Three recipes to incorporate blackberries into your cooking

Do you desire both a sweet and acidic flavour at the same time? Put a blackberry in your mouth and let this little fleshy fruit paint your mouth with flavour. Where to find it? Perhaps in an old market, or if the city is your home then in the modern supermarket, or there are those of us who are lucky enough to find it in wild form. In Africa and Europe, blackberries are well known. However in the new world, as an introduced species, they are fighting against the spread of these bushes.

When it comes to the table, no one dares to speak badly of it; You might also know it as blackberry or Rubus if Latin is your mother tongue. Give it a try in your cooking today and make it the star of any of your dishes.

This is an important fruit, not only for its commercial importance in some economies, or the wide variety of preparations made from it (jams, soft drinks and juices), but also because of some of its nutritional properties. Blackberries are an excellent source of vitamin K, which helps blood to clot and maintenance of your bones, vitamin C, dietary fibre and Manganese. It is also a good source of vitamin E, which has antioxidant properties, and some other micronutrients such as Folio, magnesium, Potassium and Copper.

Here are three dishes containing blackberries that we hope you will use again and again in your kitchen:

Blackberry and avocado salad

Ingredients:

• 4 small cups of spinach
• ½ cup of pecans
• 1 ½ cup of blackberries
• 1 Avocado
• ½ cup of cherry tomatoes

For the vinaigrette:

• ½ cup of blackberries
• 1 tbsp. of Mint      
• ¼ cup of Olive oil    
• 2 tbsp. of balsamic vinegar
• Salt & Pepper (Sufficient amount)

Preparation
1. Chop spinach and place in a deep bowl.
2. Coarsely chop the nuts making a fine texture.
3. Slice avocado and halve the cherry tomatoes.
4. Mix all ingredients with the spinach, finally adding the blackberries.
5. Dress with the vinaigrette by mixing gently to avoid squashing the blackberries.

For the vinaigrette

1. With a fork or mortar, crush blackberries gently.

2. Mix the finely chopped mint with olive oil and balsamic vinegar.

3. Add this mixture to the blackberries, mix and season with salt and pepper to taste.

Baked chicken stuffed with blackberries

Ingredients

• 4 Chicken breasts

• 2 cups of blackberry

• ½ cup of Goat's Cheese

• 3 tbsp. of mint

• 1 tsp. of Lemon zest

• Salt & Pepper (Sufficient amount)

• 1 tsp. Rosemary

Preparation

1. Cut the breasts with butterfly cutlets so there is space for the filling.

2. Combine the goat's cheese with two tablespoons of mint, lemon zest, salt, pepper and a cup of blackberries. Form a paste with pieces of blackberry.

3. Season the chicken breasts with the remaining mint, finely chopped rosemary, and salt and pepper to taste.

4. Place the stuffing in the chicken, fold or roll.

5. Seal with a toothpick or twine thread. Sear the chicken in a hot pan with a little oil.

6. Coat the breasts with the rest of the previously blended blackberries.

7. Bake at 190°C for 20 minutes until cooked.

Blackberry popsicles

Ingredients:

• 2 cups of blackberries

• ¼ cup of Lemon juice

• 3 cups of Natural yogurt

• 1 cup of Sugar

Preparation:

1. Reserve a portion of blackberries to give texture to the popsicles.

2. Liquefy the rest of the blackberries with plain yogurt (or if you want to have a creamier consistency you can use Greek yogurt), lemon juice and sugar until the mixture thickens.

3. Place in popsicle moulds, half-filling them with blackberries and the rest with the creamy mixture you prepared previously.

4. Insert wooden sticks into molds, making sure that they are straight.

5. Place in the freezer for about 3 hours or until the popsicles are completely frozen.

6. To remove from the mould, submerge in a little warm water for a few seconds.

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