Back to school time meant purple fingers and scratched legs because it was blackberry-picking season. Going back to school was the perfect time for picking berries on the way home from the bus stop in the afternoons, and Mama would be making blackberry jelly when we got home; a must have for her jelly rolls!

This time of year the country became filled with free berries and leaving the house without a bag or bucket of some kind was unheard of. For over a month, if you wanted some fruit just head in the direction of a fencerow, or almost anywhere in the countryside, and pick what you need. Don’t pick from the very bottom of the fencerow, that’s where the dogs pee. And, don’t climb up high and pick from the very top either, leave those blackberries for the birds; they need to eat too, and you’ll get scratched all over with thorns from those blackberry bushes. Pick all you want from the middle of the bushes. Pick the firm, plump-looking berries; the squashed ones will just go bad quicker and spoil the rest of your batch. The best way to know if they’ll be sweet is if they are easy to pick — if you have to tug at all, they’ll be sour.

Eat or freeze your berries within 24 hours. Don’t even wash the berries until you are ready to eat or freeze them, otherwise they’ll get squishy. Don't worry if you've picked more than you can eat, blackberries are easily frozen and can be baked straight from the freezer with no need to defrost. Freeze on a tray in a single layer so they don't all squish together, or mash them first then freeze the liquid in a plastic bag.

I love blackberries. They are one of those things that take me back to my childhood. During the summer months, we would walk to Sunday School and do what all children do, stop along the way and pick blackberries from the fencerow. Naturally they would go straight into our mouth they were oh so sweet and good (no way to wash them). Mama never tried to stop us; she knew it would be almost impossible anyway. She always carried a sack with Irish potatoes peeled and cut in half. Just before we reached our church, she made certain we each ate (or at least chewed and spit out) one potato to get the berry stain out of our mouth and off our teeth. This was the best substitute to brushing our teeth; it definitely removed the berry stain. Oh such fond memories.

Blackberry Cobbler

Ingredients

3 cups fresh or frozen blackberries

1 cup sugar

¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon

3 tablespoons cornstarch

1 cup cold water

1 tablespoon butter

Biscuit Topping

Ingredients

1 ½ cups all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon sugar

1 ½ teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

½ cup cold butter, cubed

½ cup 2% milk

vanilla ice cream

Preparation

In a large saucepan, combine blackberries, sugar and cinnamon. Combine cornstarch and water until smooth; stir into fruit mixture. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Pour into a greased 8-inch square, baking dish. Dot the top with butter.

For biscuit topping: In a small bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in milk just until moistened. Drop by tablespoonfuls onto hot berry mixture.

Bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees for 30 to 35 minutes or until filling is bubbly and topping is golden brown. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream.

Mama would make dumplings but mine have never been as good as hers were. I learned to like the biscuit topping and to me, it’s easier to make.

From the scriptures

Spiritual food is essential for all of us, as well as physical food. We enjoy two or three meals every day. We should nourish our mind and feed our spirit daily just as we feed our body. Bible verses are fabulous spiritual food. We should look forward to reading our Bible daily; just one or two verses of scripture each day would help feed our spirit.

Our Bible verse for this week is: John 15:16: – “Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain.”