Foraging for Blueberries

One of the easiest ways to get into pure foods is berry picking.  Blueberries are still a natural woodland crop in the northeast and beyond and are easy for even young children to spot.  Some people are a bit secretive about favorite blueberry bush tracts but ask around and eventually someone will clue you in.   One of my neighbors lets me forage in the back portion of her property where densely growing shrubbery yields a ready harvest.  

Bring small and large rinsed-out yogurt containers with covers, some water and snacks in a light backpack.  Give the small yogurt containers to children to fill.  (They will see progress quickly and if it tips the loss is minimal.)  Collect the crop in the large containers with covers or zip lock bags.

Enjoy blueberries in crisps, muffins and fresh fruit salads.  Freeze berries on cookie sheets (to prevent clumping) and then place frozen berries in freezer bags for mid-winter retrieval.  Perhaps Christmas morning blueberry muffins or oatmeal with blueberries instead of raisins?

Here are a few blueberry treats to eat now or freeze.  Granola Blueberry Crisp packs a blueberry pie taste without a heavy crust.  The ad hoc granola topping is hearty and spiked with almonds and oats so you won’t miss a thing.  My Blueberry Muffin recipe is inspired by the ones made at Boston department store Jordan Marsh until the early 1990’s.  I add lemon zest and cinnamon to the original and use buttermilk instead of regular milk for the liquid.  They are loaded with berries and bake up well in mini, regular or large muffin cups.  They also freeze beautifully. 

Granola Blueberry Crisp
Serves 2-3, recipe may be doubled

Ingredients
2 cups rinsed blueberries
Squeeze of lemon
2 tablespoons sugar
1/3 cup quick cooking tapioca
Cooking spray oil

Granola Topping
1 cup quick-cooking rolled oats
1/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 cup sliced almonds
2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
Pinch salt
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, sliced into 4-5 pieces

Method

1. Preheat oven to 425˚F.  Spray a shallow ovenproof casserole or pie plate with spray oil.  
2. Lightly mix the blueberries with lemon juice, sugar and tapioca in the casserole.  Let sit while you prepare the topping and the tapioca softens.
3. To prepare the topping, mix all dry ingredients in a medium bowl.  
4. Add butter and use your fingers to combine and coat the dry ingredients with the butter.   The warmth of your (very clean) hands will warm the butter and speed up combining the ingredients without breaking down the oats and almonds.  
5. Cover the blueberries with the granola topping.  
6. Bake at 425˚F for about 25-30 minutes until the blueberries are bubbling and the topping is crisp.  
7. Cool a few minutes before serving to allow the fruit to set.  Vanilla ice cream is nice with the crisp but give plain yogurt a try and you may never go back.  We like the type with cream on top for this dessert.  Less decadent that you’d think at about 130 calories per 8-oz container of yogurt.  You’ll need about 1/2 a container.  
8. To freeze, cool completely, cover top with tin foil and place crisp in a large zip lock bag. (Cover top and bottom with a double wrap of tin foil if you cannot fit it into a freezer bag.)  Freeze up to 6 weeks.  To re-heat, uncover crisp and place frozen crisp in a preheated 325˚F oven for 30-40 minutes until heated through.  If topping becomes too crisp while re-heating, cover loosely with foil. 

Blueberry Lemon Muffins
Makes 18 regular muffins, 10 jumbo or 2 1/2 dozen mini-muffins.
Mashing a portion of the berries into the batter and a light coating of sugar on top of each muffin before baking makes these nearly identical to the originals from Jordan Marsh.  I like my berries un-mashed and find the muffins sweet enough without the sugar topping but if you like a crunchy texture on top, give it a try.  Dusting the berries with flour keeps them buoyant in the batter so you will have berries in most bites instead of all at the bottom of muffins. 

Ingredients
1/2 cup unsalted butter (1 stick) at room temperature
1 1/4 cups sugar
2 eggs
2 cups white whole-wheat flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon
Zest of 1 lemon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup buttermilk (or 1/2 cup milk plus juice of 1/2 lemon)
2 cups fresh blueberries tossed with 1 tablespoon flour

Method

1. Preheat oven to 400˚F.  
2. Prepare muffin cups by lining with paper liners and spraying lightly with cooking oil spray.  
3. Cream butter with sugar in a large bowl.  With an electric mixer, beat at medium 2 minutes until light and fluffy.  
4. Add eggs, one at a time, beating continuously.  
5. In a smaller bowl, combine flour, baking powder, cinnamon, lemon zest and salt.  
6. Add flour mixture to butter mixture, alternating with buttermilk.  
7. Fold in flour-dusted blueberries and scoop batter into prepared muffin cups.  
8. Bake at 400˚F for 30 minutes for regular muffins, 35-40 minutes for large muffins and 15-18 minutes for minis.  
9. Cool in tins for 10-15 minutes before removing and serving.  Muffins freeze well and keep for 2 months.

Fruit Salad
Don’t forget to add blueberries to fruit salads.  They make a colorful counterpart to almost any combination.  One of my favorites is with fresh apricots and bananas.  A sprinkling of fresh lemon zest is a wonderful secret ingredient in fresh fruit salads.  Use a microplaner/grater if you do not own a zester. 

Foraging Awareness
On the trail, be alert for other species that like berries.  Though they are usually out earlier than you, black bears are calorie loading at summer’s end in preparation for their winter sleep.   Making noise is not generally recommended in the woods if you want to see wildlife, but voices will often warn off this bear.  If you do encounter one, remember that they live in the wild and are not cuddly. They are as concerned for their cubs as you are for your children.  Make sure you are not in a line of sight between a mother and its cubs by steering yourself away.

All-American

The Little League World Series is in full swing.  The children of the world are staying with host families surrounding Williamsport, PA where the international event has been based for 64 years.   Like many foreign visitors who spend time at American tables, these children will sample the All-American hot dog and hamburger grill out.  It’s inexpensive and our answer to a fun meal that allows for a little creativity too.   In addition to beef burgers, we now regularly see buffalo, turkey and veggie burgers in backyards everywhere.   Hot dogs come in healthier varieties made with turkey, chicken and tofu and some exclude nitrates. Garden-ripe tomatoes and all kinds of domestic cheeses top burgers. Homemade chili, sauerkraut or even chopped salads are offered with franks.  Side dishes from the grill or prepared in advance put the household personality and heritage front and center.  Potato salads, slaws, relishes and fresh salads and grilled vegetables from the garden tell the story of the family’s tastes and traditions.

If you have international visitors and have done the hot dog/burger meal already, consider offering other “All American” meals that show off the diversity of our people and the range of our resources.  Here are a few regional menu ideas to introduce your foreign friends to dinner across America:

Northwestern Pacific
Grill thick salmon steaks and fresh asparagus and serve with sesame soba noodles. 
Celebrate the region’s fruit harvest that evokes the flavors of northwest wines with a pear and berry tart.
To Drink:  Iced Coffee

Southern Barbecue
This country loves ribs.  Serve them with collards, corn bread (or fresh biscuits) and cole slaw.  Southerners are great bakers so your choices are numerous for dessert.  I love pecan pie but in the summer a key lime pie will fit the bill too.
To drink: Iced Tea  (not too sweet please) or try a micro-brewed soda pop.
(See February 25, 2010 post for collards recipe.)

New England Shore Dinner
Simplify a clambake by steaming clams with lobster and linguica sausage.  Serve with Boston baked beans, corn on the cob and new potatoes.   Pay homage to the Toll House restaurant in Massachusetts with chocolate chip cookies for dessert or wow guests with a Maine blueberry crumble.
To Drink: Cranberry juice and seltzer

Southwestern Seduction
Make fajitas using a choice of grilled chicken, beef or veggies (zucchini or eggplant and Portobello mushrooms) dressed with roasted red and yellow bell peppers, caramelized onions and sautéed mushrooms.  Pass the guacamole, salsa and hot sauce.  Serve rice and beans on the side.  Brownies with cinnamon ice cream or cinnamon-spiked whipped cream complete the meal.
To drink: Watermelon Agua Fresca  (see August 14, 2010 post for more information about Aguas Frescas.))


West Coast Fusion
Start with steamed and lightly salted edamame served in their pods. Follow up with fish tacos made with grilled or breaded fish plus a creamy slaw and a little hot sauce on a warm corn or flour tortilla. California avocados make a great garnish or form the base of a simple salad with baby lettuces and citrus vinaigrette.  A huge and varied fruit bowl for dessert will remind everyone that much of the fruit we eat, dried or fresh, is grown out here. 
To Drink: Lemonade with a sprig of fresh mint

Prairie Home
A pork tenderloin with a cherry glaze or a classic meat loaf served with green beans and mashed potatoes is a heartland meal that is hard to find done well at a restaurant because its pure home cooking.  Finish up with an apple or cherry pie.  This is big dairy country so make dessert a´ la mode with a premium ice cream.
To drink: Milk flavored with chocolate or strawberries. 

Don’t wait to have friends over from France to show off our culinary wonders.  Have a staycation dinner this week that transports you to a favorite region of the country.


Note: Irresistible pun apology for swing and based.

Tall, Cool Drinks

There is so much more you can imbibe on a hot afternoon besides sweet tea and diet soda.  These alternatives tempt your taste buds and really quench your body’s thirst for something cool and hydrating.

To start, there is nothing like pure water and if it is not already a staple for you at meals, jazz it up with a squeeze of lemon or lime or try seltzer (not high sodium club soda).  Spritz up your seltzer with a shot of pure juice like orange or grape for a light and low cal cooler that will replace nutrients as well as most energy drinks and with a lot fewer additives.

Caribbean and Central American cultures have worked out some fantastic recipes for cooling drinks.  Aguas Frescas (cold-fresh waters) use high-water content vegetables or fresh tropical fruits to create colorful concoctions that can compete at any cocktail party fare.  Varieties include watermelon, cantaloupe, mango, tamarind, pineapple, strawberry and even cucumber and tomato waters.  Start with a frothy melon refresher like cantaloupe:

Cantaloupe Agua Fresca
For each cup of cantaloupe, rind removed and cut in chunks
1-2 teaspoons lime juice
1 teaspoon honey
1 cup cold water

Puree cantaloupe, limejuice, honey and water in a blender.  Puree for 45-60 seconds to break down all the melon pieces. Refrigerate or serve immediately over ice.

Horchata, cooling and restorative refreshment traces its origins to the Moors in Valencia, Spain.  Horchata was originally made from tigernuts (potassium-rich tubers called chufa) plus water and sugar.  Its many versions from Latin America use combinations of nuts, rice, water, milk, vanilla and cinnamon. Cooked rice is considered a good hydrator.  You can buy pre-made mixes but it is so easy to whip up your own pure version in a blender for a wonderful morning drink that your kids will like as a summer alternative to hot oat and rice cereals.  Use leftover brown rice for a horchata with nutty, rice pudding notes and extra fiber. 

Brown Rice Horchata
1 cup cooked brown rice
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 tablespoon honey
4 cups water or 1/2 water and 1/2 low fat milk

Puree all ingredients in blender.  Strain or serve over ice. 
(Optional: Add a scoop of unflavored or vanilla protein powder for a breakfast drink with enough protein to pull you through the morning.)

Finally, herbal teas mixed with fruit juices allow you to create your own house blends. Who knows?  A big beverage company may show up at your door one day to license recipe made with the best stuff on the planet and, conveniently, at your house.  Here’s our house blend to get you inspired:

Our Pure Mango Sunsation Tea Drink
4 tea bags fruit herbal tea (try Bigelow Chamomile Mango or a peach variety)
1 pint (2 cups) water
1 cup pure Apple Juice

Steep tea in 1 pint of boiled water.  When cool, combine with 1 cup apple juice.  Serve chilled or over ice. 

And if you haven’t made lemonade or limeade from scratch in ages, pick up one of the new citrus squeezers to create no fuss fast lemonade.  Use scant amounts of honey, agave syrup or simple syrup to sweeten your lemonade.  Your taste buds will quickly adjust to the tarter flavor and your body will thank you.  Too much sugar feels draining in the heat.

Pure Lemonade
Juice of 2 lemons
2 teaspoons simple syrup
1 pint cold water

Combine all ingredients and taste.  Add more water or sugar to suit your taste.

Adults Only
Alcohol is not your friend in the heat so keep it light and go slow.  Alternate drinks with a tall glass of water and remember to eat, especially hydrating appetizers like grapes from the cheese platter and just about any vegetable off the crudite plate.  If wine and sweet cocktails feel too heavy, try a Lemon Whiskey Cocktail at your next summer gathering.   Add 1 ounce of Scotch Whiskey and 1/2 ounce of Drambuie to 2 pints lemonade for a light alcoholic drink fro grown-ups.  Tastes like a whiskey sour but not as sugary.

Rethinking Greek Salad

Greek Salads in U.S. restaurants are chock full of cucumber, onions and bell peppers plus a hefty garnish of oregano-speckled feta cheese.   For a summer dinner with my parents, I adjusted a few of the key ingredients that are hard to digest raw and made sure the feta was a low-fat, lower-sodium variety.  All the flavor but no discomfort. 

Invitational Greek Salad
Serves 4

Salad Ingredients
2 small heads romaine lettuce
1 large yellow pepper
2 small zucchini, steamed whole for 5 minutes and cooled
1 medium tomato, chopped
1 red onion, sliced and marinated in 1 part apple cider vinegar; 3 parts water for 3 hours (up to several days)
1/4 cup Kalamata olives, pitted and rinsed of brine
2 ounces low-fat feta cheese, crumbled
optional: stuffed grape leaves (add if you can get them canned or at a salad bar in your area)

Oregano Dressing
2 ounces apple cider vinegar
6 ounces extra virgin olive oil
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano or marjoram (1 tablespoon freshly chopped)
1/8 teaspoon salt
pinch black pepper
Mix all ingredients together in a bowl or lidded jar.

Method

1. Chop romaine into large, bite-sized pieces.  
2. Roast pepper under the broiler turning several times to char the skin.  Place in a paper bag for a few minutes.  Peel away skin, slice into rings and discard stem and seeds.  (Rings will be limp.)  
3. Slice zucchini into 1/4 inch slices.  Drain onions.  
4. Arrange lettuce on a large platter.  Layer ingredients on top of lettuce so that each diner gets a good portion of each flavor from tomatoes to onion and zucchini.  
5. Top with rings of yellow pepper and drained olives.  
6. Sprinkle with feta cheese crumbles and pour about 2 ounces of dressing over cheese and salad.  (Serve remainder with salad for those who like more dressing.)

How does it work?
Even burpless cucumbers can present problems to those with delicate digestions.  They are replaced with quickly steamed and chilled zucchini.  Roasting the bell peppers mellows the flavor and the onion’s marinade draws out the onion’s bite. Rinsing the olives reduces a bit of salt without compromising flavor.  Feta is strong enough to cut the amount in half. Low-fat varieties taste great and crumble well.  While salads in Greece do not include lettuce, romaine or another variety rounds out and extends the salad for few additional calories.  By keeping the Oregano Dressing simple, guests can really taste all the pure flavors in the salad infused with the oregano flavor.  Dill is another option if fresh oregano is not on hand.