Loving these local lovelies

In the summertime, I keep my diet as simple as possible. I tend to eat fresh local produce in its natural state, enjoying fruits and veggies straight from the garden or from the nearby farmers market.

Last week, I shared one of my favorite ways to jazz up our abundance of tomatoes, while today, I'll share a couple fun ideas for the blackberries I received from a family friend (no, not Jeff, although he and Helen do an excellent job of tending to their own yummy berries, as seen in the above pic). I'm just loving these local lovelies.

To start, it's fun to serve up these mock "caviar" rounds, utilizing the cucumbers that are also in season.

Blackberry "Caviar"
on Cucumber Rounds
cucumbers, sliced into rounds
blackberries, with center removed
sea salt (optional)

Arrange the cucumber slices on a plate, and top with separated blackberries. Add a touch of sea salt, although not necessary (especially if you have good quality ingredients).

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Next up is another recipe that's inspired by the shape of these "bubbly" berries. I added some chia seeds from Natural Zing to mimic the round blackberry pieces. It's such a breeze to make that I call it my Chiaberry Breeze.

Chiaberry Breeze
About 1 cup blackberries, centers removed
1-2 Tbsp. chia seeds
drizzle of agave nectar (or other favorite sweetener)
touch of vanilla
dash of sea salt
1-2 Tbsp. water, as needed

Place the separated blackberries in a small glass. Using a spoon, muddle the berries to remove some of the juice, while still leaving many of the berries intact.

Add the chia seeds, agave, vanilla and sea salt. Stir to combine. This mixture should still be a little runny, so add a little water, if needed.

Refrigerate for about an hour, so it can gel. Garnish with a few whole berries. And, as usual, enjoy!

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Shannonmarie, a.k.a. "Rawdorable," also posts on her blog of the same name, http://rawdorable.blogspot.com/.