Berries (are SO expensive at the store! A great way to reduce your reliance on the grocery store and save a ton of money is to harvest wild blackberries.
When looking for them , observe vacant properties, fence lines, and edge habitats in your neighborhood. It’s great if you have a good source close to home so you can harvest at exactly the right time. I fine there are always places in my neighborhood where blackberries grow.
Most parks don’t want you to harvest berries there, so check first with your locality before doing so.
Identification of Blackberries (Rubus plicatus):
Leaves: Compound leaves in sets of 3, 5, or 7. Toothed and fuzzy.
Stems: Arching branches with very sharp prickles.
Flowers: Five white or pinkish petals. Two to three centimeters in diameter. Flowers in late spring or early summer
Fruit: Aggregate berries. They start our green, then turn red, and then turn black when they are ripe.
Look Alikes:
Blackberries look similar to dewberry and black raspberry, which are also edible. Dewberry grows low to the ground and the berries look a lot like regular blackberries. Black raspberries have bluish, whitish stems and the underside of the leaves is also whitish whereas the underside of blackberry leaves are green.
Uses:
Blackberries freeze very well. I often gather a bunch, freeze them and then pull them out later to make blackberry pie or jam. It’s helpful to use a food mill to remove at least half of the seeds from the berries. To many seeds at once can cause digestive complaints.
Blackberry Pie
Ingredients
- 2/3 Cup Cold, Salted Butter cut into cubes
- 1 Cup Regular Flour
- 2 Tbsp Powdered Sugar
- 1 Large Egg beaten
- 1/2 Tbsp Cold Water
- 2-3 Cups Blackberries
- 1/2 Cup Brown Sugar
- 1 Large Egg beaten, for the glaze
Instructions
- First, you'll make the crust. Rub the cold butter, flour and powdered sugar together with your hands. When combined, add 1 egg and the cold water. Use your fingers to form the dough into a ball. Cover and place in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease a 9 inch pie pan.
- Cut the dough in half. Roll out the bottom of the pie on a lightly floured surface. Try not to overwork the pastry.
- Mix the brown sugar into the blackberries and pour onto the pie bottom.
- Roll out the second half of the pastry on a lightly floured surface and place on top of the fruit.
- Cut away any excess pastry and crimp the edges with your thumb to seal.
- Brush all over the top with lightly beaten egg.
- Prick a few holes over the surface and bake for about 25 minutes, or until golden brown.
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