One For the Road

Well, it's been drizzly all week and I roasted my first pumpkin of the year so I think it's safe to say that fall is here. I'm just the tiniest bit sad to see summer go, but I am far more excited to see what this season of change has in store. So, here's the last of my summery photos and one last (ok two) recipe(s) for the road. Yes, I know, it's probably too late to make blackberry jam this year, but maybe bookmark these recipes for next summer? I'll be back soon with something a bit more autumnal.

Classic Blackberry Jam
yield about 6, half pints
This jam is simple and unadorned, just blackberries, sugar and lemon and it tastes like a Northwest summer. I will cherish every bite of every jar.

3 1/2 pounds fresh blackberries, rinsed
1 3/4 pounds sugar
3 ounces lemon juice

1. Add the blackberries, sugar, and lemon juice to a large, wide, non-reactive pot. Use a potato masher to gently mash the fruit.
2. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium high heat, stirring occasionally. As the jam comes to a boil, skim the foam that rises to the top of the pot and discard.
3. Raise the heat to high and boil for 10-20 minutes or until set, being careful not to let the bottom scorch. Begin checking for doneness at 10 minutes. I generally use the wrinkle test to check for doneness with this type of jam. If you prefer seedless jam, quickly transfer the cooked mixture to a mesh strainer and force as much as the jam through as possible, discard the seeds and proceed with canning.
4. Pour the jam into sterilized jars, then process in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes.

Blackberry Fig Jam with Lime
yield 6-8 half pints
Green figs can be very sweet and tart blackberries temper their flavor nicely in this jam.

2 1/2 pounds fresh blackberries, rinsed
1 1/2 pounds green figs, stem ends removed and chopped coarsely
1 1/2 pounds sugar
4 ounces lime juice
1t lime zest

1. Add the blackberries, chopped figs, sugar, and lime juice to a large, wide, non-reactive pot. Use a potato masher to gently mash the fruit.
2. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium high heat, stirring occasionally. As the jam comes to a boil, skim the foam that rises to the top of the pot and discard.
3. Raise the heat to high and boil for 15-25 minutes or until set, being careful not to let the bottom scorch. Begin checking for doneness at 15 minutes. I generally use the wrinkle test to check for doneness with this type of jam.
4. Stir in the lime zest, pour the jam into sterilized jars, then process in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes.

Blackberry Rhubarb Crisp

I pick blackberries from the school yard and rhubarb from the side yard. I remember to wear long sleeves and long pants to protect myself from the blackberry brambles, but my hair keeps getting tangled up in the thorns. Later I find a picture of my teenaged self picking blackberries with my best pal, both of us wearing overalls with bandanas tied around our heads*. I cut thin stalks of rhubarb from a forgotten plant and free them from their massive leaves. They are red almost all of the way through. I turn them into summertime crisps. I mix and stir the crumb topping with my hands. I bake them in borrowed ramekins and old jelly jars and they spill all over the baking sheet in the oven. We eat them on my brother's birthday with earl grey ice cream on top, after the babies have been put to bed.

Blackberry Rhubarb Crisp
yield 8-10 individual crisps or, 1 9x13 pan 
A few notes on this recipe: If making individual crisps, you'll want heatproof dishes (ramekins, canning jars, etc) that can hold about 6 ounces. The rhubarb gives the filling a wonderful tartness, which is just about perfect with some ice cream on top. I like a fairly equal fruit to crumb topping, so this recipe makes a generous amount. If you don't want to use it all at once it can be frozen for up to 2 weeks. Don't thaw before using, just break up the crumbs and sprinkle them over your dessert before you bake it.

For the Filling

1 1/2 pounds blackberries
3/4 pounds rhubarb, chopped into 1/4''-1/2'' pieces
1 ounce flour
4 1/4 ounces sugar
1 teaspoon lemon zest (meyer lemon if available)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the Crumb Topping

6 ounces softened butter
4 1/2 ounces rolled oats
4 1/2 ounces whole wheat flour (or sub half all purpose)
4 1/4 ounces brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 375º

1. In a large bowl, gently toss the blackberries, chopped rhubarb, flour, sugar, lemon zest, and vanilla extract together. Set aside while you prepare the topping.
2. In a medium bowl combine the oats, flour, brown sugar, baking soda and salt. Add in the butter and use your hands to work it into the mixture until it holds together in medium clumps.
3. If making individual crisps, divide the filling mixture evenly between 8-10 ramekins, then top with a generous amount of crumb topping. If making 1, 9x13 crisp pour all of the fruit into the dish and evenly sprinkle the crumb over the top.
4. Place the ramekins or baking dish on top of a rimmed baking sheet (to catch any juices) and slide into the oven. Bake until the fruit is bubbling and the the topping is golden brown, 25-30 minutes. Serve warm with ice cream or whipped cream on top.


*No doubt an attempt to channel Angela Chase

Summertime in Seattle

Seattle in the summertime just gives and gives and gives and I filled my cup with as much of its northwest magic as I could manage. I wandered through gardens and on the beach. I chased babies who were crawling (!) and teething and finding their voices. I spent a ton of time with family and friends, I ate blackberries (and figs and plums) warm from the sun until I gave myself a stomach ache and then I took them and made two types of jam and crisp and cobbler. Then I had a fancy cocktail at the newly opened Essex, ate A LOT of pastries and had the good fortune to meet the lovely Ashley Rodriguez in person and I have her to thank for my new kouign amann obsession. It was everything I wanted and more, more than I can say.

See you next week with a few summery recipes to end the season right!

p.s. All of these photos were taken with my iPhone and edited with the VSCO Cam App, my personal favorite. Many of them were posted on Instagram, sorry for the repeats if you follow me there. I just loved them too much to leave them off of the blog.