Notes about Oregon: Blackberries

Even though everything goes moldy several weeks before it should and I still have no friends, since August hit I am loving my return to Oregon. The drivers are fantastically polite, the weather is gorgeous, and best of all: there are blackberries EVERYWHERE!

Imagine that your second favorite fruit of all time grows like a weed...okay, IS in fact a weed, and that it grows uncontrollably in your town and that and every time you walk the dog or swim at the lake, you get delightful berry snacks by default. And every time you want to make cobbler or pie or gelato, you just go pick berries off the side of the road for a half an hour. I am a 5 minute drive away from a blackberry patch that is literally two stories tall (Chambers and Loraine, for you Eugenians). It is sagging with all of the plump, sweet, gorgeous blackberries on its vines. And these are not the terrible berries you buy in the store that are watery and flavorless, these are sweet and tangy and amazing, oh and uh...free.

Check out what we picked last night: we picked for less than an hour with a dog on a leash and we still had so many that had to freeze most of these.

It is difficult for me to believe that more people don't pick berries. I actually had to explain to the Dari Mart guy where to get them. Uhm, has he EVER been outside? They're difficult to avoid. I guess the prospect of getting more than a few casual berries can be somewhat intimidating for the uninitiated, mainly because of the threat of death or serious bodily injury from the thorns. Most people wear shorts and tank tops this time of year, but I recommend picking early in the morning or just after the heat breaks for the day so you can wear a long sleeved shirt and jeans and good shoes.

Once properly attired, a good way to access hard-to-reach berries is to take one large silly-walk step into the bush to lower the vines with your foot. If you're really into it, you could bring a ladder and hedge clippers. But gloves are overkill. You'll drop half of your berries, and the other half, you'll squish.

What to do with the berries once you get them home is up to you, but I recommend floating them in water to get rid of the inevitable debris. Then you may use them for delicious ends. I made up this recipe for a blackberry buttermilk cake with hazelnut (also Oregon-grown) strusel which was to die for (Logan's studio prof ate like three pieces AND the crumbs in the pan). And of course there is the infamous blackberry gelato and just eating blackberries alone or with plain yogurt or with peaches and cream. Basically, despite the fact that this is my second huge mixing bowl this season, I'm going to have to go picking again.

Please post with blackberry recipes. I probably could use some savory recipes to ward off the diabetes that runs in my family, but sweet ones are fantastic too.