Last weekend I picked blueberries for the first time this season. On the way up the trail we passed a couple leaving with a container of berries and asked them how the picking was. They said it wasn't very good: that the berries were small and there weren't many and you had to go off the trail to find them. A few other people have reported similar conditions lately after going picking. But then we quickly found a sweet spot right near the trail and realized the opposite- there were lots and lots of big delicious blueberries! After a couple of hours in the sunshine we left with 2 liters. That's a good afternoon's work I think. Maybe other people haven't been finding good spots like we did, or more likely they are just keeping their amazing blueberry spots a secret. If it's the second , then I can understand; a good spot is a treasure worth protecting. But I'll be honest with you, there are lots waiting for you (although I'm not saying where) and they are DELICIOUS!
Most of ours will be frozen for the wintertime but a cup of them got used last night to make these cookies. These cookies don't need a lot of explanation- they're just plain awesome. If you make them you may want to keep them secret like your blueberry picking spot, or they won't last long.
This recipe is adapted from Blueberry Almond Cookies on Eat Yet?. In the Eat Yet? recipe they didn't use coconut and did use almond extract, so check that one out for a slightly different cookie. I think it would work out substituting oats for the almond flour and coconut if you'd rather make these oatmeal cookies. If you do that, post a comment and let me know.
Blueberry Almond Coconut Cookies
3/4 cup vegetable shortening or margarine
3/4 cup sugar (we used fair trade organic sugar)
1 tsp cinnamon
1 egg
3/4 cup almond flour
1/4 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
1 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
pinch of salt
1 cup fresh NL blueberries
(Warning: a comment on the Eat Yet? recipe said not to use frozen berries because the cookies didn't work out. So this recipe is probably best with fresh, local blueberries.)
Preheat your oven to 350°. Cream together shortening, sugar, and cinnamon. Beat the egg and then mix it into the shortening mixture. Slowly incorporate the almond flour, coconut, flour, baking powder and salt into the mixture. It will form a heavy cookie dough. Gently mix in the blueberries being careful not to mash them. (Tip: if you lightly coat the blueberries in some of the flour before mixing them in, they'll retain their shape better in baking). Roll the dough into balls, whatever size you like your cookies. Flatten them out slightly. I baked them on top of parchment paper on a cookie sheet to make sure they wouldn't stick. Bake for 20 minutes or until slightly browned. These are soft cookies that will not harden too much after cooling so handle with care. We ended up with 18 medium sized, super yummy cookies.
Enjoy!
