Sunday, June 28, 2009

All the bloodsuckers love me

I've got two days to read one book so I can keep on track for the 50-books-in-2009 thing. I think I can do it! I've stacked nine books on my bedside table to inspire me, although I expect one of the cats will knock the pile over in the middle of the night. I finished The Mislaid Magician today, by Patricia C. Wrede and Caroline Stevermer, and enjoyed it very much; in fact, I think it's better than the second book in that series.

I picked about a quart of blackberries and raspberries this morning. Yes, raspberries! I didn't even know they grew wild around here! I found a big thicket of them Friday when I went hiking a new trail at Clear Creek. I love raspberries! Finding the thicket was worth all the bajillions of chigger bites I now have all over my legs. I wore Deep Woods Off today; ticks and mosquitoes I deal with as part of summer, but chigger bites are little itch machines, and it literally takes weeks for them to stop itching. Also, I react very strongly to bug bites of any kind, so I don't so much have bites on my legs as big red welts. That itch. A lot.

Incidentally, here's what I do with the blackberries (and raspberries!) I pick in the summer. After many abortive attempts at cobblers, I no longer try. Instead, I put all the berries in a big pot and set the pot on to simmer very low; don't add anything, stir occasionally. After twenty minutes or so (more or less depending on how runny you want them and how many berries you started with), take the stewed berries off the heat. Serve hot over chocolate ice cream! My sister-in-law taught me that recipe and it's perfect.

11 comments:

Aaron Polson said...

...stumbles out of the man cave for a bowl of ice cream...yum!

Cate Gardner said...

Very hungry now, need ice cream smothered with hot fruit.

Alan W. Davidson said...

Hmm...now I feel like icecream and berries for breakfast. Later in the summer, we pick blueberries (for pancakes) and partrigeberries (for jam).

K.C. Shaw said...

Aaron--ice cream and raspberries is the best ever!

Cate--it's practically a health food.

Alan--Mmm, blueberry pancakes. I'm not familiar with partridgeberries, but I like jam. :)

Jamie Eyberg said...

I noticed the raspberries were getting ripe around my place too. I should take the kids out to pick them. Your recipe sounds good.

Unknown said...

that does sound good. i think i will let kc come to nc to make me some :^)

*reads jamie's comment. what does everyone have wild raspberries but me? stupid grocery stores.

K.C. Shaw said...

Jamie--the best thing about the recipe is how easy it is. Well, no, the best thing is how good it tastes. But it's easy too. :)

HG--I never knew we had raspberries around here until Friday. Maybe you have some too!

Paula RC said...

Sound like a great thing to do. I'm into making homemade bread.

K.C. Shaw said...

Mmm, I love homemade bread! My mom makes excellent bread, but she doesn't do so very often. Oh man, just thinking about hot homemade bread slathered with butter is making me droooool.

Jamie Eyberg said...

Now I am thinking of making raspberry jam.

K.C. Shaw said...

If we take all the food mentioned in these comments, we could have one helluva feast. Starting with raspberry jam on homemade bread!