Blog With Gigi

Family Well-Being, Thriving for a Better Living!

3 AMAZING EASY RECIPES WITH WILD BLUEBERRIES

… and why taking your kids pick their own wild berries to make them is a must!

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If you live on the East Coast or plan a trip there for the summer, you should consider going to Maine, as they have the most amazing super-food growing in the wild: Blueberries!

It has been harvested for centuries by natives of the region, and still is (check the Passamaquody Wild Blueberry Co.)! Maine has a lot of blueberry farms, some wild, others planted. However, wild doesn’t necessarily mean organic, as wild blueberry farmers might use chemicals too, so you should check about that first if organic is what you want. Plan your visit accordingly, but more on that later. Blueberries are the perfect season fruit to booster your family’s energy and delight kids and grown-ups alike with delicious recipes: pies, drinks and smoothies, ice-creams…

But wait, you might wonder why you should go for wild blueberries instead of your regular ones found around grocery stores everywhere to bake good stuffs with your kids this summer… Well, before diving into my yummy recipes, here is a few reasons why!

Why choosing wild blueberries is better

I could go the long length to tell you why wild blueberries are better, but a simple figure and a short video will do the job just fine! So, wild blueberries have 33% more antioxidants (anthocyanin) than ordinary ones, and here’s how you can recognize them:

In short, smaller, tastier, way better! Harvested is healthier than growned… But hold on, there’s even more in choosing wild over ordinary ones: it’s a good excuse to plan a trip to Maine this summer! I can help you plan your road trip on USA WITH GIGI. Now, let’s see where you can find some wild bluberries…

Where to find wild blueberries in Maine this summer

You can find pick-your-own farms and even some amazing festivals around Maine this summer. The state holds its Wild Blueberry weekend on August 5-6 this year. You can find a list of farms participating in this event here:
https://www.wildblueberries.com/where-to-buy/wild-blueberry-weekend/. Most of the farms aren’t organic though, so if you choose to pick-up-your-own there, it will likely be non-organic ones. Be aware of that. Some farms are still open after the festival for picking, other don’t offer any picking activity but are only selling their products directly to customers.
This festival is not the only one however, check out this list for interesting blueberry festivals around Maine:

ORGANIC WILD BLUEBERRY FARMS IN MAINE

Here is a list of some organic farms you can choose if you want to buy strictly certified organic wild blueberries:

Don’t be fooled and learn to recognize wild blueberries first-hand this summer!

3 amazing wild blueberry recipes to do with your kids

And now, here is my 3 favorite wild blueberry recipes that you can do with your kids after picking your own fruits. After all, they are the reasons you clicked on this post to begin with! So let the memories go on and delight your palate!

WILD BLUEBERRY YOGURT POPS

Try this recipe from Wild Blueberries’ website: Wild Blueberry Yogurt Pops – Wild Blueberries

My twist on this recipe? I make sure to get certified organic ingredients only, also reading my labels for the right ingredients. Instead of using regular yogurt, I use a certified organic plant based yogurt.

If I use chocolate, I prefer using organic dairy free dark chocolate. I also don’t use plastic for the mold and turn to stainless steel instead, like this one: Stainless Steel Popsicle Molds and Rack (affilate link)

MY VEGAN BLUEBERRY PANCAKES

You will only need 3 things for this recipe, as I like to avoid unnecessary flour and other ingredients in my pancakes. So I only use banana, chia seeds and I add blueberries while cooking.
Many people will use eggs instead of chia seeds but I prefer to go vegan whenever I can.

  • Mash 2 ripe bananas (the riper the better) in a mixing bowl with a fork.
  • Add 4 tablespoons of ground chia seeds (if you prefer, you can buy grounded chia seeds, but it is always better to grind them just before using them to avoid losing some of their nutritional properties)
  • Put 1 teaspoon of coconut oil in a heating frying pan (low heat)
  • Once it is melted, add a small scoop of the batter, and add some wild blueberries.
  • Flip each pancake after about 3 minutes. (Cook until golden on each side, making sure they are not burnt)

Serve immediately. Kids will absolutely love it!

MY BERRY SMOOTHIE

Again, a kid’s favorite! Blend the following ingredients in a good blender.

  • 1 cup of organic strawberries
  • 1 cup of organic wild blueberries
  • 1 squeezed organic large orange
  • 1 handful of organic spinach

If you need a good blender, try this one: Vitamix E310 Explorian Blender (affiliate link)

I have tried many in my life and found that it was by far the best. You can also use any other vitamix! (affiliate link)

For sure, you can choose to buy your blueberries, wild or not, at the grocery stores around the corner and do the recipes. But you’ll miss out all the fun and incredible learning experience you could offer your kids in going to an adventure around Maine’s wild blueberry farms! If you don’t have plans yet for this coming August, let me help you set up a road trip there! You will enjoy the benefits roadtrips have over plane trips (cheaper, no rental car costs…) and provide your families with memories to share forever!

Too busy to plan, or out of ideas? Ask me to help you out! Visit my trip planning website USAWITHGIGI.COM or click the button below:

Contact me and plan your road trip to Maine!

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