HUCKLEBERRIES

Season: Late summer through fall

There seems to be some confusion about the difference between huckleberries and blueberries because the two names are used interchangeably for some wild blueberries. Most people can quickly distinguish cultivated blueberries from their wild cousins: the cultivated ones are larger and juicier. But what do you call the small, thick-skinned, tangy, blue-colored wild berries?

Botanists, of course, make a specific differentiation between huckleberries and blueberries. The botanists’ huckleberry, Gaylusaccia, grows mostly east of the Rockies; its defining characteristic is the ten hard, bony seeds each berry contains, seeds that crunch hard when you bite down on them. There are more than forty native species of true huckleberries; the most commonly found is the black huckleberry, G. baccata, which grows from the Atlantic Coast west to Wisconsin, north into Canada, and as far south as Louisiana. Black huckleberries have been found growing wild around Chicago. They also sometimes grow in the same areas as wild blueberries, where they are considered weeds when their large-seeded fruit gets harvested along with the small-seeded blueberries. Black huckleberry bushes grow about three feet tall and have many delicate branches bearing dotted leaves, slender reddish flowers, and shiny black fruit. Black huckleberries ripen in late spring and early summer, as do most other species of wild huckleberries.

Very few true huckleberries are found west of the Mississippi. Most western “huckleberries” are members of the genus Vaccinium, which also includes blueberries and cranberries, as well as the English whortleberry, the Danish bilberry, the French myrtille, and the Scandinavian lingonberry. Twelve species of Vaccinium can be found in Washington and Oregon, and their fruit can be red, blue, or black. The berries can be variously produced, either in clusters or along the branches one by one. The best of these wild berries is the thin-leafed huckleberry, V. membranaceum, which bears small, sweet, aromatic berries singly on its branches. Another choice species is the Cascade huckleberry, V. deliciosum.

Very few huckleberries are cultivated; almost all are gathered from the wild. They produce their most abundant crops in sunny forest clearings, burned areas, or at the edges of woods. The huckleberries we use at Chez Panisse are both wild and truly organic, foraged from the slopes of the Cascade Mountains in Washington and Oregon between mid-August and early October.

Individuals who pick berries on public lands in the Cascades and elsewhere are subject to a limit of three gallons of huckleberries per year in certain areas. I doubt if the casual picker ever accumulates much more than a quart, since huckleberries are very tiny and only hand-picking is allowed. Pickers who sell wild berries must obtain a Special Forest Product permit.

Some wild varieties are available for home planting from nurseries that specialize in berries. And some states allow starts of the black huckleberry, G. baccata, to be transplanted from the wild. Whether you harvest all your homegrown huckleberries or not, G. baccata bushes are very attractive as landscape plants and provide food for birds and other wildlife.

Wild huckleberries are sometimes found in specialty produce markets in the early fall. Look for whole, plump berries that have not started to ooze juice. Their color may vary from red to purple to black, depending on the variety. When you get them home, lay them out on a sheet of parchment paper or some other clean, disposable surface and pick over them, sorting out and discarding any tiny stems and extraneous leaves, twigs, and such. Huckleberries keep very well in the refrigerator, but if you won’t be using them within a couple of days, it is a good idea to freeze them. They can be taken directly from the freezer and used as you would fresh berries.

Because of their tart flavor and tough skin (and the large seeds of true huckleberries), huckleberries of all kinds are better eaten cooked than raw. A cupful of wild huckleberries is enough to strongly flavor an apple or pear crisp, and huckleberry preserves and syrups have an intense unusual wild flavor. The bony seeds of true huckleberries are easily strained out once the berries are puréed. Huckleberry purée also makes ice cream and sherbet with concentrated flavor and a pleasing tartness. And a few huckleberries can always be folded into muffin or pancake batter. The affinity of huckleberries for wild game has been observed for a long time: the first European explorers of Wisconsin described Native Americans using huckleberries to thicken and flavor game stews.

APPLE HUCKLEBERRY CRISP

2½ pounds apples (we use a combination of Golden Delicious and Pippin)

¾ cup huckleberries

1 tablespoon flour

¼ cup sugar

3 cups crisp topping

Preheat the oven to 375°F.

Peel and core the apples and slice them into ¼-inch wedges. Toss the apples, huckleberries, flour, and sugar in a large mixing bowl. Transfer the fruit to an ovenproof earthenware dish large enough to hold the mixture, slightly mounded at the center. Spoon the topping evenly over the mixture, pressing down lightly to form a crust and leaving no fruit exposed. Put the dish on a baking sheet to catch any overflowing juices, or wrap the bottom of the baking dish with aluminum foil, folding the sides up and around the rim to catch the drips.

Bake on the center rack of the oven for 45 to 55 minutes, until the topping is dark golden brown and the juices have thickened slightly. Serve warm with lightly sweetened cream or ice cream.

Serves 6.

Variations: Other fruits may be substituted in the same general proportions, but some fruits may require more or less sugar and flour, depending on their natural sweetness and juiciness. Peaches, for example, require more flour and less sugar.

GRILLED SQUAB WITH HUCKLEBERRY SAUCE

6 fresh whole squab

Olive oil

1 carrot, peeled and roughly chopped

1 onion, peeled and roughly chopped

1 stalk celery, sliced

1 cup red wine

¼ teaspoon peppercorns

1 clove

2 allspice berries

1 branch thyme

5 cups chicken stock

Salt and pepper

3 tablespoons sweet wine

¼ cup white wine

2 cups huckleberries

2 tablespoons port

Preheat the oven to 400°F.

Cut the thighs and legs off the pigeons and remove the breast meat; cover and refrigerate. Spread the boned carcasses on a roasting pan and roast at 400°F. until completely browned, about 35 to 45 minutes. Pour off the fat and reserve the pan to be deglazed later. Chop up the browned bones or, better yet, pound them in a big mortar or smash them up at low speed in the bowl of a standing electric mixer fitted with a paddle.

Heat a bit of olive oil in a heavy-bottomed stockpot and cook the carrot, onion, and celery until browned and softened. Add the red wine, peppercorns, clove, allspice, and thyme. Bring to a boil and reduce by half. Meanwhile, deglaze the roasting pan with a little chicken stock, scraping up all the brown bits, and add to the reducing wine along with the bones and the rest of the stock. Simmer, skimming off any scum that rises to the top. Cook for 2½ to 3 hours. Strain, pressing down on the bones to extract as much liquid and flavor as possible. This can all be done a day ahead.

Season the squab parts generously with salt and pepper and toss them in a bowl with the sweet and white wines. Marinate for at least 2 hours.

Simmer the huckleberries and port together until the berries are soft and juicy, about 10 to 15 minutes. Pass through a food mill.

Skim off any fat from the squab stock. Bring the stock to a boil and reduce to 1 cup. Season with salt and add the huckleberry purée to taste.

Prepare a wood or charcoal fire. Grill the squab over medium-hot coals. Start with the legs, skin side up; this helps seal the skin around the legs. Cook for 6 minutes, turn them over, and cook for 6 more minutes. Place the breasts on the grill, skin side down, and grill about 5 minutes, until golden; turn them over and grill just a minute or two more. Squab breasts taste the very best grilled medium-rare. Let them sit for 5 minutes before slicing. Serve the legs and sliced breasts on a warm platter with the sauce ladled over.

Serves 6.

HUCKLEBERRY ICE CREAM

Be sure to wear an apron: huckleberry stains are difficult to remove.

6 egg yolks

1 cup half-and-half

1¼ cups sugar

2 cups heavy cream, chilled

2 cups huckleberries

4 teaspoons lemon juice

Optional: 2 teaspoons kirsch

In a mixing bowl, whisk the egg yolks just enough to break them up. Gently heat the half-and-half and ¾ cup sugar in a nonreactive saucepan, stirring slowly over low heat until the half-and-half is steaming and the sugar is dissolved. Drizzle the warm mixture into the egg yolks, whisking constantly as you pour.

Measure the heavy cream into the mixing bowl. Return the half-and-half and egg yolk mixture to the saucepan and place over low heat. Stirring slowly and scraping the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon or heat-resistant rubber spatula, cook the mixture until it thickens enough to coat the spoon. Immediately remove the mixture from the heat and strain through a fine-mesh sieve into the mixing bowl, whisking it into the cold heavy cream. Cover and chill thoroughly.

Stir together the berries and ½ cup sugar in a saucepan. Cook over medium heat until the sugar is dissolved and the berries have released their juices. Pass the berries through a food mill. Stir the berry purée into the chilled ice cream base. Stir in the lemon juice and kirsch, if using, and freeze according to the instructions for your ice cream maker.

Makes about 1 quart.