Rubus fruticosus
05 Sep 2010 4 Comments
in Cooking and Eating, Ty Guen Tags: blacberries, jelly
Or, the good old common Blackberry. Yes, it’s that time of the year already, when you can return from a walk with a basket of beautiful shiny black berries. Every year is the same. Come late August, early September l am on the lookout for hedgerows that haven’t been hacked back by flailing machines to within inches of their lives and are, instead, laden with fruit.
Blackberries have been eaten by man for thousands of years. Blackberry pips were found in the stomach of a Stone Age man when dug out of the clay on the Essex coast. I remember as a child blackberry picking and coming home with pounds and pounds of them. We made Blackberry & Apple jam and pies and crumbles. Delicious. They say you should not pick blackberries after September 29th because during that night the Devil goes by and spits on every bush. In fact, by the end of September the fruit has gone past its best due to the chilly nights. So get picking now! These bushes are just a 5 minute walk from our door. This year l discovered some bushes that have the biggest berries l have ever seen. I might take some cuttings!
The hand of a blackberry picker!
I love Roger Phillip’s book ‘Wild Food’ and decided for this batch of blackberries l would try my hand at Blackberry Jelly.
Wild Food
So, first slowly cook the blackberries in a small amount of water and the juice of two lemons until they have gone quite soft. Elizabeth David in her ‘Summer Cooking’ book suggests adding one or two scented-geranium leaves to the berries at this stage to give them a delicious flavour. Strain through a jelly bag and for every pint of juice add 1 lb of granulated sugar.
straining the berries
Boil hard for 10-15 minutes until setting point has been reached. I guessed this as the juice started to get thicker after about 10 mins. Pot up into jars. I got almost 4 jars. It was then a waiting game to see if it was going to set. Much later, when it had cooled, l put a knife in one jar. Hooray, it was perfect!
Jars of jelly
Breakfast
Next morning the taste test…..lovely! I will reserve a jar to take with me when we return to the UK for Christmas as my Mum prefers Bramble Jelly. Next? It has to be Blackberry & Apple Jam, then another pie or crumble, Bramble Syrup, oh and Blackberry & Apple Cobbler……..
Sep 05, 2010 @ 12:01:08
Dear Trevor, Ah, blackberries! Now, I think that I am possibly a little in advance of you for, here in Budapest, I have over the last week or so been enjoying the most wonderful, large and juicy fruits straight from the outdoor market and brought into the city by country people. Enjoy!!
Sep 08, 2010 @ 08:32:33
Hi Edith,
That sounds wonderful. Its how life used to be back in the UK all those years ago, especially during the war. I was reading how people used to get paid for picking rose hips so they could be made into Rose Hip Syrup during the war. The syrup had a massive Vit C content so was especially useful during those times. I might give it a try again myself. Enjoy Budapest!
Sep 08, 2010 @ 18:38:55
There aren’t many berries to collect in this part of the world, probably because nature has in store many other tropical fruits for us to enjoy… It is nice to go for a walk and come back with pounds of blackberry. By the way, there is a hand phone by the name blackberry!! ~bangchik
Sep 09, 2010 @ 17:39:00
Hi. Lovely pictures and detail. I’ve a box of foraged blackberries waiting to make into (my first ever attempt at) jelly in the next couple of days… the last ones I either ate raw or made into an apple and blackberry crumble which was lovely.