Top 10 Uses for Raspberries

Smoothies Count as Dinner at Our House

With the raspberry harvest winding down, here are my top 10 uses for all those delicious berries.

10.  Make raspberry jam with freezer jam pectin.  We go through homemade jam way too fast to worry about  all that cooking and canning.  Just mash the berries, mix in the sugar and pectin, let set, then enjoy!
 9.  Mash them up and shake them into your favorite cocktail.
 8.  Simmer them with a little sugar and water for a delicious sauce that can be used on sundaes or pancakes.
 7.  Pie!  I did a black raspberry/rhubarb blend this year - delicious.  I've found that Julia Child's pie crust recipe is my favorite in both taste and workability thus far.
 6.  Mix them into the 32 ounce container of yogurt to enjoy raspberry yogurt at less cost per ounce.
 5.  Leave the dried fruit out of that homemade granola, and throw fresh raspberries on top instead. (If you don't already make granola at home, stay tuned...I'll be sure to do a how-to in another post.)
 4. Spread them on a cookie sheet to freeze them.  Once frozen, remove from cookie sheet and place in a freezer bag.  Don't forget to label and date those bags!
 3.  Put them on top of vanilla ice cream.
 2.  Pick and eat on a sunny day.  Not all produce needs to make it into the house before being eaten.
 1.  Smoothies!  These are a staple at our house year-round.  Throw in some yogurt and spinach, and you're off the hook for cooking dinner on a hot evening. (I'll try to do a post with some smoothie pointers sometime, too.)