Years ago - almost decades ago - my husband and I rented a crazy old house on top of a hill. In the early summer of our one year there, we realized the hillside was covered with wild blueberry bushes. Our mornings quickly became about a wander through the extended “yard” to pick enough blueberries for our morning cereal. As I had never lived in an area where blueberries (or any berries for that matter) just grew wild, this was completely novel to me. I loved every minute of it.

Super tasty superfruit blueberries

Blueberries are a fruit native to North America. They are a “superfruit,” meaning they are nutrient-rich and antioxidant-strong. There have been studies linking blueberry consumption to anti-aging characteristics and anti-cancer compounds. As if their being yummy wasn’t enough.

When it’s blueberry season now, it seems like blueberries are the only fruit the kids want. I have to hide cartons of them in the back of the fridge if I have any hope of enjoying them myself. I buy quite a lot of blueberries when they are on special, and I freeze some of them for the winter. We put them in cereal and yogurt as well as make pancakes and excellent muffins. We blend up smoothies and cook them down into a syrup (delicious over ice cream). I even tried a recipe for blueberry pork chops. And pie. I make pie.

The funny thing about blueberry pie is that, as much as I like and seek out fresh blueberries, I never really liked blueberry pie. The cooked down filling was always too
sweet for me. Cloyingly so. Several years ago, I happened upon a recipe for a fresh blueberry pie that cooks down just a small portion of the berries. The rest remain whole and uncooked, so when you take a bite of pie, you get that fresh berry burst. Yum.

Last summer my husband planted some blueberry bushes in our yard. We knew we wouldn’t have berries the first year, but hoped for some this year. Our patience will be rewarded! The bushes are bursting with developing berries. I can’t wait to forage for breakfast in the yard again. And maybe have enough for a pie or two.

Freezing Blueberries (or any berries)

Place parchment paper on a rimmed cookie sheet. Gently spread the berries out on the cookie sheet in a single layer. Place in the freezer. When the berries are frozen solid, pour them into a reclosable plastic bag, squeeze out the excess air, and put back in the freezer. Thaw them by reversing the process. Simply pour the berries onto a rimmed cookie sheet lined with parchment paper and put in the refrigerator until the berries are completely thawed.

Or just use them frozen in smoothies or yogurt.

Recipes with blueberries

Open-faced Blueberry Pie

The original recipe calls for four cups of blueberries, but I have a deep-dish pie pan, and it wasn’t quite enough.

1 pie crust, blind-baked and brushed with 1/2 an egg white while it’s still piping hot
6 cups blueberries, rinsed and picked over
3/4 c plus 2 tbsp water, divided
3 tbsp cornstarch
2/3 c sugar (a touch more if the berries aren’t very sweet)
3 tsp fresh lemon juice
Pinch of salt
Whipped cream for serving (optional)

In a small bowl, whisk together 2 tbsp water and the cornstarch.

In a heavy saucepan, place a quarter of the berries and 3/4 c water. Bring to a boil then let simmer until the berries start to burst and the mixture just starts to thicken. Add the cornstarch mixture, sugar, lemon juice and salt, stirring constantly. Over a couple of minutes, the mixture will become translucent. Remove from the heat.

Working quickly, fold the cooked blueberry mixture into the fresh blueberries and spoon into the prepared pie shell. Allow to cool to room temperature before serving.

Blueberry Muffins

Sometimes, to make mornings easier, I’ll put together the dry ingredients and the wet ingredients the night before, and refrigerate the wet ingredients. In the morning, I turn on the oven, mix the two bowls together, fold in the blueberries and fill the tin. Very little thinking involved.

2 1/4 c flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
pinch of salt
1/2 c sugar
1/2 canola oil
1 whole egg
1 egg yolk
1 c plain yogurt
1 1/2 c fresh or frozen blueberries
Brown sugar for sprinkling on top

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt and set aside.

In a separate bowl, combine sugar, canola oil, egg, egg yolk and yogurt. Mix well.

Fold the yogurt mixture into the flour mixture with several swift strokes. Then fold in the blueberries.

Spoon the mixture evenly into 12 lined muffin cups. Tap the tin to remove the air bubbles, then sprinkle a bit of brown sugar on the top of each muffin.

Bake 18 to 20 minutes.

Blueberry Pork Chops

Boneless center loin pork chops
3 tbsp olive oil
2 cloves minced garlic
Salt and pepper
1/2 c white wine
1/2 tsp thyme
1/4 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 c blueberries (fresh or frozen)
1 tbsp brown sugar
3 tbsp lemon juice
3 tbsp butter

Season the pork chops with salt and pepper. Saute the garlic in the olive oil for a minute or two, then pan fry the pork chops in the garlicky olive oil until they are cooked through. Remove from the pan and keep warm.

Add the wine, thyme, nutmeg, vinegar, blueberries, and brown sugar to the pan. Cook down by half. Add the lemon juice and butter, and cook just a minute or so more. The sauce should be slightly thickened. Serve the sauce over the reserved pork chops.