Whiteley Creek Homestead

blueberry picking

It's how I was raised. During the spring, summer, and autumn seasons, we planted, tended, gathered, and put away food that would carry us through the cold winter months. I do believe I was meant to have lived in the 1800s... a Little House on the Prairie/Laura Ingalls Wilder existence, as I thrive on living off the land and using what I have. Making do and finding joy and contentment in it. So, when my friend Connie told me the (chemical-free) blueberries were ripe at Pine Winder Blueberries, I scrapped my plans for the next morning and trucked on over.  

The sweet-spirited young mother, who was assigned to pick berries on the other side of my row, was as colorful as the blueberries hanging thick on the branches.

The peaceful solitude of the patch was interrupted occasionally by the fleeting buzz of a fly, a gentle breeze flapping the streamers tied to a wide-eyed balloon scarecrow, and an intermittent loud-speaker recording of a not-so-foreboding, at least to human ears, bullyish bird call meant to deter meeker birds from pecking more than their share of succulent berries. 

In three hours, I had picked two five-quart buckets @ $19.50/bucket. Forgoing washing and scattered on a rimmed baking sheet, to prevent a solid clump post-freezing, the berries roll freely as marbles. It'll be a breeze to measure the amount needed for blueberry muffins, pancakes, and scones on a cold January morning. Now, let's be real here. I'd proudly lay claim to the freezer bag labels, however they are clip art I happily discovered online then inserted text boxes to add the picking date and berry patch name. Not necessary, but how fun it life makes!

Picking details: Pine Winder Blueberries is located three miles west of Pine River (Minnesota) on County Road 2, then watch for their sign directing you to turn right (north) and travel a short bit down a country gravel road to their driveway on the left. This year, the patch was open for picking July 20-30, 2017, which isn't a long window of time. That's how blueberries are. You can request to be on their email list so that you get notification of picking dates in 2018, or follow their Facebook page for updates at the beginning of July. 

banana fudgsicles

It began with a chocolate pie recipe that became fudgsicles. In my world, that's often how it works. A slice of "Chocolate Banana Freezer Pie" pictured on the cover of my Clean Eating Magazine has been tempting me since its June 2011 publication. However, as I was reorganizing my walk-in pantry, some retro-style popsicle molds, that I had received as a gift from my daughter Jessie several years ago, caused two ideas to collide. I thought, "The pie filling recipe in my Clean Eating Magazine would make perfect fudgsicles." And it did. And they were. Perfect fudgsicles.

The fudgsicle's sweetness comes solely from bananas. No additional sweetener. The pie filling's pourable consistency makes filling the molds a breeze, and the frozen product readily releases from the molds with a stream or spray of hot water aimed at the desired number of popsicles you choose to consume. Place the remainder back into the freezer for another day.

A happy collision of pie filling and popsicle molds.