Seasonal blackberries

Now is the time to be eating delicious ripened blackberries. As well as being tasty to eat blackberries are highly nutritious as they are packed with antioxidants including vitamin C and ellagic acid which may provide protection against cancer and chronic disease. Their many tiny seeds also make a good source of fibre.

Although wild blackberry bushes produce smaller berries than the cultivated varieties the wild berries are usually more flavourful so don’t buy blackberries in the shops, search for brambles near you armed with a container and an umbrella for hooking the branches! August and September are the prime months for picking blackberries. According to folklore legend on the 10th October the Devil pees on the blackberries and they become unfit to eat. They are undoubtedly past their best by mid-October! (Take note!!!)

Blackberries freeze well so they can be stored to use with apple puddings throughout the winter. Freeze them by spreading unwashed on a single layer on a tray and then transfer to freezer bags or containers once frozen.