Wednesday, July 29, 2009

Blueberry Pickin'

Macombers Blueberry Stand Trio

Saturday morning we ventured out to Rice City in the Western part of Rhode Island to pick us a boatload of blueberries.

We've been picking blueberries here for the last 10 years.

Macombers Blueberry Stand

Macombers Blueberry Stand birdhouse

This farm is nestled into the woods down a long dirt road.

Just where a blueberry farm should be.

Macombers Blueberry Stand pickers

Macombers Blueberry Stand bloom

It doesn't hurt that the surroundings are beautiful and the berries are plentiful.

Macombers Blueberry Stand berry bunch

We picked and picked and sampled, then picked some more and sampled a bit more too.

Macombers Blueberry Stand collage

It had rained the night before, so the bushes were full of raindrops.

We all left with "granny fingers" as the kids call them.

They were all wrinkly and prunish, but we kept on pickin'.

Macombers Blueberry Stand handful

We ended up picking 16 pounds of blueberries. Yup, 16 pounds.
In case you're wondering what 16 pounds of berries looks like, let me show you.

They fill up a really big bucket.

Macombers Blueberry Stand bucketful

Now what do you do with 16 pounds of blueberries you ask?

Well first you spend oh....6 to 8 hours prepping them for the freezer so we can have muffins and pancakes and pies and other blueberry treats well into the winter.

With the 3 or 4 pounds you didn't freeze, well you use those to bake with.

You make the best blueberry muffin on earth. Which I did.

To Die for Blueberry Muffins

They are called To Die for Blueberry Muffins, and they really are. Everyone who puts one in their mouths declares them "the best blueberry muffin ever". Trust me, they are. I think it might have something to do with the irresistible crunchy topping.

To Die for Blueberry Muffins CU

I blogged about them awhile back, but since then I've tweaked the recipe just a tad and now it's absolutely perfect.

One of the nice things about these muffins is, you don’t need an electric mixer. Two bowls, a measuring cups and a few measuring spoons is all it takes to make these scrumptious muffins.

To Die for Blueberry Muffins
Printable recipe
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/3 cup canola oil (or vegetable oil)
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
enough milk to fill one cup
1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries

Topping

1/2 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup butter, cold and cubed
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon

Preheat the oven to 400. Grease the muffin cups or use muffin liners. This recipe made 11 muffins for me.

Combine the flour, sugar, salt and baking powder in a large bowl. Whisk to mix. Place the vegetable oil into a 1-cup measuring cup and add the egg and vanilla. Pour in enough milk to fill it to the 1-cup line. Pour this into the flour mixture and mix just until combined. Don’t over mix! Gently fold in the blueberries. The batter will be thick.

Fill the muffin cups to the top. I used an ice cream scoop and one scoop filled them perfectly.

To make crumb topping:

Mix together the brown sugar, flour, cubed butter and cinnamon. Using a pasty blender or a fork combine until the butter is pea sized. Sprinkle over the muffins before baking. I used a heaping tablespoon for each one. Trust me, heaping mounds of topping are a good thing.

Bake 20 - 25 minutes in a preheated oven or until they test done. Let cool 5 minutes in pan, and then remove from pan to cool on a rack. Eat warm if possible!

To Die for Blueberry Muffins in basket

15 comments:

Doreen Frost said...

WOW..what gorgeous pictures!!!! And look at those granny fingers!!! Looks like such a fantastic day!!!

This recipe even looks to die for..I am MAKING these!!!

:)Doreen

noble pig said...

You've got some big ones in there! How fun.

June said...

Gorgeous, gorgeous, gorgeous! And I cannot wait to try that recipe.

And thank you EVER so much for the sour cherry recipe! You're so thoughtful, Lisa!

Juliana said...

Oh! So neat being able to pick your own blueberries for muffins...unfortunately I'll have to be content with the one that I have in my fridge...love the recipe and I'll make them since I have 2 containers of blueberries...YUMMIE! Thanks for sharing the pictures, just lovely!

Robin from Calif said...

The recipe looks wonderful - I will try it out for sure. Too bad there's no blueberry picking around here. I did get a bunch of them a few weeks ago on sale, and put some in the freezer. What exactly do you do, Lisa, for preparing them for the freezer? I hope I didn't blow it. Also, your photos are amazing!

The Cutting Edge of Ordinary said...

Robin. When I'm getting the berries ready for freezing I put them on a sheet pan and spread the berries out on it so they are in a single layer. Then I freeze them for about an hour to hour 1/2 so that they freeze individually and won't clump together when I bag and vacuum seal them. I vacuum seal them in 2 cup bags and stack them in my freezer.

RecipeGirl said...

What a beautiful post! I just returned from the East Coast where they weren't quite ready for picking yet. I'd love to do that sometime though. I'd be in heaven w/ all of those blueberries and baking. Muffins look fab!

Katiecakes said...

How lovely! That blueberry farm looks so pretty!

Those muffins also look awesome, but I was wondering, how does one prep berries for the freezer? I think picking now and freezing would be much cheaper than buying them in when they're out of season.

Katie xox

Sandie said...

Just found your blog through a link from a friend on Twitter and Im so glad I did---it has such a genuine feel. I'll be linking to this particular post with an upcoming recipe on Inn Cuisine. What perfect timing to have discovered your blog! Must have been fate...

Jess said...

I came across this post looking for a new blueberry muffin recipe. I can't wait to give yours a try. Beautiful photos.

The Cutting Edge of Ordinary said...

Katie see my response to Robin and you'll know how I prep the berries. (Look up,lol).

Sandie and Jess, thanks for stopping by. I love it when I have new visitors!

Robin said...

Thanks for the freezing tip, Lisa. I never thought of freezing them on a tray first. Now I know why they are all stuck together - ha! ha!. (I promise to do it right the next time :) ).

Jeff said...

I love blueberry picking!!! Always makes me happy and full all at the same time. Love the pics and making me jealous!!! Must find a place to go berry picking now.......

katie said...

Those do look wonderful! I would love to make them for our teachers. Can you believe school starts in a couple of weeks here?!

Anonymous said...

These were fabulous. A dozen were gobbled up immediately. I am going to add some rolledoats to the streusel topping next time for additional texture.