Blackberries

Another recipe just arrived from David Goforth. David is becoming a "frequent supplier". Thanks David. David provides here a recipe for preparing blackberries.

The blackberries are grown by Steve and Karen French. Here is a recipe from Karen.

One small package of jello (Raspberry or Blackberry fusion)
1 ½ cup sugar
3 Tablespoon corn starch
2 cups warm water.

Mix dry ingredients together in a sauce pan and add the 2 cups warm water. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly, then cook for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and cool. Fold in 1 quart rinsed and drained fresh blackberries. Place in a pre baked shell. Top with whipped cream or cool whip.

Muscadine Pudding & Pie

Baking with Muscadines

These heritage recipes come to us courtesy of David Goforth. David says:

"It is possible to cook pies or puddings with muscadine grapes. Grape Hull pudding is a more common traditional recipe.
Growing up, Mom would allow each child to request the dessert of their choice on their birthday. I had a difficult choice between persimmon pudding and grape hull pudding but I remember a few years I chose grape hull pudding. Muscadine Grape Hull Pudding (This was taught by my great grandma Rosa Kelly to my grandmother Stella Kelly Poole, born 1915 in Montgomery County, NC. Stella was the first one to record the recipe in writing. Her recipe was 3 times larger than this. I reduced the amounts because I doubt you have a husband and 9 kids, all of them farming and some working in the sawmill.)"

Muscadine Pudding

2 cups muscadine grape hulls (Use your thumbs to press grapes in a pan to separate pulp and hulls)
1 ½ cup sugar
2 tablespoons butter

Beat these together and then add:

1½ cup milk
¾ cup self-rising flour
2 eggs

Mix and bake at 375 degrees until done. Normally takes about 1 hour in a glass dish. The pudding will be solid and the crust will be brown.

　

Muscadine Pie

Most people familiar with local cuisine will rate the muscadine pie as the second best kind. Damson pie is considered the best. Muscadine pie is not a simple process, so many cooks don't go to the trouble of cooking them each year.

Muscadine pie (Adapted from a traditional southern recipe) Pie Crust

1 quart ripe muscadines
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 tablespoon butter cut in small pieces

Press muscadines in a pan to separate hulls from pulp. Strain so as to get juice, leaving pulp and seed. Cook hulls in juice until tender, adding a little water if needed. Let cool, and then add lemon juice, flour, and sugar. Put fruit mixture in prepared crust. Bake at 375 until done.

It is possible to make a pie filling by thickening the cooked muscadine hulls with corn starch, but you may want to start with a few more grapes if you use that technique. With a corn starch filling, you can separate the seeds from the pulp (one method is to use a blender set very low) and add the seedless pulp to the hulls after they have cooked tender.

Skillet Chicken with Cranberries & Apples

Skillet Chicken with Cranberries & Apples

Amy Foster of Gilcrest Farms (Davidson Market) has contributed her version of an Eating Well recipe to prepare one of their fabulous chickens for a sumptuous dinner repast.

Celebrate the flavors of Fall with chicken cooked in a fast apple-cranberry sauce. If you prefer a less tart flavor, try dried cranberries instead of fresh. Serve with quick-cooking wild rice and roasted Brussels sprouts.

1 LB Gilcrest chicken tenders, trimmed and cut in half on the diagonal

¾ TSP dried thyme, divided

2/4 TSP salt, divided

¼ TSP freshly ground pepper

2 TBL canola oil, divided

2 crisp red apples—Braeburn, Fuji, or Gala, thinly sliced

1 large red onion, quartered and sliced

¾ cup apple cider, or apple juice, divided

1 cup cranberries, fresh or frozen (thawed)

1 TBL all purpose flour

Prepare:

1.       Sprinkle both sides of chicken tenders with ¼ TSP each thyme, salt and pepper. Heat 1 TBL oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium, and add chicken. Cook, stirring until lightly browned on all sides, 3-4 minutes total. Transfer to clean plate.

2.       Add the remaining 1 TBL oil to the pan. Add apples, onion, 2 TBL cider (or juice) and remaining ½ TSP each thyme and salt. Stir to combine. Cook, stirring often, until the apples and onion are softened, 3 to 4 minutes. Add cranberries and sprinkle flour over everything in the pan; cook, stirring for 1 minute. Return the chicken to the pan and pour in the remaining cider. Cover and cook, stirring once or twice, until the sauce has thickened and the chicken is cooked through, about 3 minutes more.

Serves 4.