We live on a 20 acre homestead and out on the property is a surplus of wild blackberry bushes. We only have about 2 weeks at the beginning of the summer to pick blackberries because once they become ripe, it is a race to harvest as many as we can before all the birds, deer, and bears get them. We have to go out each day to pick the ripe ones and of course, they all don't ripen all at once.
We stay at it though and always end up with several gallons of blackberries. We eat some, freeze some, dehydrate some and make blackberry muffins with them. One other way that I like to use blackberries is to make some delicious blackberry iced tea. It is one of the things I look forward to in the summer every year.
Making this blackberry iced tea is very easy to do. All you need is:
- 3 c. fresh blackberries
- 1-1 1/2 c. sugar
- 1 gallon iced tea
Use a potato masher and mash up the blackberries into a large bowl. Once they are all mashed up, stir in the sugar. I like to use raw, pure and organic cane sugar but regular white sugar is okay to use also. Stir well. Set aside for about 30 minutes.
As you let the blackberries and sugar rest, make up your iced tea. I love using sun tea but regular iced tea works too. Take your gallon of tea and pour over the blackberry/sugar mixture. Let the tea set for one hour on the counter top. After the hour has elapsed, strain the tea through a fine mesh strainer and discard the solids. (I don't throw out the "solids", I save them and use them in smoothies). Stir the tea well and refrigerate until it is nice and cold and then serve and enjoy. So tasty!
Other refreshing beverages I like to make in the summer time include: Homemade Cherry Limeade, Easy Homemade Grape Juice, and Lemonade Freeze!
If you give this recipe a try, please take a picture of it and tag me on Instagram @countrifiedhicks and use the hashtag #countrifiedhicks so I don't miss seeing your post!
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