Because they are dry and crisp, chop them before adding to a batter and they will distribute evenly instead of floating.

Details

Also known as

White mulberries, dried white mulberries, toot, toot safed, tut, shahtoot, dut kurusu, mûres blanches séchées, moras blancas secas