http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y299/bluerosemama/Food%20pictures/Kittyinfabricandmyfirstfoodcloseups.jpg

And what do you do with the extras that just won't fit into that last bag???

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y299/bluerosemama/Food%20pictures/Kittyinfabricandmyfirstfoodclose-1.jpg

YUM! All organic and all for $1 a lb u-pick. Can't get any better than that!!!!

Val

Ooh, I'm so jealous!

savannah would kill for that many blueberries. she LOVES frozen blueberries!

oh wow! lucky and very fun!

oh man.. you're going to hook me up with the good u-pick places next summer, right? :)

We picked blueberries Friday, got about a gallon and it was $6. They were so small compared to Oregon/Washington berries.. I'm looking forward to fruit most of all with moving, I think :)

Can't wait sister. :D

Honestly these ones were MUCH smaller than last year. But they were so much sweeter with such a nice flavor that I just didn't stop until I had enough. lol... I keep thinking I should go and get some of the other ones (they reopened on Aug 10th) but I just don't want to now that it is so hot again. I felt like we picked way more than we did because the berries themselves were tiny. lol...

Val

You're lucky; I just paid $2 a pound for organic u-pick. Sigh! We only managed to pick 11 1/2 lb, as my mom is not feeling too great and the heat was too much for her.

I'm freezing ours this morning. :D That is, the ones that aren't getting eaten with whipped cream on top.

how do you freeze your blueberries?

I'm doing that next year with our blueberry bushes.

btw, I think I want to be you. Well, you combined with Meeshi.

That hair on me would be pretty silly looking though. I have tried that color. ;) LOL!

After I pick them, I put them in a sink full of cold water for about an hour. That way all the yucky stuff (and quite a few blueberries, all the green ones too) float to the top and I can just get it all out. This year I used for the first time a deep fryer slauted spatula and it worked GREAT! Then I take the blueberries out by the handful and put them in the bags. When the bag is full I close it most of the way, and pour the remaining water back out. And then I am done. Thats it... easy!

Val

Lauren that sounds heavenly! I am sorry your mom doesn't do the heat... lol... it seems funny coming from someone who lives in Flordia. ;)

That looks great! I can't wait for blueberry season!

In NC that should be right now. ;)

Val

I need to start paying more attention. :p

:lol: :smooch:

Oh, that look so good!!!!!;pop:

My mom has only lived down in FL for a year. ;) She actually can't do cold, either. In the summer in FL she lives in the A/C or the swimming pool. And part of it is she has an autoimmune disease that seems to be just wiping her out energywise. :(

Anyway, I did a little digging on freezing blueberries this morning when I did mine, and a little experimenting. I am anal. ;) So I washed mine in a huge colander by running cold water through it for a few minutes. Then I tried spreading them out on a cookie sheet, drying them by patting with cloths, then freezing them in one layer, vs. spreading them out, drying them, then putting them right in the freezer bags.

It seemed that as long as I didn't overload the freezer bags (maybe 2 layers of blueberries in each when laid flat), they didn't stick together, so I just did it that way rather than spreading out each batch and freezing them. I also just moved them from my huge colander to a smaller one a little at a time to pat them dry. I didn't want huge ice crystals in my bags when I go to open them up this winter. But they seem fine and are still a little wet. I picked out the stems and green ones as I did this, too (there weren't many - this upick has incredibly easy picking.)

Val I like your idea of soaking them in the sink like that. Might have to try that next time!