Blackberries
Aug. 19th, 2011 08:34 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
miko2It's blackberry season. They grow wild everywhere. I like to pick them, they're free food after all, but I failed to pick any last year, and maybe not the year before that. I kept thinking I should do it, but I was too busy I guess.
Tuesday I went for a walk during my break along the tracks that run behind our company, and there's tons of blackberries there and it inspired me, so I went back on my lunch and afternoon breaks with containers to pick blackberries. I downloaded a couple of recipes and went home and attempted to make pie. The recipe was simple -- whole wheat flour, butter, salt and water for the crust, sugar (splenda) and arrowroot powder (or flour) for the berries. I bought some arrowroot powder and a very nice ceramic pie mold at Top Foods and went home to cook.
The recipe called for mixing the dough with a pastry mixer. I wasn't actually sure what that was (and I didn't have one) so I mixed the dough by hand. This turns out to be the wrong thing to do. I also didn't refrigerate the dough for very long since I was in a hurry, so the dough was very crumbly and didn't hold together well. Also the recipe I'd picked did not call for a top to the pie and didn't include enough dough to make one, and in any case with the dough falling apart I would have had a hard time making a top.
I also didn't have as many berries as I probably would have liked.
Anyway the results tasted fine but weren't going to win any awards in the looks department. I wanted to try again.
Yesterday I brought five plastic containers to work. I picked blackberries on each of my breaks. After work I went for an hour's walk, and when I got back I filled the last two containers and then I also washed out the container that I'd had a salad in for lunch and filled that -- so I had six containers of blackberries, more than enough for two pies (I hoped).
I used a different recipe for the dough this time, that called for 1 cup whole wheat and 1/2 cup white flour, and used milk instead of water. But basically the same idea, flour, butter, some salt, and sugar (I used splenda again). This time however I bought a pastry mixer (I recognized what it was when I saw one, my mom had one of course but I'd never known what it was called or used for). I also made sure to let the dough sit in the fridge for an hour and let the berries sit for about the same time.
Anyway I managed to make two pies. I was much more successful! One came out looking great, while the second had too many berries and not quite enough dough, so thata the top was thin and not anchored well around the edges and it leaked juice. I'll need to clean the oven out tonight. :p I used the last bit of dough and leftover berries (there were far too many berries) to make a lopsided smooshed-up sort of tart, which nevertheless tasted fine. ^_^
Tuesday I went for a walk during my break along the tracks that run behind our company, and there's tons of blackberries there and it inspired me, so I went back on my lunch and afternoon breaks with containers to pick blackberries. I downloaded a couple of recipes and went home and attempted to make pie. The recipe was simple -- whole wheat flour, butter, salt and water for the crust, sugar (splenda) and arrowroot powder (or flour) for the berries. I bought some arrowroot powder and a very nice ceramic pie mold at Top Foods and went home to cook.
The recipe called for mixing the dough with a pastry mixer. I wasn't actually sure what that was (and I didn't have one) so I mixed the dough by hand. This turns out to be the wrong thing to do. I also didn't refrigerate the dough for very long since I was in a hurry, so the dough was very crumbly and didn't hold together well. Also the recipe I'd picked did not call for a top to the pie and didn't include enough dough to make one, and in any case with the dough falling apart I would have had a hard time making a top.
I also didn't have as many berries as I probably would have liked.
Anyway the results tasted fine but weren't going to win any awards in the looks department. I wanted to try again.
Yesterday I brought five plastic containers to work. I picked blackberries on each of my breaks. After work I went for an hour's walk, and when I got back I filled the last two containers and then I also washed out the container that I'd had a salad in for lunch and filled that -- so I had six containers of blackberries, more than enough for two pies (I hoped).
I used a different recipe for the dough this time, that called for 1 cup whole wheat and 1/2 cup white flour, and used milk instead of water. But basically the same idea, flour, butter, some salt, and sugar (I used splenda again). This time however I bought a pastry mixer (I recognized what it was when I saw one, my mom had one of course but I'd never known what it was called or used for). I also made sure to let the dough sit in the fridge for an hour and let the berries sit for about the same time.
Anyway I managed to make two pies. I was much more successful! One came out looking great, while the second had too many berries and not quite enough dough, so thata the top was thin and not anchored well around the edges and it leaked juice. I'll need to clean the oven out tonight. :p I used the last bit of dough and leftover berries (there were far too many berries) to make a lopsided smooshed-up sort of tart, which nevertheless tasted fine. ^_^
no subject
Date: 2011-08-23 10:45 pm (UTC)It was GOOD pie!
I've been eating healthier simply because I feel better for it. Your pie hit the spot.