I remember our first summer after moving to our new state and realizing that with it brought treasure troves of blackberries! I’d never had an especial interest in blackberries; I felt quite indifferent about them. But seeing these gorgeous berries EVERYwhere was incredible. Some people are cynical about these summer ‘intruders,’ rolling their eyes about the nuisance. But, well probably because they aren’t taking over our own space, we love them! We’ve found our favorite parks and hikes to collect them, and it’s become a summer tradition.
Yes, they take some work. Buying blackberries in a bag from the frozen section or picking them up at a Farmers’ Market would be a far easier option, but collecting them ourselves on a summer outing makes the work and the reward are that much sweeter. (Granted, my husband does the majority of the picking. Those vines are PRICKLY, and the kids lose their motivation partway through. And they would rather eat on the spot than collect anyway, which is all part of the fun; it just doesn’t leave us much for baking a treat.) We usually have a couple reusable to-go containers in the car anyway, which helps for impromptu finds, but today we realized a reusable water bottle is even more convenient for carrying around while collecting berries. It’s a great activity to get us out of the house, connect us in a common goal, and remind us all of the gifts of Nature.
I am sure there are many lovely recipes out there; this is the simplest of concepts. But here is the one we used this year. I substituted with gluten-free flour and it’s still VERY delicious. We did not have 6 cups of blackberries (we’re not that patient), so I did 1/3 of what was needed to mix with the berries. As for the crumble, I only halved it, cuz, well, it’s awesome. Next time, I’d use a little less butter, as the crumble was more clumpy and less scatter-y than I would have liked (if that even makes sense). Vanilla ice cream is a beautiful compliment to this summer treat. Enjoy!
(Blast! I meant to get a photo, but we always gobble this up too quickly.)