Blackberries Make Show-Stopping Desserts

Rubus armeniacus may be the bane of gardeners everywhere, but they’re a guilty pleasure for cooks. Also known as the Armenian or Himalayan Blackberry, these vicious vines have a habit of taking over flower beds and roadside right-of-ways if left to their own devices.

That’s bad news for native plants everywhere (including Rubus ursinus, the non-invasive blackberry that grows well in Oregon) but good news for people looking to pick free blackberries in the summertime.

Blackberries grow along the bike path where I ride almost daily, and all year I look forward to August, when their sweet smell fills the air on warm afternoons. Most days I stop on my way home from work to pick a few and enjoy them in their simplest form.

Blackberries make spectacular cooked desserts. My dear friend Rebecca Larson likes to make Blackberry Pie and offered to share her recipe for this column. However, when pressed, this was her version:

“Take as many blackberries as you can con your family or your co-workers into picking (Rebecca usually gets her blackberries in the back lot at St. Vincent de Paul in Eugene, where she works). Tell them to pick the berries into a colander so you can rinse them without transferring them into another bowl. Toss them with some flour (not too much, so you get lots of juice), about a cup of sugar (depending on how sweet they are) and around a tablespoon of orange zest. You don’t really taste the orange but it gives the berries a really rich flavor. Put them in a pie crust and dot with butter. Put a second crust on top and sprinkle with more sugar. Bake at 400 degrees for about 15 minutes, then lower the temperature to 350 degrees and bake until the crust is golden brown (about 40 minutes).

“And if your oven starts smoking before you bake the pie, it’s time to clean it. Oh well, too late!”

This freedom to experiment will surely delight experienced cooks. For those of you (like me) who prefer to cook from a recipe, try Blackberry Cobbler. This is my family’s favorite way to enjoy blackberries. It’s best served with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

For a real treat you can substitute marionberries, also known as the Marion blackberry, in either of these recipes. Marionberries were developed at Oregon State University and are named after Marion County, where they were most heavily tested. They’re grown exclusively in Oregon and are renowned for their big size and rich taste. I freeze several cups every year so I can make berry pies at Thanksgiving and Christmas.

Whether you enjoy them now or later, plain or in baked goods, blackberries are a real show-stopper. Enjoy them while you can.

Blackberry Cobbler
Makes 6 to 8 servings
4 T. butter
1 c. sugar, divided
1 c. flour
2 t. baking powder
1/4 t. salt
1/2 c. milk
4 c. blackberries
1 c. apple juice

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease a 2 quart casserole dish. In a small bowl mix together flour, baking powder and salt; set aside.

In a mixing bowl, beat together butter and 1/2 c. sugar. Stir in flour mixture alternately with milk, beginning and ending with flour. Pour the batter into prepared dish. Top with blackberries; sprinkle with remaining 1/2 c. sugar.

In a small saucepan, heat apple juice until boiling. Pour over blackberries. Bake for 50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle has only a few moist crumbs.