| The
Blueberry Connection |
| Blueberries are ripe, and there are plenty available at
supermarkets, area farms and farmers' markets. I was shocked
at the increase in price. When I inquired about the higher
prices, one local distributor said that many of the out-of-state
crops froze earlier this year, including some in Kentucky
and Pennsylvania, so demand was increased for a smaller yield
in fruit nationwide. |
| Blueberries are a perfect fruit for a summer pie and are
equally delicious in a single berry or a combined berry pie.
Our family favorites are those that do not have a lot of extra
seasonings as the delicate flavor of the berry is easily overwhelmed.
The best part of blueberries is their flexibility in storage.
When placed in a quart-size freezer bag, they can be easily
thawed for eating or heaping in a pie. |
| Our favorite place to get blueberries is a 90-minute drive
from here at Gehman's Farm, 4810 Buffalo Rd. in Mt. Airy,
Md. They sell a 20-pound box of washed and stemmed fresh-picked
blueberries for $36. Their berries, which are kept in a walk-in
cooler, are shipped in every Thursday from the Eastern Shore,
and hundreds of orders are taken by phone at 410-635-6443.
|
| I traditionally place a giant order for friends a week in
advance and then go pick up close to 600 pounds of blueberries
to distribute back here in Herndon. This year we topped 780
pounds of fruit orders, so I recruited a good friend and we
drove two vans up. |
| The reason I drive that far is that the berries are superb,
washed and ready-to-use right out the box, and they are cheaper
than any place around here. (Be sure to call ahead for availability
and pricing. Keep this information handy for next year if
they are sold out.) When I was loading my boxes, I found out
that this year Gehman's sold more than 3,600 boxes of berries
through their cold storage unit. That is a lot of fruit. |
| When blueberries are in season, it is great to have a selection
of new recipes to try the minute you arrive home with ripe
fruit. Many of these recipes can use frozen berries in case
you cannot get ripe fruit. Some of our favorite recipes are
listed below. |
| |
| Val
Johnson's Ultimate Blueberry Buckle |
| 3/4 cup sugar |
| 1/4 cup butter |
| 1 egg |
| 1/2 cup milk |
| 2 cups flour |
| 1/2 tsp. salt |
| 2 tsp. baking powder |
| 2 cups blueberries |
| Topping: |
| 1/4 cup butter |
| 1/2 cup sugar |
| 1/3 cup flour |
| 1/2 tsp. cinnamon |
| Cream sugar and butter together. Add egg and milk. Gradually
add flour, salt and baking powder. Fold in blueberries. Put
in greased and floured tube or bundt pan. For topping, melt
butter, add sugar, flour and cinnamon. Mix by hand and sprinkle
over cake batter. Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes. |
| |
| Party
Blueberry Peach Trifle |
| 14 oz. can sweetened condensed milk |
| 1 1/2 cups cold water |
| 2 tsp. grated lemon rind (fresh is best) |
| 3 1/2 oz. pkg. instant vanilla pudding |
| 2 cups whipping cream, whipped |
| 4 cups pound cake, cut in bite-size cubes |
| 2 1/2 cups fresh peeled and chopped peaches |
| 2 cups fresh blueberries |
| Large glass bowl with high sides |
| Can of whipped cream |
| Sprigs of fresh mint |
| Combine condensed milk, water and lemon rind in a large
bowl; mix well. Add pudding mix, beat until well-blended.
Chill for 5 minutes. Fold in whipped cream. Spoon 2 cups pudding
mixture into glass serving dish, top with 1/2 of cake cubes,
all the peaches, 1/2 of remaining pudding mixture, remaining
cake cubes, then blueberries and all remaining pudding mixture,
spread to within 1-inch of the edge of the bowl. (You want
the blueberries to show around the edge of the bowl.) Chill
at least 4 hours. Garnish with more whipped cream and sprigs
of fresh mint. This makes enough for about 20 people. |
| |
| Quick
‘n Delicious Blueberry Biscuits |
| 1 pkg. (9 1/2 oz.) refrigerated flaky biscuits |
| 1/2 cup fresh blueberries |
| 1 Tbsp. grated fresh lemon peel |
| 2 Tbsp. sugar |
| Melted butter or margarine |
| With fingers, separate each biscuit into halves horizontally.
Combine blueberries, sugar and lemon peel. Spoon one tablespoon
of blueberry mixture into center of 1/2 of biscuit, top with
remaining half. Pinch edges of the biscuit together to seal.
Repeat with other biscuits. Placed in greased muffin cups,
brush tops with melted butter or margarine, and sprinkle with
additional sugar, if desired. Bake at 400 degrees for 12 minutes,
or until golden brown on top. Serve with sweet honey butter. |
| |
| Blueberry
Breakfast Bread |
| 2 1/2 cups flour |
| 3/4 cups sugar |
| 1 Tbsp. baking powder |
| 1/2 tsp. salt |
| 6 Tbsp. butter or margarine |
| 3/4 cup chopped walnuts |
| 2 eggs |
| 1 cup milk |
| 1 tsp. vanilla |
| 1 1/2 cups blueberries |
| In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder and
salt. Cut in butter until mixture resembles fine crumbs. Stir
in walnuts. In a small bowl, beat eggs slightly, stir in milk
and vanilla. Stir egg mixture into flour mixture just until
flour is moistened. Gently stir in blueberries into batter.
Spoon evenly into greased and floured 9 x 5 inch loaf pan.
Bake in 350 degree oven for 1 hour and 15 minutes, or until
toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool bread
in pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes, then remove from pan.
Serve warm or cool, and refrigerate leftover bread. |
| |
| Easy
Fresh Blueberry Coffee Cake |
| 3/4 sugar |
| 1/4 cup butter, softened |
| 1 egg |
| 1/2 cup milk |
| 2 cups pre-sifted flour |
| 2 tsp. baking powder |
| 1/2 tsp. salt |
| 1 pint blueberries |
| Topping: |
| 1/2 tsp. cinnamon |
| 1/4 cup dark brown sugar |
| 1/4 cup sugar |
| 1/4 cup margarine, softened |
| 1/3 cup flour |
| Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix sugar and shortening with
an electric mixer; add egg and milk. Mix in flour, baking
powder and salt. Gently fold in berries and pour into a greased
8- or 9-inch square glass baking dish (it seems to look better
in a glass dish). Combine topping ingredients and spread over
batter. Bake 45 to 50 minutes. Serve warm with butter for
a delicious summer breakfast. Serves 6 to 8. |
| |
| Uncooked
Blueberry Toasted Almond Pie |
| 1 1/2 cups fresh blueberries |
| 3/4 cup sugar |
| 1/2 cup water |
| 2 Tbsp. cornstarch |
| 1/8 cup water |
| 1 Tbsp. butter |
| 1 Tbsp. Cointreau |
| 1/4 cup sliced almonds, toasted |
| 3 cups fresh blueberries |
| 9-inch pie shell, pre-baked and cooled |
| 1 1/2 cups heavy cream, whipped and sweetened |
| Fresh mint leaves |
| In saucepan, mix 1 1/2 cups blueberries, sugar and water.
Bring to a boil. Combine cornstarch with 1/8 cup water, and
blend into the sauce in the pan. Cook until thickened, stirring
constantly. Add the butter to the mixture, remove from heat
and cool in the refrigerator for five minutes. Then mix in
the liqueur, almonds, and fold in gently the uncooked berries.
Stir gently until well mixed. Pour them into the cooked and
cooled pie shell. Chill until set. Just before serving, top
slices with fresh whipped cream, and top with a leaf of fresh
mint for decoration. |
| |
| Blueberry
Lemon Mousse |
| 4 cups blueberries |
| 1 cup sugar |
| 5 eggs, separated |
| 1/3 cup fresh lemon juice (must be fresh) |
| 1 cup whipped cream (real stuff) |
| 2 tsp. grated lemon rind |
| Toss washed fresh berries with 1/4 cup sugar. Refrigerate.
In top of double boiler, beat egg yolks with the rest of the
sugar until light lemon-colored. Add lemon juice. Cook over
simmering water until mixture thickens and coats a metal spoon
(about 10 to 12 minutes). Do not cook too fast, and do not
boil. Remove from heat and cool. Meanwhile, beat egg whites
until stiff. Fold into cooled lemon mixture. Fold in whipped
cream, lemon rind and chilled berries. Serve in large glass
goblets, and top with grated lemon rind and a few fresh blueberries. |
| |
| Berry
Pie |
| 9-inch double crust pastry ready for a pie |
| 2 cups fresh blueberries |
| 2 cups fresh raspberries |
| 3 Tbsp. tapioca |
| 2 Tbsp. butter |
| 2/3 cup sugar |
| Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Combine berries in a large
bowl. Toss lightly with sugar and tapioca. Prepare pie crust.
Turn fruit into bottom crust. Dot with butter. Cover with
top crust. Cut several steam vents. Bake 10 minutes at 450
degrees, and reduce temperature to 350 degrees, and continue
baking for 35 to 40 minutes. Cool a few minutes before serving,
and serve warm with French vanilla ice cream. |
| |
| No
Sugar Orange-Blueberry Cake |
| 3 large eggs |
| 1 1/2 cups softened butter |
| 1 cup unsweetened orange juice |
| 1/2 tsp. orange extract |
| 2 1/2 cups unbleached flour |
| 1 tsp. baking soda |
| 2 tsp. baking powder |
| 1 tsp. cinnamon |
| 1/4 tsp. grated lemon rind |
| 1 cup flaked coconut |
| 1 cup fresh blueberries |
| Beat eggs, butter and juice. Add dry ingredients. Beat well.
Stir in 2/3 cup coconut and 1 cup berries. Spread evenly in
a 9 x 13 inch pan that has been greased and floured. Spread
1/3 cup coconut over batter. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 to
25 minutes or until browned. |
