With the end of school comes the beginning of one of the most delicious seasons of the year: berry season. There’s nothing better than the brief return to childhood and the promise of afternoons spent devouring berry after juicy berry, with lips and tongues and fingertips stained red or blue or black.
Yes, berries are one of the simplest and sweetest joys of the summertime. And they have an ability to conjure and create blissful memories for most ­— from picking them in brambles and bushes to baking them into cobblers and pies.
Berries have been used for centuries around the world for everything from medicine to house paint. Early U.S. colonists used blueberries to create a grey-blue paint for their houses, and with all of their vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and flavonoids, berries are great for the body. They’ve been shown to reduce the risk of getting certain kinds of cancers, heart diseases, and Alzheimer’s, as well as reduce blood pressure and ease symptoms of PMS and depression.
And like most beloved foods, berries come with their own legends and odd stories:
If you find a double strawberry (one with two bottom tips), break it in half and share it with someone you like. Legend says you will fall in love with each other.
People in England used to boil blackberry leaves to create dye to “maketh the hair black.”
According to Greek myth, all raspberries used to be pale in color until the day infant Zeus was crying and upset, and his caretaker, a woman named Ida, went to pick some raspberries to cheer him up. She cut herself on a thorn from the raspberry bush and bled on the berries, turning them the pinkish-red we know today.
For those who can’t get enough of the berry, Eugene is hosting its own Strawberry Social to celebrate the start of strawberry picking season. Students can take some time off from finals week on Wednesday, June 11, and spend the afternoon eating fresh strawberry shortcake and listening to the music of acoustic humorist Timothy Patrick at the Petersen Barn, 870 Berntzen Road. The event starts at 2 p.m. and costs only $3, an inexpensive way to begin berry season!
And for those who want to relive their childhood picking berries and watching their fingers turn red, there are many berry farms nearby that let visitors pick their own berries and take them home. Stillpoint Farm in Veneta is one such farm, and they grow strawberries, blueberries and raspberries ripe for the picking. Strawberry picking starts in late May, while blueberries and raspberries ripen in July, so August and September are the best months to pick all three. Visit stillpointfarms.com for more information on picking and directions.
And finally, for those who are simply interested in eating delectable berry treats, try these easy recipes. The berries in each recipe are easily interchangeable, and it is highly recommended to try many variations to truly experience berry bliss
this summer.
 
Berry Cobbler
Ingredients:
5 tablespoons butter
1 cup sugar
1 cup 2-percent milk
1 1/4 cup flour
2 teaspoons baking
powder
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2-3 cups fresh berries (any kind, I used blackberries)

1. Grease 9×13″ pan and preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Combine butter and sugar until fully blended.
3. Add milk, flour, baking powder and vanilla until smooth. Batter should be thin and free of lumps.
4. Pour batter into pan and top with fresh berries. Berries should almost completely cover batter.
5. If berries are tart, like blackberries, boil a handful of the berries in 1 cup water and spoon some of the juice on top of the berries and batter. Sprinkle with a pinch
6. of sugar.
7. Bake for 30 minutes or until brown. Batter should rise to the top and berries
8. will sink.
9. Let cool 10 minutes and serve with cream, ice cream, or more berries!

Berry Trifle
Ingredients:
1 package pound cake mix
1 package instant white chocolate pudding mix
2 cups fresh chopped strawberries
2 cups fresh raspberries
2 cups blueberries
2 cups heavy whipping cream, whipped
1 teaspoon unsweetened, ground chocolate

1. Prepare pound cake according to package’s directions. Let cool.
2. Cut pound cake into 1 inch thick slices. Then cut into cubes and set aside.
3. Prepare white chocolate pudding mix according to package’s directions.
4. Either in a large bowl or individual dessert cups, pour an inch or two of the pudding into the dish. Add half of the pound cake cubes. Add half of the berries. Repeat. Top with whipped cream, a final spoonful of berries, and dust with chocolate.

Raspberry Custard
Ingredients:
3 tablespoons butter
6 eggs
1/2 cup sugar
2 1/2 cups milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2/3 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup raspberries
1/2 teaspoon ground
nutmeg
Mint leaves

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
2. Put butter in 9×13″ pan and melt in oven.
3. Combine eggs, sugar, milk, vanilla, flour and salt until smooth.
4. Pour mixture over melted butter in hot dish.
5. Top with blueberries.
6. Bake for 20 minutes or until puffed and golden.
7. Top with nutmeg, more raspberries and fresh mint leaves.

 
Blueberry Bars
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
3 cups flour
1 cup butter
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground
cinnamon
4 cups fresh blueberries
3 teaspoons cornstarch

1. Grease 9×13″ pan and preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Combine 1 cup of the sugar with the flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, butter, and egg until crumbly.
3. Pat half of the dough into pan.
4. Combine last 1/2 cup of sugar with cornstarch and blueberries.
5. Top dough in pan with blueberry mixture.
6. Bake for 40 minutes or until brown.

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