Baking with Blackberries

Blackberries are my go-to baking ingredient during spooky season for their dark and unusual look.

These tart little berries can also pack a flavor punch and bake nicely into a pie, tart or elegantly rich treat.

This skull-shaped pie is an easy-to-cut pie topper perfect for a seasonal dinner party. Or try the frozen blackberry tart on the following pages for a chilling twist on a classic.

For a more whimsical addition, I like to add candy eyeballs to my pastries, especially when serving children and teens. For the adults, I mix up selections of fresh fruit for new and unexpected flavor combinations.

Blackberry Skull Pie

Makes: 1 pie in an 8-inch shallow dish pie

Photo by Harmony Lynn Goodson

Ingredients:

» 1 package refrigerated pie crusts (2 pie crusts)

» 4 cups fresh blackberries

» ½ cup granulated sugar

» 5 tablespoons all-purpose flour

» ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

» ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract

» 2 teaspoons lemon juice

» 1 whisked egg white, for the egg wash

Directions:

1. Wash and dry the blackberries. Add them to a medium-sized bowl and top with the sugar, flour, cinnamon, vanilla and lemon juice.

2. With your hands, gently toss the berries until the ingredients become wet and well-mixed. Set aside.

3. Flip your pie or tart pan upside down on a piece of paper and trace along the outer edges. This will be the guide for the skull cut-out.

4. Line your tart or pie dish with one refrigerated pie dough and set aside.

5. Preheat your oven to 400 F.

6. Create a quick skull shape with a pencil inside the pre-traced pie circle and cut it out with scissors to make a template.

7. Trace the template onto the second roll of pie dough with a knife and place it on an aluminum baking sheet. Decorate with the scrap pieces of dough, brush with egg wash to stick the pieces together and get an even brown.

8. Place the pie on the bottom rack of the oven and the pie topper (on the aluminum baking sheet) above it on the center rack.

9. Bake the pie topper for about 10 minutes or until it starts to evenly brown. You can rotate it to get an even bake if you need to. If some of your pie art is thicker in areas, you can try an aluminum foil tent on the flatter sections so they don’t burn.

10. Bake the pie for an additional 20 minutes (30 minutes total for the actual pie). Let cool for one hour before carefully sliding the pie topper on the pie. I also like to press down the baked berries with a spatula when they first come out of the oven to get a flat surface.

Blackberry Buttercream Chocolate Cupcakes

Makes: 24 cupcakes

Photo by Harmony Lynn Goodson

Chocolate cupcake ingredients:

» 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour

» 1 ⅔ cups granulated sugar

» ⅔ cup unsweetened cocoa powder

» 1 tablespoon cornstarch

» 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder

» 1 ¼ teaspoons baking soda

» 1 teaspoon salt

» ½ cup vegetable oil

» 1 large egg plus 1 egg yolk

» 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

» ⅔ cup whole milk

» 1 cup hot coffee

Chocolate cupcake directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F
and line two 12-count muffin tins with paper liners.

2. In the bowl of an electric mixer, whisk together the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

3. Add the oil, eggs and vanilla and beat until combined.

4. Gradually add the milk and then coffee until the batter is smooth. Scrape down the sides and give it one more mix before evenly pouring the batter into the paper liners to about ⅔ full.

5. Bake each pan of cupcakes
for 18–20 minutes or until baked through on the center rack and allow to cool completely before frosting.

Blackberry buttercream ingredients:

» 1 cup unsalted butter, softened at room temperature

» 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

» 2 cups powdered sugar

» ½ cup fresh blackberries, washed and dried

» Fresh blackberries and other fresh fruits for garnish

Buttercream directions:

1. In the bowl of an electric stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, whip the butter for a few minutes.

2. Sift the powdered sugar to eliminate any lumps, and add to the butter a little at a time to avoid a mess. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, add the vanilla and blackberries and mix on high until well combined.

3. To frost the cupcakes, add the frosting to a piping bag fitted with a large round piping tip using a rubber spatula. Secure the outer end of the piping bag and gently squeeze the bag from the center of the cupcake to create the dome shape.

4. Garnish with a fresh blackberry and optional fruit pairings of your choosing.

Frozen Blackberry Monster Tarts

Makes: One 9-inch tart or two mini tarts

Photo by Harmony Lynn Goodson

Crust ingredients:

» 1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour

» 3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder

» ½ cup powdered sugar

» ¼ teaspoon salt

» ½ cup unsalted butter, frozen, cut into very small pieces

» 1 large egg

» ½ teaspoon vanilla extract

Crust directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 375 F.

2. In a medium bowl, combine
the flour, cocoa powder, sugar and salt with a whisk until well mixed.

3. Add the frozen butter,
egg and vanilla and combine with your hands into a sticky dough.

4. Wash and dry your hands. Flour a work surface, rolling pin and top of the dough. Roll the dough into a flat round.

5. Place the rolled-out dough in the tart pan and press into the sides with your fingers. Trim the edges and poke a few holes in the bottom with a fork. Cover tightly with aluminum foil and bake for 20 minutes. Let cool on the counter before adding the filling.

Filling ingredients:

» 5 cups fresh blackberries, washed and dried

» ½ cup frozen blackberries for garnish

» 1 cup granulated sugar

» ½ cup all-purpose flour

» 2 tablespoons lemon juice

» 1 tablespoon lemon zest

Filling directions:

1. In a medium bowl, add the 5 cups of blackberries, sugar, flour, lemon juice and lemon zest. Mix to coat the berries, and let sit for 30 minutes while the tart crust is cooling.

2. After the crust has cooled enough to handle, you can press down any puffed areas.

3. Pour the filling into the tart shell and place on a rimmed baking sheet. Cover lightly with aluminum foil and bake for an additional 20 minutes at 350 F.

4. Let cool completely on the counter before freezing for at least 1–2 hours. When frozen, garnish with sliced and whole frozen blackberries.

Harmony Lynn Goodson is an editorial stylist, content creator and contributor whose work has been featured in publications such as Mingle and Better Homes & Gardens.