All day long we
experienced periods of snow, rain, sunshine, snow, rain, sunshine, repeat until
the darkness of night finally said, “Hey, enough is enough!”. According to the calendar, we are in the
season of spring, but anyone residing here knows better than to rely on a
calendar.
There is a folklore tradition in south and midwest North
America, Europe, Sinosphere Vietnam and East Asia which refers to a period of
late-season cold weather that can occur in late spring or early summer. The name of this occurrence is called "Blackberry
Winter", and it has significant meaning in Appalachian and Tennessee
folklore. Tales about Blackberry Winter
are used to convey feelings of resilience and adaptability which prompts the
coming together, within the community, during what can be perceived as a
difficult time.
Remember, many people, during the winter season, come
down with “the winter blues”; sadness, feeling drained, claustrophobia can
develop from being “locked in the home” during extreme wintery weather,
anxiety, and this all can lead to depression.
Spring is supposed to give us more daylight, sunshine, more
opportunities for outdoor activities. When
winter decides to not let go though, those winter blues may still remain as
well.
So, let us talk about blackberries, and how these tiny
fruits can bring some happiness into our winter blues. Blackberries
are native to temperate regions north of the equator, including Asia, Europe,
and North and South America. They are
not a berry in the sense that they grow on tendrils, from the main plant, along
the ground. They are part of the genus,
Rubus, or Rose Family, and grow on thorny stalks of a bush, as roses tend to
do.
Blackberries have been used for culinary, medicinal, and
protective purposes for thousands of years.
The health benefits of blackberries are:
Rich in antioxidants, which protect cells from damage.
High in fiber, promoting digestive health and reducing
cholesterol levels.
Contain anthocyanins, which have anti-inflammatory
properties.
A good source of vitamin C, essential for immune function
and collagen production.
Low in calories and fat, making them a healthy snack
option.
Recently I became very interested in blackberry recipes,
that piqued my curiosity, while reading, what else, another British
mystery. Castle Magic, by Morgan
Brice, contains four separate stories centering around Caynham Castle. In each story, while trying to solve a
mystery at the castle, the couples would visit tea shops; well, they did need
to eat, right? The teas, sandwiches and
desserts offered were described in good detail. While every menu item sounded
delicious,
Blackberry Tarts and Blackberry Coconut Cake simply
tickled my fancy.
Unfortunately for me, whenever I have tried to make pie
crust, it has been an epic failure. I
tend to be too heavy handed with the rolling out of the dough, and the adding
of flour when it sticks to the board. If
you can make a wicked pie crust of your own, then go for it! However, I will stick with the refrigerated
version from the supermarket. With the
Blackberry Tarts recipe, it will make nine tarts, or six tarts and one hand pie;
and use a muffin tin that is ½-inch deep for the tarts.
Blackberry Tarts
Ingredients:
2 pie crusts rolled out to a 9-inch diameter
Blackberry Filling
4 – 6 oz. containers fresh blackberries
½ cup granulated sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon
½ tsp. ground ginger
1 and ½ tsp. fresh lemon juice
1 Tbsp. cornstarch
Preparation:
Blackberry filling: In a medium sized bowl, mix together all
blackberry filling ingredients. Lightly
mash larger berries with a fork, but keep mostly intact. Place a colander over a bowl; place filling
inside colander, so juices can be caught in the bowl. The extra juice will make the pie crust too
soggy, and the juice can be frozen for another baking project, like cheesecake.
Preheat oven to 350F, lightly spray muffin pan(s) with
nonstick baking spray.
Cut 6 to 9, 4-inch, circles, depending on how many tarts
desired; reform excess dough into circle form to get extra circles. Carefully press circles into muffin pan(s),
and work dough up the sides. Prick the sides and bottoms of the dough to
release steam while baking. Place pan(s)
in oven and bake for 10 minutes; remove from oven and let cool for 15 minutes.
Fill each crust with filling to top of the crust
sides.
If desired, and there is any
remaining dough, cut out little designs and place on top center of the
filling.
If a lattice design is desired,
use another 9-inch diameter pie crust to cut strips for each tart.
Place pan(s) on center rack of oven, bake 40-50 minutes
until filling is bubbling, and crust design, if any, is browned.
Allow to cool to the touch before removing
from tins. Serve as is, or with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, or whipped cream.
Makes 9 tarts.
However, six tarts can be made, and with the remaining dough, roll out
to 6-inch diameter. Place remaining
blackberries, in center. Lightly brush
water on edges of dough; carefully fold one side of dough towards the other
edge; crimp edges together to make a curl-like pattern. Lightly brush top of “hand pie” with water
and sprinkle sugar on top. It will bake
the same amount of time as the tarts.
Blackberry Hand Pie
Oh bother, I have reached my word limit for this
article. Ho hum, that means that the
Blackberry Coconut Cake will have to be for another time. Do not fret darlings, this is a mystery you
will enjoy drooling over.
Mary Cokenour
