TASTY ALASKAN BLUEBERRIES THAT MAKE A GREAT PIE

I live in Alaska and every year in August we go and pick the bounty full berries. One berry is the Blueberry, the other berries that are popular: High Bush Cranberries, Low Bush Cranberries, Rose HIps, the Red Current berries, the Wild Strawberries, Salmonberries, Huckleberries, Gooseberries, Elderberries all grow in Alaska! Every year in the middle of August Alaskans pick berries. The berries are made into pies, jams, jelly, juice, they are put into many recipes. I have made a lot of Jam with the Huckleberries and low bush Cranberries. When I pick the cranberries I use a berry picker. I can harvest a lot of berries with the tool. Picking Blueberries, Rose Hips, and Wild Strawberries I use my hand to pick them. Rose Hips have a lot of vitamin C. when harvesting Rose Hips each berry has to be opened and the seeds taken out of them. I put them in a sunny space to dry and they are used in many cooking recipes.

Cranberries are harvested in the fall after they flower. Low Bush cranberries are plentiful in Alaska. I use a berry picker to pick these great berries. There are many different ways these berries are used in recipes. I always make cranberry sauce, I boil the berries in water with sugar I put the mixture in jars and can them. When Thanksgiving comes around I have cranberry sauce to serve with dinner. The cranberry sauce has a lot of vitamin C and is better than buying it in the grocery store. My family rather eat the fresh cranberries that I picked. The Red Current berries are great to make jelly, jams, and juice. Making jelly and jam is not hard to do and having jelly or jam from the berries you pick yourself is much better for you than buying jams or jelly in the store.

Another berry that grows in Alaska is the Rasberry. The Rasberry grows all over Alaska and it is also picked in the fall. The berry itself is red, and it is much fresher than buying the berries in the store. I like to put them in cereal, make a pie or jam. Another berry is the Strawberry, they grow fast and can take up a whole garden. If you plan to grow them do so away from your garden. These berries are great, they can also be picked late August and are great tasting. I make a pie out of Rhubarb and Strawberries. The pie is delicious and all my family loves the pie! Rhubarb is not a berry but it grows fast and is great to eat. There are many recipes that I make out of Rhubarb. I also make jam and it is delicious, you can put in on toast.

Here is a recipe for rhubarb and strawberry pie:

1 2/3 cup white sugar

1/3 cup all-purpose flour

2 cups fresh strawberries chopped

2 cups fresh rhubarb cut into 1/2 inch pieces

1 recipe pastry for top and bottom 9-inch pie

2 tablespoons of butter or margarine

1 egg yolk

heat oven to 425% Prepare pastry or buy in the store. Mix sugar and flour add rhubarb pour the mixture into a pastry-lined pie plate, then add strawberries-sugar mixture into the pie shell. Dot with butter or margarine. Cover with the top with remaining pie dough. Make slits in the top pie crust, if desired sprinkle with sugar, with tin foil, cover the edges of the pie crust.

In Alaska Rhubarb grows fast when picked, the red stalks are eaten and not the leaves. The leaves could go into a compost pile. I like to eat rhubarb by itself dipped in sugar. Rhubarb is very sour but with sugar and made into a jam it is great. A good strawberry patch will serve you with plenty of strawberries. Picking your own strawberries is much better for you because they are fresh. Making jams and jelly is easy to do and it is more healthy for you than store-bought.

Alaska Fire Weed grows all over Alaska and blooms in the middle of August. The flowers with Four Leaf Clover and sugar make great Honey! My mother-in-law made it all the time and it tastes just like honey made from the bees! I put it into tea and the tea is the greatest I ever tasted! It is also very good for you too. The bad thing about Alaskan Fire Weed, it will multiply fast and take over your lawn. This plant has pretty flower's but do not underestimate this plant! The plant plentiful in the state of Alaska and the flowers on the plant can be used in many recipes! When the flowers are thru blooming winter is close by. Fireweed is a weed and it is a really pretty flower when in bloom.

Here are the ingredients to make Fireweed honey:

50 red clover blossoms, 10 white clover blossoms, 18 to 25 fireweed blossoms, 3/4 alum, 5lbs sugar, 3cups of boiling water. Wash flower blossoms, and clovers, Put all ingredients in a pan except water than pour boiling water on them. Let stand for 10-mins. Bring to boil and boil for another 10-mins. Pour into clean jars, seal with a top, and put them in a pan of water for a hot water bath.

About Huckleberries and Blueberries. Blueberries and Huckleberries are totally different berries. I have picked many huckleberries in my days. Huckleberries are sweet and Blueberries are not. I have made jelly with the huckleberries. There are many ways you can enjoy eating them! You can make a pie, muffins, and juice with them. Blueberries are abundant in Alaska they are ready to pick in the middle of August. I love to bake a blueberry pie the recipe I use is:

4cups of fresh blueberries

3/4 cup of sugar

1/4 tsp of salt

1/2 tsp of ground cinnamon

1 tbs of butter

and one recipe for a 9inch pie

preheat the oven to 175 %temp

mix the sugar, salt, ground cinnamon and, put the mixture over the blueberries.

line the pie pan with the dough, add the blueberries and, roll out the dough, and cut the dough into strips. Arrange the cut dough as directed.

Put the pie in the oven for 50mins or until the dough is brown.

let cool before cutting the pie

There is nothing like eating a fresh blueberry pie! If you can not pick the blueberries you can buy them in the store.