Picking Berries

Many of my childhood memories are of berry picking along the roadsides of rural Alberta. Wild strawberries, raspberries, saskatoons and blueberries were the main objects of our berry searches. Picnics were packed, sometimes another family would be invited to join us and we would all pile into our Ford LTD station wagon and head off for our favourite berry patch for the day. Although we would eat as much as we picked, it seemed that we would always go home with enough berries for our dessert for supper as well as some for in the freezer.

Berry picking

Building memories

 This year I invited my daughter-in-law and grandsons to come and pick with me, not along a roadside, but at a local U-pick farm to get some Saskatoon berries for pie, muffins and a delicious sauce for over ice cream. Here's the recipe:

BLUEBERRY OR SASKATOON BERRY SAUCE

Ingredients:
2 cups blueberries or saskatoon berries
1 cup water
2 tablespoons cornstarch
3/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/8 teaspoon almond extract

Microwave: Mix berries & water in a 2 quart microwave-safe dish & cook at 100% (high) 5-7 minutes or until boiling. Stir. Cook at 70% (medium) 3-5 minutes, stirring once. Mix cornstarch & sugar & stir into berries. Cook at 100% for 90 seconds to 2 minutes, stirring at 1 minute. Add lemon juice & almond extract.

Or Stovetop: Bring berries & water to boil over medium heat. Add cornstarch and sugar. Boil gently until thickened. Remove from heat and add lemon juice and almond extract.

Cool. Serve over pancakes, waffles, ice cream or plain yogurt.

--Ann