Favorite summer fruits include blackberries, and, later in the summer, wild grapes. Still another interesting southern fruit is the jelly palm fruit, which ripens in July or August (or even September in some parts of South Carolina).
The best places to find these are in the fields, along the roadside, at shopping centers, at the edge of woodlands, where you don't have to pay a cent.
Fruit and Health
Both blackberries and grapes are believed to have health benefits, including possible cancer-fighting properties. Proanthocyanidins, in grape seeds; resveratrol, in red and purple grapes; and anthocyanins, in blackberries, are compounds that have been studied as possibly beneficial in fighting cancers and heart disease. Palm fruits are rich in two forms of vitamin E (both tocotrienols and tocopherols).
Blackberries
Blackberries grow roadside, in weedy lots, and like moisture (though they can get fungus). They grow throughout the U.S. In Florida, their season begins in early May. In other parts of the south it begins in June. Farther north, they ripen in July.
The berries are so plentiful when they ripen that it's never occurred to me to buy these in a store, but, where birds abound, people hoping to pick these need to rise early to beat the birds to the juicy ripe fruit. The berries should be quite black, without a drop of red, and feel juicy, but should not look withered or rotten. Make sure to wear long sleeves to avoid scratches from the brambles.
Blackberry Brew
A favorite beverage made every summer by some folks in South Carolina is "blackberry acid." It's a very tart beverage, and a non-alcoholic way to "store" extra berries for weeks or longer. An online recipe that looks similar to the original is Saveur's "Tart Blackberry Soda Syrup." The brew should be aged in a dark cellar.
For those who prefer a quicker version, where boiling water is poured over the berries, try Melissa Horst's "Backyard Blackberry Soda." If you'd rather preserve your berries in an alcoholic beverage, you can of course try making blackberry wine, perhaps an aged, full-bodied wine with lots of berries, perhaps a lighter wine to which you add acid.
Jelly Palm Fruits
Jelly Palm Fruits grow on the Jelly Palm, which in turn grows in the deep south (from Florida to South Carolina), at shopping centers, apartments, campgrounds and more. As noted at Wayne's Word, the fruit is reminiscent of apricots. It's sweet but not too sweet, and loaded in fiber and as noted above vitamin E. Raccons love it too.
It's best picked in July or August (later of course in South Carolina than in Florida), when it is pale orange, and the fruit under the skin is still crispy, before it's completely ripened and deep orange. Some are easily reached; others high in the palm. Fortunately the latter can be knocked down easily with a stick as they near ripeness (the trick is to catch them as they drop; after the fruits ripen and fall they are not that good). Peel the skin with a paring knife, remove the (rather large) seed pit in the center of the fruit, and the fruit is ready to eat.
Palm Fruit Shake
One way to prepare these luscious fruits is to slice the fruit open and remove the pit (if you like you can use a paring knife to skin the whole fruit, but it's not necessary). Slice the fruit and add it to a chilled food processor or blender container, along with the other ingredients for a milk shake, including chilled milk, and perhaps honey. Use 12-15 or even more jelly palm fruits and optionally one-to-two tablespoons honey per 8 ounces of chilled milk. You can use soy or rice milk if you prefer. The fragrant and tasty result will be a pale peachy color, but otherwise similar to a date milk shake. The trick of course is to use the firm, crispy, pale orange fruits only. (The shake is so delicious I may try making ice cream next.)
For more descriptions of this palm and its fruit, see California Fruit Growers' Association's publication, "Fruit Facts: Edible Palms," or Wayne's World's "Edible Palm Fruits," at Palomar College's site.
Wild Grapes
Also known as the "Southern Fox" or "Muscadine Grape," this grape grows in North Florida, Georgia, and other parts of the Southeast as far north as Delaware, in wooded areas and fields, in late August and early September. As it ripens, its color changes from a reddish mauve color to a deep, dark purple.
It's much more flavorful than grapes found in the store, and also more tasty than the wild Concord grapes. However, the skin is thick and each grape has several seeds. Also, without added sugar, these grapes may not always be sweet enough to please young palates.
Grape Jam
One way to easily dispense with the skins and seeds is to use the grapes to make grape jam. Simply wash the grapes, and then crush them and boil them with for ten minutes, skins, seeds, and all, with a little water (about one-fourth cup or slightly more water per pound of grapes), along perhaps with sugar and lemon juice. (Any clean cooking pot will do that's not cast iron; cast iron gives the grapes a nasty flavor.) Press the grape mixture through cheesecloth or a fine mesh sieve to strain it. The skins and seeds will strain out, but their nutrients will be part of the jam.
The next step is processing the strained mixture with a food processor. The Garden Granny ("Aunt Granny's Great Grape Jam") suggests putting the skins back and processing those with the rest of the grapes while you are at it, then straining the mixture again, but to do this you have to skin the grapes first and cook the skins separately. The resulting syrup is boiled another minute or so with pectin before canning. If you don't have pectin to add, cut up some Granny Smith apples, and boil that with the grapes, as there is pectin in the apples.
Wild Grapes and Nutrition
Wild muscadine grapes are loaded with anti-oxidants and and vitamins, particularly potassium. According to information in Bradford Angier's Field Guide to Edible Wild Plants, eating 12 of these provides an adult with the minimum daily requirement of potassium. About 20 grapes provide the MDR of vitamin C and approximately 25 the MDR of vitamin A, according to Angier's information. These grapes are also high in iron, and calcium. For additional information on Southern Fox grapes (and to see what to look for), see University of Florida's 4-H Forest Ecology Website, "Florida Forest Plants: Wild Grape."
Sources
- Angier, Bradford. Field Guide to Edible Wild Plants. (Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books/Google EBooks). (Accessed 2011).
- Armstrong, W. P. " Edible Palm Fruits." Economic Plant Photograph 10. Wayne's World. Palomar College. (San Marcos, California.)
- Blanco, Maria. "How to Cook Muscadine Grapes for Jelly Stock." Suite 101. (2009/09/24; accessed 2011).
- California Fruit Growers' Association. "Fruit Facts: Edible Palms." (1998; accessed 2011).
- "Florida Forest Plants: Wild Grape." 4-H Forest Ecoloogy. University of Florida. (Gainesville, FL).
- The Garden Granny. "Aunt Granny's Great Grape Jam." (2007/09/18; accessed 2011).
- "Grapes." American Cancer Society. (2008/11/01; accessed 2011).
- "Backyard Blackberry Soda." Recipe Finder. The Washington Post. Recipe from Melissa Horst. (2011/07/20; accessed 2011).
- Huff, Ethan. "Palm Fruit Oil is the Richest Source of Tocotrienols, the Other Half of the Vitamin E Equation." Natural News. (2010/06/07; accessed 2011).
- Parker-Pope, Tara. "The Power of Berries." New York Times. (2009/01/22; accessed 2011.)
- "Tart Blackberry Soda Syrup."Saveur.
Catherine E Whitehead - C. E. Whitehead holds degrees in education and linguistics. She likes languages, computers, and cooking.
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