Last Call for Local Blueberries

( August 15, 2002 ) The local blueberries are sweet, firm, fresh on Friday’s at the New Rochelle Farmers’ Market, but they won’t be there much longer. Farmer David Wengerd who brings his produce from Pennsylvania warns, “He’ll only have blueberries for the next week or two.”

If there’s no Farmers’ Market, blueberry lovers can find the extra-large, Driscoll brand berries at Larchmont’s Simply the Best. They’ve been excellent, but too pricey for pies and cobblers.

Regardless of price or venue, it pays to pick your berries carefully. Fresh berries look like they’ve been dusted with white powder – know as “blush” and are plump and unwrinkled. The greenish berry will be hard and sour; the dark blue berry may be past its prime.

There’s just no substitute for fresh when the berries are going into fruit salad or over ice cream. However, the frugal baker uses frozen for the base of a torte or kuchen and sprinkles a pint of fresh over the top. (See the Cook's Corner for a fabulous kuchen recipe.)

With the frozen, you can find large, firm fruit in opaque plastic bags at area super markets, if you’re careful. At the market, don’t be a shy – massage the bags and feel for individual berries. When the bags are improperly frozen, the thawed berries get crushed from the weight of their brethren above. A thawed and refrozen bag will feel like it’s harboring turkey stuffing. When you paw a properly maintained bag, the berries will roll independently under the plastic. Now it’s your job to get the bags home without squashing their contents.

Of course, the best approach to berry picking is straight from the bush. But that's another story.

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