bbenedict
09-05-2007, 03:12 PM
Hello all! For the second week in a row I've been able to get a couple of pints of Garden Huckleberries from my CSA. Garden Huckleberries are VERY tart and are a much harder berry than the huckleberries my husband grew up with in Seattle. The ones he grew up with were basically similar to a blueberry. You could even eat them as is. Not these.
Having not cooked with them before, I did a search on garden huckleberries and tried the following pie:
Garden Huckleberry Pie
Simmer four cups of berries, with just enough water to prevent scorching, for 20 minutes. Add 1 1/4 cups sugar and four tablespoons of cornstarch or tapioca. Stir the filling till it thickens . Remove it from the heat to cool. Pour it into a shell and cover it with a top crust.
Put pie in a 425°F oven for 10 minutes. Reduce the heat to 350°F and continue baking for 30 to 40 minutes, or until the top is browned.
The cooked and sweetened fruit is also delicious in pancakes, muffins, and such.
It was a disaster. I cooked the berries for WAY longer adding more water until they got sort of tender. The tapioca NEVER softened (and I used the kind I always use for pies) and I cooked it way longer and it never got thick (I'm sure cause of the tapioca that never dissolved.) And it was still too tart and actually quite bitter.
I ended up trying to blend it into a sauce, with unsatisfactory results, and eventually ended up pitching it.
Now I've got some more garden huckleberries. I'm not necessarily tied to a pie, but would love any tried and true recipes or advice for using them.
Here's hoping.....
Bonnie
Having not cooked with them before, I did a search on garden huckleberries and tried the following pie:
Garden Huckleberry Pie
Simmer four cups of berries, with just enough water to prevent scorching, for 20 minutes. Add 1 1/4 cups sugar and four tablespoons of cornstarch or tapioca. Stir the filling till it thickens . Remove it from the heat to cool. Pour it into a shell and cover it with a top crust.
Put pie in a 425°F oven for 10 minutes. Reduce the heat to 350°F and continue baking for 30 to 40 minutes, or until the top is browned.
The cooked and sweetened fruit is also delicious in pancakes, muffins, and such.
It was a disaster. I cooked the berries for WAY longer adding more water until they got sort of tender. The tapioca NEVER softened (and I used the kind I always use for pies) and I cooked it way longer and it never got thick (I'm sure cause of the tapioca that never dissolved.) And it was still too tart and actually quite bitter.
I ended up trying to blend it into a sauce, with unsatisfactory results, and eventually ended up pitching it.
Now I've got some more garden huckleberries. I'm not necessarily tied to a pie, but would love any tried and true recipes or advice for using them.
Here's hoping.....
Bonnie