Discover the Delights of Blackberries

For Vivien McDonald, 45, of Redding, Calif., wild blackberries are the stuff of her girlhood memories.

With untold numbers of blackberry bushes growing in the family's backyard, summer chores included plucking berries from a thorny patch. But a little bravery facing those barbed bushes would pay off.

"We made homemade jelly," McDonald said with a grin.

While she doesn't make jelly these days, McDonald does take the time to pass on those simple pleasures to her grandson. And she does it along Redding's Sacramento River Trail, a corridor popular with hikers, bicycle riders, inline skaters and berry eaters.

"As soon as we get on the trail, he says, 'Bite please, bite please,' " McDonald says of her grandson.

Some evenings, the two gather extra berries for an ice-cream topping, McDonald says.

Lou Prusinovski, 63, of Redding seldom harvests berries for home. But he and his wife, Rene, have seen others along the river trail fill baskets with berries. Instead, the Prusinovskis prefer an immediate snack.

"We just eat them fresh," Prusinovski says.

At just 60 calories per cup, fresh-picked berries might be the perfect low-fat snack for lazy summer days. But they're also a great starting point for delectable recipes.

Blackberry Smoothie

Ingredients:

8 ounces vanilla or plain yogurt
8 ounces orange juice
1 cup blackberries

Preparation:

Mix it all in a blender. Pour into glasses and serve immediately.

---Recipe courtesy Jacki Zediker, Siskiyou County, Calif., 4-H

Shelly Pennington's Blackberry Dumplings

Ingredients:

2 quarts blackberries
2-1/4 cups flour
2 cups sugar
1 to 2 Tbsp. butter
3 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
3 Tbsp. shortening
1 cup milk

Preparation:

Cook blackberries with 1/4 cup flour, sugar and butter until thickened. Sift remaining flour, baking powder and salt. Blend in shortening. Add milk. Mix quickly. Drop by teaspoons into boiling blackberry mixture. Reduce heat. Cover. Simmer for about 20 minutes.

---Recipe from Seasoned with Love, a collection of recipes by Redding Adventist School