For the Love of Anything with an 'Errie' in it... {Recipe: Vanilla Scented Mixed Berries}

"I love berries. Strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, anything with an 'errie' in it! -Jordin Sparks

Couldn't agree with Ms. Sparks more! We are a family of berry lovers. I believe it comes from our Oregon roots. My mother was from Oregon and we traveled there every summer.  Before we would leave, my grandmother would load us up with berries: strawberries, marionberries, and raspberries. We would bring home berry jam, frozen berries, and fresh berries. There were enough something "errie" to last until our next visit.

Before kids, my husband and I travelled to Oregon to visit the Shakespeare Festival in Ashland, OR. One day when we were exploring the area, we passed a fruit stand that had a sign that said they had "fresh local strawberries." I insisted we stop and get some. My husband did not believe that these strawberries could be any different that any other strawberries, but stopped to appease me. Then he tried one. He will now tell you that there is no better strawberry than a local grown Oregon strawberry. Unfortunately, the season for these strawberries is very short and we have yet to be there at the right time for them again.

What makes these strawberries so good is that they have not been hybridized. Most strawberries in the grocery stores are hybrids so they have a longer shelf life, they are bigger and they look nicer. The problem is the taste has been sacrificed for these benefits.

Hopefully someday my kids will be able to try Oregon strawberries, until then we will have to enhance the ones we can get. My favorite way to add flavor to berries is to add a vanilla scented syrup to them.

Here is the recipe:

Vanilla Scented Mixed Berries

This recipe adapted from: http://www.finecooking.com/recipes/mixed_berries_vanilla_syrup.aspx

• 1/2 vanilla bean
• 1/4 cup organic evaporated cane juice or granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup water
• 1 pint (2 cups) fresh organic raspberries
• 1 pint (2 cups) fresh organic blueberries
• 1 pint (2 cups) fresh organic blackberries
• 1/2 pint (1 cup) fresh organic strawberries

Split the vanilla bean in half lengthwise with a sharp paring knife and scrape out the seeds
with the back of the knife. Put the seeds and pod in a small saucepan, along with the
evaporated cane juice or sugar and water. Bring to a simmer over medium heat,
stirring occasionally until the sugar dissolves. Reduce the heat to low and cook for 7 minutes
to let the vanilla infuse. Strain through a fine sieve to remove the vanilla pod and
any fibrous pieces of vanilla pod or clumps of seeds. Let cool and refrigerate until
completely chilled.

Rinse the raspberries, blueberries, and blackberries and spread them in a single layer on
a towel to dry. Hull the strawberries and cut them into halves or quarters, depending on the
 size of the berries. 

Just before serving, combine all the berries in a large serving bowl and pour the syrup over
the berries. Toss gently.

These berries are delicious on pancakes, waffles, yogurt, or vanilla ice cream.
They are also great on their own!

Enjoy!