Sour Cream Berry Pie Recipe

During the summer months I love to enjoy the fresh fruits of the season through pies. Recently I had used some black raspberries for jam and didn't have quite enough left over to make a pie with, but still wanted to incorporate them into my baking. Then I remembered reading a recipe for a sour cream berry pie in the Mennonite Community Cookbook. It seemed a somewhat unusual recipe and at first I was hesitant to give it a try. My curiosity got the better of me! Sour cream berry pie is a recipe I will keep on hand to bake often since it doesn't require as much fruit as a classic fruit pie. The texture is delicious and I found that the berries were still the main flavor of the pie.

Sour Cream Berry Pie:
2 1/2 cups elderberries or blackberries*
1 cup sugar**
2 tablespoons flour
1 cup sour cream
Pastry for 1 (9 inch) crust

Wash berries and place in an unbaked crust.
Combine sugar and flour.
Add sour cream and blend thoroughly.
Pour mixture over fruit.
Bake at 425 degrees for 15 minutes, reduce heat to 350 degrees and continue to bake for 30 minutes.

*I used 3 heaping cups of black raspberries.
**I used 3/4 cup of sugar. My berries were quite sweet and I felt an entire cup would be too much.

I look forward to baking this pie recipe again using different berries. I think red raspberries would be wonderful. Come September I hope to make the elderberry variation too!

 This recipe can be found in the Mennonite Community Cookbook. I purchased the 65th Anniversary Edition a couple of years ago. It is a lovely cookbook. Some of the recipes are a bit more old-fashioned than what I would typically cook, but there are still many that are timeless and delicious!

What new recipes are you enjoying this summer?

Black Raspberries and Clematis

This summer we have been abundantly blessed with delicious raspberries, both red and black. Ever since I was a little girl black raspberries have been a favorite. For many years they grew wild along the edge of my mom's yard. My sisters and I loved to pick and eat blackberries on hot summer days. Very often we had enough for a pie too.

About four years ago Adam planted both red and black raspberries at our home. In the picture above you can see the row of black raspberries to the left and red to the right.

It has taken time, but it is certainly a blessing to see the bushes reach their full potential and produce enough berries to be useful.

We had enough berries to make two batches of jam (20 jars). I love making lots of jam each year. Family and friends are always pleased to receive a jar of jam. I feel like it is a way to preserve some of summer for the winter months.

Each year my clematis brings me so much joy! The previous owners of our home planted the clematis. It was a lovely surprise the first summer we lived here.

"He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also He has put eternity in their hearts, except that no one can find out the work that God does from beginning to end." Ecclesiastes 3:11

Elderberries and Bluebirds

 It has been a while since I last posted here. Life has been busy and my blog always seems to take last place on my list of priorities. Between finishing up our homeschool year, gardening, homemaking, sewing and just enjoying my family, the months have moved along too quickly for my liking!

 Today I thought I would share some pictures of our elderberry bushes. Some may remember back to when Adam first planted the bushes in 2017. I am amazed how they have grown so huge in just three years! We will have to use a ladder to reach the uppermost berries.

 The blossoms are as large as my hand and they smell absolutely heavenly! In fact you can smell their fragrance several feet away, especially on these warm summer evenings. We are excited, and hopeful, for a grand harvest of elderberries this September.

 We have been delighted with our little family of Eastern bluebirds that have nested in one of our bluebird boxes this year. It may be hard to see them clearly in this picture, but there are four babies. The baby on the lower left hand side is beginning to show blue feathers.

Eastern bluebirds are very special to me. My grandma and mom were some of the first in our area to place bluebird boxes in their yard, about 30 years ago now. Both studied bluebirds and were very attentive to each bluebird family that nested on their properties. I remember one year a family of baby bluebirds had become wet and dirty due to a tremendous rain storm. My mom and grandma worked together to gently clean the babies and create a fresh nest from grass clippings that had been left from mowing the lawn. At the time it seemed a bit risky, but they did a great job. All of the babies survived and eventually left the nest.

 Hopefully I will share a post dedicated to our garden in the near future. Adam had outdone himself this year! Despite the lack of rain we have had in our area, our garden is thriving. Praise the Lord! We are all eagerly anticipating the first tomatoes and corn on the cob of the season.

 The lettuce in the picture above was found in one of my flower beds. The seed must have been carried there by the wind. It made for a delicious salad.

 This was our best year yet for rhubarb. I was able to make two batches of vanilla-rhubarb jam. If you have yet to try this jam recipe I recommend you make a batch soon! It is by far the most delicious and unique jam I have ever tasted.

We love to sit outside in the evenings and watch the sunset. I thought this sunset was a beauty, however my picture pales in comparison to how the sunset looked in real life.

I hope you are all enjoying a beautiful summer surrounded by God's great creations!

"For the word of the Lord is right; and all his works are done in truth.
 He loveth righteousness and judgment: the earth is full of the goodness of the Lord.
 By the word of the Lord were the heavens made; and all the host of them by the breath of his mouth." Psalm 33: 4-6