Blackberry Season in Oregon

The Blackberry is our State Flower. I don’t think too many of us Oregonians care about the flower but we get pretty excited about the berries!

Blackberries grow all over Oregon. In fact, they’re actually a bit of a weed. They grow where you want them but they also grow where you don’t want them – and they are virtually impossible to get rid of. They thrive on both sides of alleys, they scramble over tool sheds, they crawl through your vegetable garden.

The solution? Just keep picking the berries and be happy!

Last night I made Chicken with Oregon Blackberries.
It was loosely based on a Moroccan recipe. Who knew they had blackberries in Morocco?! – considering it would be hard to find a climate more different than ours.



Chicken with Oregon Blackberries

½ cup dry white wine (measured with your Crosby & Taylor Pewter Measuring Cups – of course!)
1 T. olive oil
4 lbs. bone-in chicken pieces (breasts and/or thighs)
3 T. combination of fresh thyme, rosemary, & basil
(or ½ tsp. of each, dried)
2 tsp. sweet Hungarian paprika
salt & pepper to taste
½ cup chicken stock
2 T. light brown sugar
2 T. mashed blackberries
2 garlic cloves – smashed and minced
2 T. white vinegar
1 tsp. olive oil
½ cup whole blackberries for garnish

-Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
-Pour ¼ cup wine into a large glass or porcelain baking dish.
-Rub chicken pieces with olive oil and arrange in the dish, skin side up.
-Sprinkle liberally with herbs and paprika. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
-Bake for 35 minutes, adding the ¼ cup wine and then the chicken stock to the pan as the juices evaporate.
-Occasionally baste chicken.

-While chicken is baking, combine brown sugar with mashed berries, garlic, vinegar, and remaining ½ tsp. paprika.
-Spoon this mixture over the chicken and continue cooking for 10 minutes, basting occasionally until the juices run clear when chicken is pierced with a fork.
-Transfer the chicken to a serving platter and keep warm.

-Pour the cooking juices into a saucepan and boil over moderate heat until reduced to half (about 2 minutes).
-Season with salt and pepper and spoon over the chicken.

-Garnish with whole blackberries and enjoy.