When I was about ten years old,
the task of picking black raspberries fell to me...
Down the west side of our property sloped a steep ravine
that was overgrown and wooded...
Wild black raspberries dotted the jungle-like
terrain and my mother wanted me
terrain and my mother wanted me
to harvest the bounty...
To make the job of berry picking easier,
Dad pushed the lawn mower
along the nearly forty-five degree pitched hill
to create a path for me...
The incline became as slick
as a sideways ice rink,
with the goo from the newly mown weeds...
The incline became as slick
as a sideways ice rink,
with the goo from the newly mown weeds...
Thinking his ancient football cleats might aid in my traction
on the slippery hill,
Dad stuffed a wad of socks in the toes...
Humiliated, I looked like Bozo the Clown,
as I doggedly flopped on the path...
Mosquitos buzzed in swarms,
Goliath-sized Daddy Long Legs guarded every berry
it seemed, and the humidity clung to me
like a warm, soaked beach towel...
It took at least thirty minutes to pick
from all of the black raspberry bushes
and more than once that summer, I tripped,
fell and upended the entire contents
of the bucket, down the ravine...
of the bucket, down the ravine...
Good times...
If my parents chirped
"Black raspberries are red when they are green!",
one more time, I might have lost it...
My entrepreneurial spirit came alive that summer
when I was allowed to sell pints of those berries
to the local grocer, Fritz's...
I think I got two dollars a pint back then,
and the grocer usually purchased 5 or 6 pints from me...
A good price for a little kid...
Along the north perimeter of my parent's current property,
there are about twenty yards of red raspberry bushes...
They came with the house
and after twenty three years, the bushes have grown
into a prolific mass of berries...
Every year, for about ten days,
we pick the raspberries frantically,
among the mosquitos, spiders and thorns,
to gather as many fruits as our buckets will hold...
It is a fleeting time,
hot, steamy summer days when the red, juicy berries
miraculously transform from hard and green
to plump, soft and brilliant ruby...
Memories of picking the black raspberries
so many years ago
come flooding back each year...
Once picked, the challenge is to use the berries
in ways to honor their short existence...
Berries soaked in cream and sugar,
raspberry preserves,
raspberry tarts
and raspberry ice cream...
I found this recipe today, courtesy of Grandbaby Cakes...
Usually I shy away from egg based ice cream recipes,
simply because I overcooked the custard once
and bits of scrambled egg peppered the ice cream...
This custard, however, I watched like a hawk...
Once the mixture even hinted of a simmer,
I pulled it from the heat
and added the vanilla, cornstarch and rum...
Yes! Two tablespoons of rum!
I swear you cannot taste the alcohol
in this dreamy concoction,
but the flavor does have that extra "oomph"...
The color is a pretty, delicate pink
and the fresh raspberry flavor is decadent...
Ice cream is a great way to use up a lot of fruit...
There is plenty of raspberry puree left over to freeze
and to use for making sauces, jellies
or more ice cream!
I surely don't miss the days of gripping the slimy hill,
snatching black raspberries
from the clutches of spiders and bugs...
Gathering the red raspberries
now is a joy in comparison
and making delicious desserts
from them is my just reward...
Red Raspberry Ice Cream
simply because I overcooked the custard once
and bits of scrambled egg peppered the ice cream...
This custard, however, I watched like a hawk...
Once the mixture even hinted of a simmer,
I pulled it from the heat
and added the vanilla, cornstarch and rum...
Yes! Two tablespoons of rum!
I swear you cannot taste the alcohol
in this dreamy concoction,
but the flavor does have that extra "oomph"...
The color is a pretty, delicate pink
and the fresh raspberry flavor is decadent...
Ice cream is a great way to use up a lot of fruit...
There is plenty of raspberry puree left over to freeze
and to use for making sauces, jellies
or more ice cream!
I surely don't miss the days of gripping the slimy hill,
snatching black raspberries
from the clutches of spiders and bugs...
Gathering the red raspberries
now is a joy in comparison
and making delicious desserts
from them is my just reward...
Red Raspberry Ice Cream
Ingredients
1 cup milk
2 cups heavy cream
1- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
2 tablespoons corn syrup
4 egg yolks
2 teaspoons corn starch
1 cup strained raspberry puree from fresh raspberries (Puree in your food processor and pour through a strainer to get rid of seeds)
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoon rum
Directions
Whisk together milk, heavy cream, granulated sugar, corn syrup and eggs in a medium sized pan over low heat. Heat until the mixture is warm and continue to whisk so you don't end up with scrambled eggs in your custard. Remove from the heat once it slowly begins to almost boil and add in corn starch continuing to whisk until it thickens. Lastly whisk in raspberry puree, vanilla extract and rum and place in the refrigerator until the mixture is cold or place over an ice bath to speed up the process.
Add the ice cream mixture to your ice cream maker and churn according to your manufacturer's instructions. Add finished ice cream to a freezer safe container and freeze for 4-5 hours.
1 cup milk
2 cups heavy cream
1- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
2 tablespoons corn syrup
4 egg yolks
2 teaspoons corn starch
1 cup strained raspberry puree from fresh raspberries (Puree in your food processor and pour through a strainer to get rid of seeds)
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoon rum
Directions
Whisk together milk, heavy cream, granulated sugar, corn syrup and eggs in a medium sized pan over low heat. Heat until the mixture is warm and continue to whisk so you don't end up with scrambled eggs in your custard. Remove from the heat once it slowly begins to almost boil and add in corn starch continuing to whisk until it thickens. Lastly whisk in raspberry puree, vanilla extract and rum and place in the refrigerator until the mixture is cold or place over an ice bath to speed up the process.
Add the ice cream mixture to your ice cream maker and churn according to your manufacturer's instructions. Add finished ice cream to a freezer safe container and freeze for 4-5 hours.
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