BC Blueberries are truly “Nature’s Candy”

The Canadian Food Experience Project began last month as a way for bloggers around the country to connect through our mutual love of food and storytelling, and have a platform for a uniquely Canadian voice. On the 7th of each month, participants will share their collective stories through personal regional food experiences, with the hope to bring “global clarity to our Canadian culinary identity.”

The project was created by Valerie Lugonja of A Canadian Foodie, and we’re thrilled to be a part of it. As much as we cook and bake at home, we often don’t post much of it on here anymore — so we’re hoping the CFEP will help us boost our “at-home” content which we’d love to share with you guys, in addition to being a great way to learn about important foods in our Canadian culture.

Unfortunately we missed the June submission, so this marks our first entry into the CFEP, and this month asked us to explore a Canadian Regional food. After doing some research online, we were both surprised to find out that British Columbia is actually considered the number one high-bush region in the world that grows blueberries, with Canada the third top producing country overall.

We’ve always loved BC Blueberries, but this was news to us — and had us thinking we should pay a little homage to this awesome little superfruit which is oh-so bountiful in our gorgeous Province.

British Columbia has over 800 blueberry farms, with well over 27,000 acres of fertile farmland dedicated to producing nearly 121 million pounds of blueberries annually, and resulting in $1 billion in sales in the past five years. And they’re not just good for our economy, they’re good for your health, too. Blueberries are jam-packed with antioxidants, as well as help slow the aging process (yay!) and reduce cell damage that can lead to diseases like cancer, cardiovascular disease and loss of brain function. So eat your blueberries, they’ll keep you sharp!

This season we began seeing them right around the first week of July, so now is actually the perfect time to head to your local Farmer’s Market or U-Pick and stock up. Or better yet, head to a local family farm and see where the berries grow. The BC Blueberry Council has a great listing of local farms that have fresh blueberries for sale, with location and contact information.

Now what to do with all these blueberries, you ask? Enjoy them fresh on their own, in a pie, or on a salad… the options are really limitless. The BC Blueberry Foundation has a great section on their website full of yummy recipe ideas, with everything from a delicious Blueberry Shrimp Salad With Lemon Vinaigrette, to an Asian-Style Blueberry Barbecue Sauce perfect for the grill.

Available now until October, BC Blueberries are a versatile fruit we never tire of, particularly in desserts. Here’s a quick round-up of some of our favorite must-try dishes we’ve baked recently.

Classic Blueberry Pie

Who doesn’t love a classic? With a flaky lattice top and packed-full of BC Blueberries, this didn’t last long before it was completely devoured. We like to marinate our berries in sugar and bourbon vanilla until they get all nice and plump before baking.

Blueberry Oat Pie

A delicious twist on an original. The use of rolled oats in the pie crust adds a distinct breakfast-like quality to this dessert, so much so that you might be reaching for a slice before lunch!

Blueberry Oat Pie Vanilla Ice Cream

A serious match made in heaven for that leftover pie you’ve got on hand.

For our standard vanilla ice cream, we use

• 3 cups half-and-half cream
• 1.5 cups of whipping cream
• 3/4 cup of granulated sugar
• 1 tsp. of pure vanilla extract

You may want to hold back on 1/4 cup of sugar if using this recipe with the pie, as it can be overly sweet. Simply combine together your homemade vanilla ice cream and roughly chopped blueberry pie, and freeze. The rich combination of blueberries, pie crust and vanilla ice cream is obviously perfect — but together in this form, purely magical.

It’s sort of a novel idea, but one you’ll likely be wondering why you hadn’t thought of already.

Blueberry Meringue Galettes

This is super easy dessert that will impress, and requires little effort. It’s a great recipe if you find yourself with extra pie dough on hand, or if you don’t want to go to all the trouble. You can find the entire recipe right here.

How do you enjoy blueberries? Let us know in the comment section!

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