When I was a child, I remember that from about July to September, our house was full of the aroma of jam-making, pickling and baking, as blackberries, raspberries, beetroot, onions and other produce were harvested and turned into all manner of goodies. Whilst we were out today, we had a whole hillside that was covered in bilberries to ourselves. It seems as if no-one is interested in picking these delicious little things any more.
A deserted hillside, full of hidden treasures! |
Bilberries are like blueberries, although a little smaller and often a bit less sweet, and they are quite a rare sight in shops, although they appear to have been classed as a 'super-fruit' and thus command high prices in health food shops. Our haul, for an hour's picking by two people was about 600g
Bilberries on the plant |
Unripe Bilberries are a red-ish colour. |
Picking the berries can be a bit time-consuming, but when the sun is shining and the view is spectacular, who's clock watching? And the result of all this work is tasty pies, jams and puddings, so what are you waiting for? Get out into the fields and hedge-rows and start picking!
Oh, you might get a bit mucky though, and fingers rapidly turn red
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