Weed of the Week- Blackberries
Blackberry season is a time of great excitement in my household. All through July eyes are peeled keenly and walks are particularly slow, searching for that first sign of juicy ripe berries… but I lie, my daughter much prefers the ruby red (and even green) unripe ones and amazingly does NOT suffer the epic tummy aches I predict for her every year anew. Guts of steel!
It must run in the family as the story goes that my great grandmother, on the Texas side, was terrified of snakes, but when it came to blackberries, she would throw herself into the brambles, braving venom in the name of sweet Rubus fruticosus!
Every year I promise myself I will get as enthusiastic as my ‘kin’ and make some blackberry jelly. These berries have reasonably high levels of natural pectin, (the under ripe red ones contain more while the super ripe one less, so a few unripe ones in the mix doesn’t hurt).
Pectin is the natural starch that acts as a thickening agent when making jam. This is enhanced by adding some lemon juice (and a few pips even better).
There are many great recipes are out there to play around with, and I will briefly describe my process for a quick(ish) version of blackberry jelly, with amount I managed to save over from my berry obsessed child!
The jelly came out a little runnier than what could be ‘spreadable’ but I couldn’t be bothered to tip it all back into the pot to boil for a bit longer. This year’s batch can instead be used as syrup! Winter porridge awaits… or any cocktail ideas? let me know in a comment. I quite enjoyed the photo shoot and styling the jelly and cream with my satin cream coloured pots and mugs.
Slow walks, finding the BEST spot ever, messy pots and sticky hands. As brambles and weeds go, I would say it has to be a pretty good one ;)
To make a small amount, that in my case fit in about two recycled jam jars, I measured out about 1kg of blackberries (that had sat in the fringe for way to long). To this I added about 75ml water. Once it boils a lot of liquid is released. I squeezed a lemon into the mix, pips allowed as after 10-15min of simmer/boil, (allow to cool) and mashing with a potatoes squasher it would be strained overnight through a cheese cloth. The next day, for every 100ml of liquid add 75g of granulated sugar and boil. Wash and clean two jars and place in the oven and heat slowly at a low temperature. Once ready pour the very hot jelly into the hot jars and seal with lids.
In my family the cooking style has often been, ‘add a bit of this, add a bit of that’ but jam is a bit of a science so do go find a more official recipe.
Little Rustic vase
Please also be aware that I share these Weed of the Week snippets out of the interest I have in nature, the seasons and wild plants. I am not an expert and would advise checking to make sure anytime you pick something to make or consume.
I hope everyone can enjoy a little of the excitement my eleven-year-old still has for this humble week. Have a taste if you come across a juicy ripe (or sour red, no judgement!)), on hopefully an adult paced walk!