Besides mosquitos and morning glories, about the only thing thriving in my garden this hot, sticky summer is my fig tree. The cherries got 95% wiped out by ill-timed, early-June torrential rain and whipping winds; July’s grapes were all lost to the birds; and this month’s near-daily drenchings have left most of the tomatoes that…
Tag: blackberry
3-2-1 Blackberry Simple Syrup
Back from vacation, I spent a steamy half hour this morning gleaning the last scruffy blackberries from the bramble out back. They surprised me again this year, putting out roughly 10 quarts over the past month. I’d feared their production would be way down after the construction crew next door bashed in the fence to which my…
Blackberry Galette for Two
Galette is the fool’s pie. Which is not to confuse it with a fool. Or a crumble. Or a buckle. Or a betty. Or a cobbler. It’s just a scruffy, free-form, beautifully lazy way to have fruit and crust with minimal fuss. Simple, Summer-Fruit Galette I used blackberries, since my canes are berserk this season….
Honey-Sweetened Blackberry Butter
My family’s humble, lakeside cabin in northern Wisconsin is way, way up there—at the tippy top of the state, in fact, just shy of the UP, halfway across. As if a week in that fabulous place with my fabulous family weren’t enough reward, most years I also come home with a parting gift: anywhere from…
Blackberry-Pecan Chicken Salad
I’m not sure I’ve ever made the same chicken salad twice. Too many variables. Chicken, of course, but poached or roasted or grilled or fried? Curry? Parsley? Cilantro? Tarragon? Heat? Something for crunch (celery, nuts, or fried noodles?). Something for sweet (grapes, raisins, craisins, berries, apples, or pears?). A little something to bind it all…
Blackberry-Bourbon Jam
Vanilla beans and lemon zest make their way into most of my berry-based preserves. But last season’s final batch of blackberry jam had to settle for a tablespoon of vanilla extract; I was out of beans and didn’t want to head to the store just for that one item. It was, however, homemade extract that…
Boxing Day 