By Kim Ragosta 

Berry picking is a family favorite in our household during the warm summer months. Whether it’s heading to Sweet Berry Farm in Middletown to pick strawberries or Rocky Point Farm in Warwick to pick blueberries, we just love it! I usually start off with a story the night before about berry picking. For strawberry picking I read Jamberry and for blueberry picking I read Blueberries for Sal. Both are great books for young children and it definitely got my children pumped to pick!

Most recently we headed to Rocky Point Farm where the kids picked blueberry after blueberry for two hours straight! Our daughter Lily ate about ¾ of what she actually picked – green ones included! And my boys were humming blueberries at each other during the last 15 minutes of picking. But all in all it was a great adventure free of cell phones, television and leap pads! So to me, it was a success!

Each time we come home from berry picking we make something yummy for our family to enjoy. We made strawberry jam after strawberry picking and blueberry pie after blueberry picking. The kids have a blast getting stained with berries and I am happy knowing my children are enjoying making something from scratch with the very hands that just picked these fresh berries! It makes me smile to see the pride they feel as they create something delicious to eat. And my most favorite part is sharing a piece of warm blueberry pie with my three messy cutie pies!

Blueberry Pie

Ingredients

3/4 cup white sugar

3 TBS cornstarch

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

4 cups fresh blueberries

pie pastry (store bought)

1 tbsp butter

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees
2. Mix sugar, cornstarch, salt, and cinnamon, and sprinkle over berries.
3. Line pie dish with one pie crust. Pour berry mixture into the crust, and dot with butter. Cut remaining pastry into 1/2- to 3/4-inch-wide strips, and make lattice top. Crimp edges.
4. Bake pie on lower shelf of oven for about 40-50 minutes, or until crust is golden brown. You may need to put a piece of foil on top to prevent crust from burning…so watch carefully!
5. Enjoy!