Wild blackberries in Seattle, WA
Now that the girls are asleep, I am sitting at the computer downloading pictures off my camera. I haven’t done this in a while, so there are a lot…and I have found some pictures that have inspired this post. The pictures put a smile on my face as I recalled memories of this summer, but summers passed as well.
This post is about blackberries (not the smartphone, the fruit!) Blackberries grow wild in the summer in so many places in Seattle…in your backyard, on a fence in an alley, along leafy vegetated edges on the Burke Gilman Trail, and even at our neighborhood playground…which brings me to my story.
It was a warm August summer evening in Seattle in the summer of 2009. After swimming lessons, my oldest daughter and I walked out of the recreation center towards our car in the parking lot. As we walked, we passed a forested area that had vines with big blackberries on them. My daughter (then 3 years old) asked, “What are those momma?”. “Blackberries” I responded. “Can we eat some?” she asked. I paused to think about it…”Sure, why not?”
I picked one and ate it. (Yes, I can already hear some gasps…I ate it without washing it.) It was plump, juicy and the perfect balance between sweet and sour. My daughter reached to grab her own. “OUCH!” She didn’t realize the tempting fruit had prickly thorns on the stem. I carefully grabbed the end of a vine to show her the thorns and then she gently picked a blackberry off the end and she popped it in her mouth. A big smile spread across her face. We were hooked.
Last summer my mom was visiting us here in Seattle. We went to our neighborhood playground on one of her first days here. One end of the playground has a path next to a wooded area about an 1/8th of a mile long. As my daughter rode her bike past the wooded area, she spotted some blackberries and raced over to me. “Momma, can I eat some blackberries?” “Sure” I said.
She got off her bike, took my mom by the hand and they went over to try some. “These are yummy Momma. Can we make something with them?” For some reason the first thing that came to my mind was a song by a local singer/song writer, Johnny Bregar, titled “Blackberry Pie”…and thanks to one of my Mark Bittman “How to Cook Everything” cookbooks, a new tradition was born. (Never mind that I had never made a pie or a pie crust before!)
- We used a cut out milk gallon container as our collection jug
The summer of 2011 was not so great here in Seattle. The warm and sunny weather started late (mid-July) and it was cooler and moister than it normally is. When we checked for blackberries in early-mid August, they were nowhere near ripe. The end of summer got busy, and then I just forgot about the blackberries…until a friend at work mentioned that she was looking for ideas of things to make with some blackberries she had picked.
So this year it was not until one Saturday afternoon in mid-September, after I put the baby down for her marathon nap and left darling hubby at home with her, I headed to the playground with my big girl to pick blackberries. It was wonderful.
We got to spend quality one-on-one time which seems rare these days now that she doesn’t commute with me (she started Kindergarten this year). I also loved watching her excitement as we dropped more and more blackberries into our jug and the white bottom became covered in a clumpy sea of blackish-purple. And making the pie crust was just as fun. Now that she is older she loves to help me measure ingredients, pour, mix, and roll out dough.
- The final product – homemade blackberry pie!
I can’t decide what was the best part of all…the chance to slow down and enjoy nature with my big girl, the opportunity to show her the different things we can do and create with our hands, or the “MMMMMM” and big smile from everyone’s faces as we ate blackberry pie after dinner. As I see it, any way you cut it, life is good.
What about you…do you have any fond memories of fruit picking, pie making, or a new ritual you started with your child(ren)?
This is an original post for World Moms Blog by Eva Fannon. Eva can be found on Twitter @evafannon and Flickr http://www.flickr.com/photos/evafannon. Photo credits to the author.
Eva Fannon (USA)
Eva Fannon is a working mom who lives in the beautiful Pacific Northwest with her hubby and two girls. She was born and raised on the east coast and followed her husband out west when he got a job offer that he couldn't refuse. Eva has always been a planner, so it took her a while to accept that no matter how much you plan and prepare, being a mom means a new and different state of "normal". Despite the craziness on most weekday mornings (getting a family of four out the door in time for work and school is no easy task!), she wouldn't trade being a mother for anything in the world. She and her husband are working on introducing the girls to the things they love - travel, the great outdoors, and enjoying time with family and friends. Eva can be found on Twitter @evafannon.
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Mmmm….I love berries! I bet the pie was delicious!
It was thirdeyemom! My mouth is watering right now just thinking about it 🙂
Such a sweet post! Thank you for sharing. We have been living in San Francisco for years and didn’t find the wild blackberries that grow similar to yours until last year. My girls, especially little girl, are addicted! And we, too, often don’t wash them first 🙂 They simply CAN’T wait that long!
I can remember baking apple pie with my dad as a child. I think it is the ONLY think he knows how to make. I often cook with my girls – big girl (4 yr) is finally at a point where she does not make it harder when she helps. Little girl is bound to dip her sticky fingers in the bowl. I really do want to teach them that food does NOT simply come from a grocery store. That you can grow it, eat it, and make it into something else – like pie!
Thanks Angela! I love cooking with my oldest. I have fond memories of helping my grandmother bake and my mother cook and I really appreciate learning from them that food does not, as you say, simply come from the grocery store. Once we buy a house, my husband and I are hoping to reinforce that even further by planting a garden and maybe even getting a couple of chickens to have our own eggs 🙂
What a beautiful day and a delicious end product! I relate to how special and rare it is to spend one-on-one time with just ONE child when you have TWO! I remember picking wild raspberries that grew on the side of the road and in our backyard when I was a kid. There weren’t a lot, so they were a treat. Thanks for sharing.
Thanks for stopping by skpadilla. I knew you would understand about how special (and yes, rare) it is to spend one-on-one time with one when you have two 🙂
We just moved to Oregon a year ago. My little girl has already fallen in love with picking the wild blackberries that grow everywhere! She seemed to eat them as fast as we picked them, but somehow we made several blackberry cobblers this summer. It is sad to see them gone now. There’s always next year. Love this post and your pie looks amazing!
Aaah – Oregon! If I had to move on the west coast again, I would be headed to the Oregon Coast 🙂
And you’re right, there is always next year for blackberries (and it gives us something to look forward to!)
Thanks for stopping by Sarah!
Of course I love this post. Seattle blackberries! Yum!
I am not much of a cook myself, but I do enjoy baking. I love making pies, cakes, and cookies, and I love having my sons help out. My 19 month old is just now wanting to be at eye level with all the action, so I pull up a chair to the counter and give him extra measuring cups and spoons while I make the goodies. It’s so fun for us all, and the results are delicious!
Tara – I have always loved baking – for as long as I can remember. With my grandmother and then on my own once my mom let me 🙂
My 18 month old is just like your 19 month old. She sees her older sister helping me, and she wants to help too. I pull up her highchair to the counter, give her a couple of small bowls with flour and measuring spoons, and she has a blast while my big girl and I bake – so much fun…except for the part when I have to clean up 😉
Eva,
I love how picking blackberries with your daughter ties in motherhood and the fruits (literally!) of the earth. And now I want to eat some blackberries!!
We do apple and peach picking in New Jersey, USA. Apples in the fall and peaches in the summer. I haven’t been brave enough to make my own pie yet, but I do like to bring some of the fruit over to my mom because she makes great pies!
Technically, we do “pumpkin” picking, but often times to keep up with demand, the farms bring in pumpkins from elsewhere and place them among the vines. Raspberry picking is also nearby, but I haven’t done it yet — I want to go!
Thanks for this post. I enjoy reading about what kind of neat things you do with your daughters (the Native American pow-wow!) and when I read your posts I always keep in mind that you print them for your daughters’ baby books. I think about them reading them one day! 🙂
Jen 🙂
Thanks Jen 🙂
We don’t do much if that here. I am not sure if it’s because I have to plan ahead for that and travel a bit or if its because I have 5 kids and not enough hours in the day.
I do a lot of baking with the kids though. (bad for the diet though) LOL
Can’t wait to meet up with you. Will email you with the details of my trip.
My goodness Susie, I have a hard enough time getting out the door with 2 kids, my hat goes off to you for getting even near the door to travel anywhere with 5!
I love baking with my big girl – but you’re right, bad for the hips 😉
Picking wild blackberries is a key and consistent memory from my childhood (we NEVER washed them and lived). Certainly my face was more stained that my bucket filled, and my hands and arms were always scratched to bits. Thinking of blackberry and apple (Granny Smiths) pie covered with whipped cream, made me salivate…yummy. 🙂
Karyn, you just made me salivate with the thought of warm pie and whipped cream – yum! Hmmm….I have a bunch of apples sitting in the kitchen…perhaps I can bake a pie thiss weekend 🙂