…and maybe with a Wild Blueberry Quinoa Breakfast Sundae Too!
Mother’s Day is around the corner, which means that husbands, sons, and daughters around the world are preparing to share some special affection, gratitude, and fondness for the moms and grandmothers in their lives.
For some, this means flowers and cards, a walk together, a family dinner, or a phone call from across a continent.For others, it triggers a yearning for the grand old tradition of breakfast-in-bed.While breakfast-in-bed may be old-fashioned, this doesn’t mean the food has to be!
Warm Tropical Wild Blueberry Quinoa Breakfast Sundae made with superfoods.
Photos courtesy of EA Stewart, The Spicy RD.
In fact, there are not a lot of moms we know who crave pancakes or waffles for breakfast anymore (no offence to pancakes and waffles, we just want something healthier). Most of the moms we know want something light and nourishing for breakfast, and ideally something that incorporates a superfood or two.
There’s a collection of truly inspiring recipe at Recipe ReDux.com, an online contest held earlier this year, which, by the way, generated 60 delightful Wild Blueberry concoctions from registered dietitians around the country. These recipes are guaranteed to give you food that’s not only creative, beautiful and delicious, but also wholesome – and we think that’s exactly what moms today are craving.
Our top pick for this Mother’s Day is an extraordinary Warm Tropical Wild Blueberry Quinoa Breakfast Sundae. This delightful creation comes from nutrition blogger EA Stewart in Del Mar, California. She’s a self described, home cook, mom of two, nutritionist, hiker, skier, outdoorsy type, who’s always trying to keep things fun and gluten free! EA, or “Spicy,” as she calls herself, says if she had to name her diet, it might be something like: Gluten-free Mediterranean Flexitarian Diet.Here is her recipe, which combines the best of two amazing superfoods:Wild Blueberries and Quinoa.
We like it not only because it’s nutritious and delicious, but because it’s relatively easy to make.
Total Time: 15 minutes Yield: 2 servings Calories per serving: 450 calories per serving
Maine or Canada meet the tropics in this nutrient packed breakfast sundae with wild blueberries, quinoa, coconut, and macadamia nuts. It’s a sundae you can feel virtuous about eating for breakfast!
Ingredients
2 cups frozen fresh wild blueberries
1 cup cooked quinoa
1 cup plain Greek Yogurt
3 tablespoons shredded unsweetened coconut
3 tablespoons chopped macadamia nuts
2 teaspoons virgin coconut oil
2 teaspoons coconut or brown sugar, optional
1 teaspoon ground ginger
Instructions
Heat a small saute pan over medium heat, and add chopped macadamia nuts and shredded coconut. Toss nuts and coconut together, stirring frequently to prevent from burning, until lightly browned, or about 4-5 minutes. Remove mixture from pan and allow to cool.
Heat coconut oil in the same saute pan over medium heat, then add frozen wild blueberries, and stir until mixture is bubbling. Turn down heat to medium, and add ginger and optional coconut/brown sugar to wild blueberry mixture and continue stirring for about 5-6 minutes, or until blueberry sauce has reduced and thickened. Remove from heat and set aside while you assemble sundaes.
Place 1/2 scoop each of warm cooked quinoa {you may make quinoa ahead of time and reheat before preparing sundaes} in 2 glasses/bowls/sundae dishes and top with 1 heaping tablespoon each of wild blueberry syrup mixture and nut/coconut mixture. Next, top each sundae with 1/2 cup Greek Yogurt, then divide remaining wild blueberry syrup and nuts/coconut and place on top of breakfast sundaes. Serve while still warm.
Notes: Naturally gluten-free and vegetarian, but could easily be made vegan by using a dairy free yogurt. Calories per serving determined using lowfat Greek yogurt and coconut sugar.
So, for Mother’s Day, give your mom a treat that will make her smile, but will also help her heart, body and mind!Enjoy.
This Mother’s Day, lose the lilies and get wild with our “Feed Her Wild Side” Sweepstakes. It’s your chance to win mom (or yourself) one of three amazing Mother’s Day gifts and the $1000 Visa Gift Card Grand Prize!
Each week, we’ll select one random winner to receive each of our three weekly prizes.
Week 1:
If your mom loves creating extraordinary dinner parties or easy but beautiful family gatherings, the week 1 prize may be just for her. The winner will take home simply exquisite handmade pottery from Edgecomb Potters in Maine to decorate her table. (Don’t forget to fill the dishes with Wild Blueberries!)
Week 2:
If your mom is a true gem, show her how much you love her with this sparkling blue genuine sapphire and diamond necklace. She’ll really go Wild if this is the gift she receives!
Week 3:
Finally, give mom the gift of exercising outdoors with this classic Wild Blue Schwinn Beach Cruiser Bike. Or she may want to simply join the fun and ride along with her kids on afternoon bike rides.
And if you don’t win one of the weekly prizes, you’re still in the mix to win the $1000 grand prize to make this Mother’s Day truly unforgettable.
The contest begins April 21st – and just for entering you’ll be able to download for free our Feed Her Wild Side Mother’s Day Brunch Recipe Book filled with exclusive Wild Blueberry brunch recipes created by some of our most favorite food and nutrition bloggers including Jaime Reid and Carrie Kinsley of Zest & Zeal; Rachel Hartley of An Avocado a Day; Alexandra Caspero of Delicious Knowledge; Danielle Omar of FoodConfidence; Liz Weiss from Meal Makeover Mom’s Kitchen; Rebecca Crump of Ezra Pound Cake; Serena Ball of Teaspoon of Spice and finally our Recipe ReDux Wild Blueberry Challenge Winner Gretchen Brown of kumquat.
Make this Mother’s Day truly special and Feed Her Wild Side. Find us on Facebook and enter to win on April 21st. The contest ends May 9th. Good luck!
It’s finally spring in Wild Blueberry land – although it may not feel like it just yet. And because we’re really tired of winter, we’ve decided to gear up for warmer weather with these delicious Wild Blueberry spring holiday recipes.
Whether you’re keeping kosher for Passover, or looking for a delicious dessert for your Easter table, we’ve got the perfect recipe for you. Check ‘em out below – and don’t forget to visit wildblueberries.com/recipes for even more ideas.
Wild Blueberry Quinoa Power Salad (Kosher for Passover)
Good news for everyone keeping Kosher this year – quinoa (the small protein-packed herb native to South America) has been deemed Kosher for Passover. While it’s not technically a grain, some worried previously that barley grains grown in close proximity could contaminate it. Those concerns have now been put to rest by the Kashrut Division of the Orthodox Union, so feel free to dig in to this delicious Wild Blueberry Quinoa Power Salad (created by Karmen Meyer of Nutrition Adventures) all week long!
Wild Blueberry-Quinoa Power Salad
Serves: 2
Ingredients: Salad: 1 cup butternut squash cubes 1 Tbsp. olive oil 1 tsp curry powder ½ cup quinoa, rinsed 1 cup chicken broth 1/3 cup red onion, finely diced 2 cups baby kale mix (or 1 cup finely chopped kale) ¾ Wild Blueberries, thawed and any liquid removed ½ cup walnuts, toasted and chopped Dressing: 1/2 Tbsp. olive oil 1/2 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar 1/8 tsp. curry powder 1/4 tsp. salt Pepper to taste Directions: 1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spread butternut squash in an even layer on baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with curry powder. Bake for 25 minutes or until squash can be easily pierced with a fork. 2. Meanwhile, add quinoa and chicken broth to a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover, and cook for about 18 minutes or until liquid is gone and quinoa can be easily fluffed with a fork. Remove pan from heat and allow to cool slightly, about 5 minutes. 3. In a large mixing bowl, combine roasted squash, red onion, and baby kale mix. Mix together, allowing the kale mix to wilt slightly. Add quinoa. 4. In a small bowl, mix together ingredients for the dressing. Pour over quinoa salad. Lightly mix in blueberries. 5. Serve warm or chilled. Store in refrigerator for up to one week.
Wild Blueberry Lemon Custards
Whether you observing the Easter Holiday as a prayerful religious observance or a more secular celebration of spring, don’t forget to add delicious Wild Blueberries to your family gathering. We absolutely love these Wild Blueberry Lemon Custards (from AnneMarie of Real Food Real Deals). They’re a simple and elegant dessert that’s sure to win over your guests.
Wild Blueberry Lemon Custards
Ingredients:
For the Custard:
2 eggs
¼ cup maple syrup
1 tsp. vanilla
⅛ tsp. salt
1 tsp. lemon zest
1¾ cup milk
For the Blueberry Sauce:
1 cup wild blueberries
1 tbs. maple syrup
1 tsp. white whole wheat flour or gluten-free flour
Instructions:
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.
In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, maple syrup, vanilla extract, salt, and lemon zest until evenly combined. You can use an electric mixer or whisk by hand.
Heat the milk in a small saucepan until nearly boiling (around 180 degrees).
Slowly whisk the hot milk into the egg mixture. Don’t pour the milk in too quickly or it will cook the eggs. Mix the ingredients well, then transfer the mixture to 4 ramekins or custard bowls (8 ounce size).
Prepare a water bath by placing a folded dish towel at the bottom of a 9×13 inch baking pan (or larger). The pan should be big enough so the ramekins aren’t touching the sides of the pan or each other. Place the ramekins on the dish towel in the baking dish and place the pan in the preheated oven. Pour hot tap water into the pan to a depth that goes halfway up the sides of the ramekins. This will keep the custard from burning.
Bake in the water bath until set (45 to 60 minutes). To see if the custards are done, gently shake one of the ramekins. When the center is quivery but no longer watery, remove them from the oven. It will probably take closer to 60 minutes, but start checking it at 45 minutes.
Cool the custards on a wire rack. Then cover and refrigerate until cold.
To make the blueberry sauce, cook the sauce ingredients in a small covered pan over low heat for 5 minutes. Stir every minute or so. Remove from the heat and let the sauce cool. (Makes ½ cup.)
To serve, place a tablespoon of blueberry sauce on top of each cold custard. Enjoy!
In our last blog post, we shared some recipes from members of the Recipe ReDux who we challenged earlier this year to create healthy recipes highlighting the unique flavor of Wild Blueberries. The Recipe ReDux, founded by registered dietitians, is the first an only recipe challenge of its kind and its members focus on making delicious dishes healthier.
Last week we shared some of our favorite Wild Blueberry recipes created by this group of dietitian food writers including Wild Blueberry & Goat Cheese Hand Pies, Wild Blueberry Polenta with Grilled Onions and Sausageand more. You can see those recipes here.
Following are a few more creative and delicious recipes from the challenge. We hope you will try some of these recipes and let us know what you think.
Heidi from the blog Better Than Dorm Food came up with this creative use of Wild Blueberries that could top off any salad. As she describes her Wild Blueberry Balsamic Dressing, it’s a powerful punch when it comes to taste and antioxidants.
Jamie, who writes the blog Zest & Zeal, wrote in her post about how her two-and-a-half year old son is a real fan of this Wild Blueberry Cacao Smoothie, which combines the great taste of chocolate with Wild Blueberries.She likes that he can get some chocolate in without ending up with the dreaded “chocolate hands” – WIN-WIN!
How aboutGwen’s recipe for Lemon Ricotta & Wild Blueberry Tart with Walnut Gingersnap Cruston her blog Simply Healthy Family?Gwen is spot on when she writes how this rustic tart will be the star to any main dish you serve. She also talks about how wild berries are so special to her. She says, “Nothing compares. I cringe at the thought of how far most grocery store berries have traveled. In the words of Barbara Kingsolver, probably “further than most of us will ever travel on vacation in our lives“. Where’s the freshness in that?”
The weather will be warming up soon, but no excuse is needed to make up a bowl of this Wild Blueberry & Corn Salsafrom Lindsay of the blog The Lean Green Bean. This may just become your go to salsa recipe!
Wild Blueberries: Frozen for Peak Flavor and Nutrition
Most frozen vegetables and fruits (like Wild Blueberries) are frozen immediately after harvest, so all the goodness is locked in. Wild Blueberries, which are frozen fresh at harvest, are preserved at their peak and maintain their rich flavor and antioxidant goodness. They also maintain their shape, color, flavor and nutritional value in cooking and baking.
For more Wild Blueberry recipes, and additional research about their incredible health benefits, visit www.wildblueberries.com.
Earlier this year, the Wild Blueberry Association of North America challenged the members of the Recipe ReDux to create healthy recipes highlighting the unique flavor of wild blueberries. As the first and only recipe challenge founded by registered dietitians, The Recipe ReDux is focused on making delicious dishes healthier. Food-savvy dietitians Regan Jones, Serena Ball and Deanna Segrave-Daly – The Recipe ReDux Moderators – founded the group on the belief that healthier eating should always taste great. As the Latin term “redux” means to revisit or reinvent, the Recipe ReDux is reinventing healthy eating with a taste-first approach.
The grand prize winner of the Recipe ReDux challenge and two runner up winners will be announced March 10.
Following are a few of our favorite recipes from the challenge. We are thrilled with how enthusiastic and creative everyone was and how delicious the results have been. We hope you will try some of these recipes and let us know what you think.
Wild Blueberry & Goat Cheese Hand Pies from Danielle of Food Confidence from Danielle, a registered dietitian and nutritionist who blogs at Food Confidence.Danielle was excited to create a recipe for Wild Blueberries both because of their flavor and what she describes as “their awesome antioxidant and anti-inflammatory powers.”
Wild Blueberry Polenta with Grilled Onions and Sausage from Mireya of My Healthy Eating Habits created this savory dish – find the recipe here. Mireya is a graduate of the California Culinary Academy in San Francisco, and alumni of Le Cordon Bleu.She eats Wild Blueberries for their taste, health benefits, and low calories.
Who wouldn’t want to get up early or rush home from the gym to make thisWild Blueberry, Coconut and Ginger Smoothie? Recipe can be found on An Avocado Today blog. Rachael, a registered dietitian and certified diabetes educator out did herself with this one! While writing her blog post, she learned about the potential anti-cancer benefits of pterostilbene, a natural substance found in the skin of the fruit.
There is a good chance you will be asking for second servings if you make the recipe for this Wild Blueberry Lemon Cream Cheese PoundCake. Anne Danahy, the blogger behind Craving Something Healthy is a registered dietitian and nutritionist, who is passionate about teaching people how to take the science of nutrition and get it onto their plates. Danahy wrote “I actually don’t think desserts are half bad, as long as you keep an eye on how much you eat, AND you use healthy ingredients in your recipe. That’s why I was so excited to develop a dessert recipe using Wild Blueberries. They are one of the healthiest little fruits you can eat.”
Check back next week for more recipes from the RecipeReDux contest!
Wild Blueberries: Frozen for Peak Flavor and Nutrition
Most frozen vegetables and fruits (like Wild Blueberries) are frozen immediately after harvest, so all the goodness is locked in. Wild Blueberries, which are frozen fresh at harvest, are preserved at their peak and maintain their rich flavor and antioxidant goodness. They also maintain their shape, color, flavor and nutritional value in cooking and baking.
For more Wild Blueberry recipes, and additional research about their incredible health benefits, visit www.wildblueberries.com.
Guest Blogger Hannah Kaminsky from Bitter Sweet shares her recipe.
Perhaps I’ve been looking at the Valentine’s Day ritual from the wrong perspective. Instead of recoiling at the sight of puffy pink hearts and greeting cards of dubious sincerity, focusing on the abundance of new opportunities to indulge my sweet tooth would surely help the occasion pass with less pain.
Chocolate truffles and ornate confections are the “traditional” treats associated with this annual love-fest, but my own cravings have taken a turn for the lighter and fresher this year. Wild Frozen Blueberries never go out of style, especially in Hawaii (my new home) where discovering fresh berries is about as likely as spying Menehune in Waikiki. No matter the size of your freezer, these tiny blue gems are a definite necessity to always squeeze in.Fully stocked on this taste of home, it was a natural decision to go blue this holiday.
Unimpressive, even homely at first glance, the true beauty of this festive cake is revealed within the very first slice. Concealed beneath an ocean of deep blue batter lies heart of gold- Well, golden vanilla pound cake, at least! Talk about a sweet surprise.
Let the lucky recipient believe that it’s a testament to the power of love, or perhaps some wild baking alchemy, but the truth is grounded in good old-fashioned advanced planning. Little more work than crafting two standard, separate cakes, some clever cookie cutter usage and a heaping cup of patience are the only secret ingredients here.
Proving the power of Frozen Wild Blueberries in every moist, tender forkful, what appears to be a modest measurement goes a very long way, translating into volumes of robust berry flavor throughout. Wrapping around the heart-y core in a gentle embrace, the two components meld harmoniously, while nonetheless remaining distinct. They’re a perfect couple if I ever did see one.
Even if there isn’t a special someone to indulge this Valentine’s Day, don’t hide your heart away! Just cut yourself a thick slice of cake and taste the love that only Wild Blueberries have to share, no strings attached.
Hidden Heart Wild Blueberry Cake
Vibrant Vanilla Pound Cake:
1 3/4 Cups All Purpose Flour
1 Cup Granulated Sugar
1 Teaspoon Baking Powder
1/2 Teaspoon Baking Soda
1/2 Teaspoon Salt
1 Cup Vanilla Non-Dairy Milk
1 Tablespoon Lemon Juice
1/4 Cup Olive Oil
2 Tablespoons Vanilla Extract
Wild Blueberry Cake:
1 Cup Frozen Wild Blueberries, Thawed
1/3 Cup Water
1/4 Cup Lemon Juice
1/4 Cup Olive Oil
1/2 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract
1 Cup Granulated Sugar
2 Cups All Purpose Flour
1 1/4 Teaspoons Baking Powder
1/2 Teaspoon Baking Soda
1/2 Teaspoon Salt
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and lightly grease an 8 x 4-inch loaf pan.
Beginning with the vanilla cake, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder and soda, and salt in a large bowl. Once the dry goods are well-distributed, turn your attention to the wet ingredients. In a separate bowl, combine the non-dairy milk of your choice with the lemon juice, allowing it to sit for about 5 minutes to curdle slightly. Add in the oil and vanilla, stir thoroughly, and introduce this liquid mixture to the bowl of dry ingredients.
Mix gently with a wide spatula, stirring just enough to bring the batter together with few remaining lumps. Transfer into your prepared loaf pan, smooth out the top, and slide it into the center of your oven. Bake for 50 – 55 minutes, until lightly golden brown all over and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out cleanly. Let cool completely and chill for at least 1 hour before proceeding.
Once your cake is nice and cold all the way through, use a very sharp serrated knife to slice it into 1-inch thick slabs. Take a large heart-shaped cookie cutter that fits within the confines of the slices and punch out your heart shapes; cover with plastic wrap to prevent them from drying out and set aside.
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees once more and lightly grease another 8 x 4-inch loaf pan.
Moving on to the Wild Blueberry batter, toss the berries into your blender or food processor, and thoroughly puree. Slowly drizzle in the non-dairy milk, lemon juice, oil, and vanilla to incorporate. Add in the sugar into the machine last, and continue blending until completely smooth, with just a few visible seeds remaining.
In a separate bowl, mix the flour and baking powder, soda, and salt.Just as before, pour the liquid mixture into the bowl of dry goods, stirring to combine with as few strokes as possible.
Pour a thin layer of the batter into the prepared loaf pan, spreading it out smoothly so that it evenly reaches about ½ – ¾ of a centimeter all the way across the bottom. Retrieve your heart-shaped vanilla cake cut-outs, and line them up in a row along the center. Naturally, they’ll fit if you can arrange them in the same order as they were cut, but it will work just as beautifully if they’ve gotten mixed up too. Pour the remainder of the blue batter around the sides and over the tops of the hearts, being careful to fill up any crevasses. Tap the pan firmly but gently on the counter to release any air bubbles that may disrupt the pattern. It’s likely that you’ll end up with some extra batter that won’t fit into the pan; bake it off separately as cupcakes or mini-loaves to enjoy later!
Carefully slide the loaf pan into the oven and bake for 30 – 45 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into one of the blue sides pulls out cleanly. Don’t test for doneness in the center; of course the vanilla cake will be done, since it was already well-baked to begin with!
Toddlers can be notoriously finicky when it comes to food – especially when the offending item is (gasp) a vegetable. So to keep your kiddos (or other picky eaters) healthy and strong, take a page out of the book of these super smart mommy bloggers who created toddler-approved Wild Blueberry recipes with all kinds of extra nutrients.
Vanessa of www.heyladygrey.com created these delicious Wild Blueberry Muffins for her 13.5-month old son when he suddenly started refusing protein and veggies. She used the intense, delicious flavor (and 2x the antioxidant power) of Wild Blueberries to hide the protein (almonds) and veggies (carrots and zucchini) that her son was so finicky about. Her little trick worked like a charm and her cute-as-can-be toddler can’t get enough of them!
Allison of www.onesmileymonkey.com used a similar approach to get her toddler to try out some dark leafy greens. Instead of muffins, Allison mixed together a yummy Wild Blueberry Smoothie with milk, banana, cocoa powder, chia seeds, protein powder and, you guessed it – spinach! Since the Wild Blueberry flavor is so deliciously intense, you can’t even taste the spinach, chia seeds or protein powder. And the dark color of the wild blues disguises any trace of green color that might tip your toddler off to the hidden veggies. The antioxidants in the Wild Blueberries add an extra nutritional punch, making this smoothie about as nutritious as it is delicious.
Do you have a Wild Blueberry recipe your kiddos love? Share it with us on Facebook, or send us a link to your blog. You can also browse through dozens more healthy Wild Blueberry recipes by visiting www.wildblueberries.com/recipes.
Need an easy tailgating dessert? We’ve got your back with some scrumptious doughnuts you can bake in 10 minutes.
By Rebecca Crump
You hear so much about Wild Blueberries being a superfood that it’s easy to forget they’re also super-delicious. Need a reminder?
Next time you have friends over for some tailgating, try making a batch of these Wild Blueberry Baked Doughnuts.
The only special equipment you’ll need is a pair of standard doughnut baking pans. The cheap ones work like a charm.
You know how some blueberry muffins look greenish-blue inside? We don’t want that. So, start by rinsing your frozen Wild Blueberries in cold water until the excess juice runs off and the water turns almost clear. (It will be very dark at first.) Then let them drain between layers of paper towels.
Next, you make the batter, either with an electric mixer or a whisk (and a little elbow grease). You want to mix it just until everything comes together. The less you mix the batter, the softer and lighter the doughnuts will be.
Now, gently fold in those Wild Blueberries.
I’ve read about people piping the batter into the doughnut pan, but my favorite method is to spoon it. Then you can flip your spoon over, and use the back to smooth the tops of your doughnuts.
Once your doughnuts are baked and cooled enough to pop out of the pan, you’ve got decisions to make, my friend. You can glaze them, toss them in powdered sugar, or try my favorite method: brush the doughnuts with warm butter and dip them in cinnamon-sugar.
Look at you! Now, you’re rich with Wild Blueberry doughnuts and not a pot of scalding oil in sight.
No matter how you’re team is doing, you are obviously winning.
New Research Shows Wild Blueberries Have Potential to Improve Heart Health
Wild Blueberries are already easy to love – but now there’s yet another reason to keep those tiny, delicious berries close to your heart. Researchers at the University of Reading (UK), the University of Dusseldorf (Germany) and the University of Northumbria (UK) have used state-of-the-art techniques to show that Wild Blueberries can improve vascular function in healthy men – that is – they’re good for your heart!
In their study, researchers learned that Wild Blueberries may help blood vessels to function better and remain healthier, meaning that the heart does not have to work as hard to circulate blood through the body. These findings are the first to link Wild Blueberry polyphenols, natural compounds that are abundant in Wild Blueberries, to improvements in vascular function in healthy men.
“For the first time, we have shown that Wild Blueberry consumption can improve endothelial function, which has been shown to be a highly sensitive marker for the overall cardiovascular risk of an individual,” said Dr. Ana Rodriguez-Mateos, PhD, from the Division of Cardiology, Pulmunology and Vascular Medicine at the University of Dusseldorf in Germany.Dr. Rodriguez-Mateos is first author of the study and a contributor to the annual Wild Blueberry Bar Harbor Research Summit.
“Importantly, even the lowest amount of Wild Blueberries tested in the study, equivalent to 3/4 cup of Wild Blueberries, was able to improve endothelial function,” noted Rodriguez-Mateos. That means that less than a cup a day of those Wild Blues (the amount, for instance, in a yummy breakfast smoothie) may be enough to help reduce your risk of cardiovascular disease. Talk about a delicious way to stay heart healthy!
And remember, not every blueberry is a Wild Blueberry.Wild Blueberries are smaller than regular cultivated blueberries, have a more intense blueberry flavor and have double the antioxidant capacity. They are available year-round in the grocer’s frozen fruit section – so don’t wait for summer to start stocking up. Try this easy Wild Blueberry Smoothie today!
Easy Wild Blueberry Smoothie
•3/4 cup frozen Wild Blueberries
•3/4 up vanilla or plain yogurt
•1 Tbsp honey (optional)
•3-4 ice cubes
Place all ingredients in a mixer and blend at high speed until smooth.Enjoy immediately.
For more Wild Blueberry recipes, and additional research about their incredible health benefits, visit www.wildblueberries.com.
New Year’s Eve means it is time to break out the champagne, but what about getting a little adventurous with your alcoholic options this year? Portland, Maine bartender Andrew Volk of the Portland Hunt and Alpine Club mixes in Wild Blueberries for a punch and cocktail worthy of any celebration.
And, remember - Wild Blueberries have twice the antioxidants and 50% more fiber than the larger blueberries giving individuals more of what they need to combat disease and promote healthy aging. Since Wild Blueberries only grow naturally in Maine and eastern Canada, the best place to find them is in your grocer’s frozen fruit section.
Serve these with finger-friendly snacks like nuts, cheese platter, homemade Chex mix, meatballs (vegan or meat), pizza, and homemade tacos. It is always a good idea to put out plenty of food when people will be drinking so they have something to help absorb the alcohol.
Have a fun New Year’s Eve and all the best in 2014!!
Mexican Blueberry Punch
3 lemons
0.25 cup sugar
16 oz hot water
0.5 cup Wild Blueberries
8 oz blanco tequila
Soda water
Peel the lemons into a heat proof punch (or mixing bowl). Add the sugar to the peels and muddle. Let rest for at least two hours, occasionally stirring. Juice lemons. Dissolve sugar/oil mixture with hot water. Add blueberries, lemon juice, and tequila. Chill. Top with soda to taste.
Serves 8.
Wild Maine Collins
1.5 oz aged rum
0.75 oz lime juice
0.75 oz simple syrup
10 Wild Blueberries
Shake all ingredients with ice. Fine strain into a Collins glass. Fill with ice. Top with sparkling wine. Garnish with lemon twist and more blueberries.
