Blackberry Syrup

A little over a month ago I had a customer send me a message... " I ate some stuff at a place and you poured it out and it was like blueberry syrup and it had whole blueberries in it you could put it over pancakes it was like a syrup that you poured over pancakes and it was floating in blueberries ...do you know how to make that?" Sure! I can do that! So he ordered 6 QUARTS of Blueberry Syrup! LOL

Apparently, that inspired him because he also wants 3 quarts of Blackberry Syrup and 3 quarts of Strawberry Syrup.

Blackberry Syrup with whole berries!

3 cups fresh blackberries
1 cup granulated sugar
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 cup water

Add blackberries, sugar, lemon juice and water to a medium sauce pan over medium heat. Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally, and boil until the temperature reaches 225 degrees. Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly before use. Transfer to a quart jar and store in the refrigerator for up to 6 months.*

*You can process the quarts in a waterbath for 15 minutes and store in your pantry.

Pork Tenderloin with Blackberry Bar-B-Que Sauce

Cooking Spray
1 1/4 pounds pork tenderloin
Salt and pepper

garlic powder
1/2 cup Blackberries
3 tablespoons prepared thick bar-b-que sauce
2 T Texas Pete

In a small bowl, mix blackberries with a sprinkle of sugar and let sit until they release some of their juices. Then mash them with a fork to break apart. 

Spray grill grates with no-stick cooking spray. Heat grill to 350 degrees F to 375 degrees F. Generously season tenderloin with salt, pepper and garlic powder. 

In a sauce pan, add blackberries, barbecue sauce and Texas Pete. Heat until warm; stir to blend. 

Grill pork, turning occasionally, 16 to 20 minutes (or until thermometer reads 160 degrees F). Baste liberally with 1/4 cup blackberry barbecue sauce during last 5 minutes of cooking. Transfer tenderloin to platter, tent with foil and allow to rest for 5 minutes before slicing. Serve pork over brown rice, drizzled with additional sauce and sprinkled with chopped parsley, if desired.

Blackberry Spinach Salad with Fresh Basil Vinaigrette

3 cups baby spinach, rinsed and dried
1 pint fresh blackberries
6 ounces crumbled feta cheese
1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
1 green onion, sliced
1/4 cup walnuts, pine nuts or sunflower seeds (optional)
1/2 cup edible flowers (optional)

In a large bowl, toss together baby spinach, blackberries, feta cheese, cherry tomatoes, green onion, and walnuts. Serve with fresh basil vinaigrette on the side and for a fancy touch, garnish with edible flowers.

Fresh Basil Vinaigrette

1/2 cup white wine vinegar
1 cup extra virgin olive oil

a few basil leaves
2 cloves garlic
1 tsp white sugar
1 tsp kosher salt

In a blender or food processor combine vinegar, basil, garlic, sugar, and salt. Process until the basil and garlic are minced well. Continue to process while adding oil in a slow steady steam. Process until dressing is emulsified. 

Blackberry - Lemon Muffins

These are easy muffins to make with the delicious flavors of blackberry and lemon with a crunchy topping.

•  
• MUFFINS:
• 1-1/2 c all-purpose flour
• 3/4 c granulated sugar
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 tsp baking powder
• Zest of 1/2 lemon
• 1/3 c vegetable oil
• 1 egg
• 1/3 c milk
• Juice from half a lemon
• 1 1/2 c fresh blackberries
• 
  
• TOPPING:
• 1/2 c granulated sugar
• 1/3 c all-purpose flour
• 1/4 c butter, room temp
• 
  

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Grease 8 muffin cups or line with muffin liners and set aside.
2. Combine flour, sugar, salt, lemon zest and baking powder in a medium bowl.
3. In another bowl, combine vegetable oil, egg and milk, and mix with a fork. Add lemon juice. Pour into the flour mixture and mix well. Fold in blackberries. Mixture will be quite sticky, so use caution not to mash the berries when folding in. Fill muffin cups to the top.
4. To make crumb topping, mix together sugar, flour and butter. Mix with fork and sprinkle over muffins before baking.
5. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Blackberry Cobbler or Dump Cake

Elliott went out back beside the field and picked me blackberries. He came back saying, "Mama it's blackberry heaven back there. There's blackberries all down the side of the field... They are just all red!" Looks like lots of blackberry recipes in my future! :-)

Filling:
4 cups Fresh Blackberries
sugar, to taste


Topping:
Yellow cake mix
1 stick butter or margarine

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9X9 pan with vegetable oil. Combine the blackberries and sugar in a large bowl. Mix well. Pour in greased pan.
Sprinkle the cake mix evenly over the blackberries… get it nice and level. Melt the butter and pour over the cake mix, making sure to cover the entire cake mix. (You made need a little more butter. Cover it, but don’t drowned it.) Sprinkle it with a little sugar.
Bake 25-35 minutes or until the top is golden brown.

Best served warm with a big scoop

of vanilla ice cream!