Things I Eat From My Yard - Episode 1: Wild Blueberries

Welcome to Episode 1 of "Things I Eat From My Yard"! 

Today I am going to discuss Wild Blueberries!  I am so lucky to live in a state that has so many fresh and wild berries and herbs out my back door.

DISCLAIMER: If you don't know what something is or you are not sure, DON'T EAT IT!!! I am not an expert and do not claim to be. This segment is just what I have learned and experienced with the wild berries & herbs in my yard in New Hampshire.

I took a nice walk down by our pond last week and saw loads and loads of bushes with what looked like blueberries. I have never eaten a wild berry off of any tree or bush at the fear of it being poisonous!  I was feeling a little adventurous, but decided to do a little more research just to make sure what I was looking at was actually wild blueberries and they were safe to eat. THEY SURE WERE! I was so excited I wanted to pick some right away.

I found this website on Wild Berry Identification very helpful and you are able to download a colored chart that helps you identify Wild Berries and what can and can't be consumed by humans.

The berries in my yard fit the criteria for Wild Blueberries, which were:

• Berries were blue in color (obviously!)
• They had a 5-star pointed crown on the bottom of them (is it wrong that I think of this as the blueberry's butthole?)
• Shrub branches were pink
• Leaves were green
• Berries were small
• And most importantly, they tasted just like blueberries! (Ok so I was a little adventurous and took a risk trying one out)

Photo Courtesy

And here was my gorgeous bounty of FREE blueberries! I picked two cups and whipped up some amazingly delicious blueberry muffins using this recipe from OnceUponAChef .

I will be picking more this weekend to freeze. I like to measure out 2 cups (or whatever your recipe calls for) and freeze them in a freezer bag. To thaw, leave in the fridge overnight. Makes measuring simple and you can have fresh blueberries all winter!

Happy and safe picking!!

~Dragon's Blossom~