Yesterday evening Franks mom pulled her family by the ear to pick raspberries. There are a few things I learned about picking raspberries.
1. never...NEVER forget the bug spray. I must be getting somewhat immune to mosquito bites because I am not itching anywhere today, but it was pure torture to be bug food for 1 hour (that is about how long we lasted).
2. Guys are bigger complainers than girls when it comes to picking berries and swatting mosquitoes. Frank and Philip complained the entire way there and were the first ones moaning of bug bites. Every few moments one would exclaim "Oh man! This is taking forever! Can we leave yet?"
3. Just because there are a lot of bushes and berries, doesn't mean it's a great place for berry picking. Bushes can be 'moldy' and berries can be tiny and EW! full of worms! Between Frank and I, we got a nice bucketful of worms with berries in them :S
Because the berries were so wormy we couldn't just freeze them like one would normally do, so Fia suggested I make 'saft', or juice concentrate from them. I actually happened to find a recipe online and it didn't look too hard so I went ahead and made blue-raspberry juice last night. It came out pretty good, if I do say so myself! And while boiling the berries I could skim the worms as they floated to the top of the batch :P If that makes you squeamish, just don't ask for juice when you come for a visit! ;) There is one thing about living in Finland as a housewife. It is advised that you harvest as many berries as your freezer can hold to take you through the winter. So far there are blueberries (I may need a few more liters though) Cloudberries, eventually I will have raspberries (picked from my own back yard, and hopefully NOT wormy!) and lingonberries which will be picked in the gloomy months of Fall. Lots of vitamins for those winter months! My measly 5 liters (a little over a gallon) of blueberries (which are actually smaller berries that we would call bilderberries) is nothing compared to what others pick in a normal season. I have heard of some having 50-100 liters (12-25 gallons) in their freezer for the winter! We will make things like saft, fruit soup, fruit sauces, pies, fruit salads, and sprinkle the rest on oatmeal... berry delicious! ;)
I am guy and a big woosey when it comes to mozzie bites. I would bathe in insect repellent before attempting something like that. Why most guys moan about being bit by skeeters is that only the female of the species draws blood to nourish her eggs before hatching. Same thing with fleas. It's downright degrading! Personally I don't know much about picking raspberries - but I know how to blow one. ☄
ReplyDeleteKeep on picking those berries! Don't you still have a few more to pick before fall arrives? I can't remember what they are called - but those tart, yellow, round berries that grow wild on bushes near the sea...probably won't be many worms in them!?
ReplyDeleteWish I was there to help you fill your freezer - maybe some day? Until then, just think of your berry picking as your contribution to the family larder AND making memories! Your Grandma Matson would be proud of you...
Mom
Yeah, I forgot to include havtornbar... (forgot the english name) We will be picking those pretty soon probably! they are ripe now :)
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