A bunch of blackberries on the vine features varying levels of ripeness, including seven plump, ripe black berries.

Blackberry Pie

Servings:
10 Slices

Prep Time:
15 minutes

Cook Time:
45 minutes

Blackberries are an invasive species that should never be planted in Oregon gardens. But established thickets of blackberries fill unmaintained spaces throughout Portland. Every August, white flowers give way to abundant black berries. You can make as many blackberry pies as you pick berries for.

Ingredients

  • 9″ Double Pie Crust (recommended recipe)
  • 4 – 6 Cups Fresh Blackberries
  • 1/2 Cup White Sugar
  • 1/2 Cup All Purpose Flour
  • 1/2 tsp. Cinnamon

Directions

  1. Prepare the lower pie crust. Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
  2. Mix the berries with the flour, sugar, and spices in a large bowl until evenly moistened.
  3. Place the upper crust. Solid top crusts work best for blackberry pies.
  4. Bake for 45 minutes until the crust is golden brown.
Blackberry filling oozes from a golden-brown pie crust sitting on a solid wood railing overlooking a sunny grass yard.

Several bright yellow pattypan squash grow from thick green vines of a robust plant.

Stuffed Pattypan Squash

Servings:
6

Prep Time:
30 minutes

Cook Time:
45 minutes

Summer squash offer bountiful opportunities for vegetable-forward dishes. Stuffed pattypan squashes offer mildly sweet flavor along with vibrant yellow color. Other varieties such as Delicata squash also work well. Stuff a few exceptionally large squashes or a plethora of smaller specimens. The filling is flexible – look for a good mix of colors and textures and a variety of flavors to compliment the squash.

Ingredients

  • 3 large (at least 6″ diameter) pattypan squashes (or more, smaller squashes)
  • 2 bell peppers
  • 2 cups brussels sprouts (or other filler vegetable)
  • 1 medium yellow onion
  • 3/4 cup lentils
  • 1 (2-cup) Jar tomato sauce
  • 1 1/2 cups coarsely-chopped walnuts
  • Olive oil, as needed
  • 2 tsp. Cumin
  • 1 1/2 tsp. Salt
  • 1 tsp. paprika
  • 1 tsp. cayenne
  • black pepper, to taste

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Remove a small amount of the stem and base of each squash, so that it can sit flat. Slice each squash in half longitudinally to create a disk shape. Remove the seeds to create a filling cavity.
  2. Place the squashes opening-up on a baking sheet. Brush with a liberal blend of olive oil, cumin, paprika, and half the salt. Bake in preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes, until beginning to darken.
  3. Finely dice the peppers, sprouts, and onion. Sauté in olive oil with the remaining spices until reduced to about half of its volume (about 10 minutes). Remove from heat.
  4. Bring tomato sauce to a boil in a small pot. Add the lentils and cook for about 6 minutes, until liquid is fully absorbed. Remove from heat.
  5. Mix the lentils into the vegetable medley. Place into the squashes, mounding as needed. Top with the walnuts. Return to the oven for 15 to 20 minutes until walnuts are golden brown.
Colorful stuffing fills a bright yellow disk of pattypan squash on a blue plate in a brick-paved garden.
Ripening blueberries adorn a crisscross of branches.

Blueberry Pancakes

Servings:
20 Pancakes
(about 6 servings)

Prep Time:
15 minutes

Cook Time:
30 minutes

Fresh blueberries add a bright pop to these thick and fluffy pancakes.

Ingredients

  • 3 Cups Fresh Blueberries
  • 2 Cups AP Flour
  • 1/4 Cup White Sugar
  • 2 Tsp. Baking Powder
  • 1 Tsp. Baking Soda
  • 1/2 Tsp. Salt
  • 1 Cup Milk
  • 3/4 Cup Sour Cream
  • 2 Tbsp . White Vinegar
  • 2 Eggs
  • 1 Tsp. Vanilla

Note: sour cream may be substituted with additional 1/2 cup milk and 1 tbsp vinegar.

Directions

  1. Mix flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl.
  2. Add the vinegar to the milk and let rest for a few minutes, allowing to curdle. Whisk in the eggs and vanilla with a fork.
  3. Stir the sour cream into the milk mixture then mix into the dry ingredients. Do not overmix.
  4. Preheat a skillet to medium heat, so that butter immediately sizzles but does not brown. Coat the pan with butter before each batch. Drop the batter by large spoonfulls and cook for a few minutes on each side until golden brown.
A stack of golden-brown pancakes filled with oozing blueberries sits on a blue plate over a contoneaster-covered concrete wall.
A zigzag of leafy branches is adorned with clusters of ripe red cherries.

Fresh Cherry Pie

Servings:
12 Thin Slices

Prep Time:
90 minutes (including pitting)

Cook Time:
60 minutes

Fresh cherry pies are a delicacy that can usually only be offered once a year (unless you have more than a few productive trees). Accordingly they deserve more effort than other pies. A hint of lemon balances sweeter varieties such as Rainier. From pitting the cherries one-by-one to layering an intricate lattice crust, this pie is well worth the extra effort. And probably my favorite, but don’t tell pumpkin!

Ingredients

  • 9″ Double Pie Crust (recommended recipe)
  • 4 – 6 Cups Fresh Cherries (any variety, preferably a mix)
  • 3/4 Cup White Sugar
  • 3 Tablespoons Cornstarch
  • Zest and Juice of One Lemon
  • 2 Tablespoons Butter
  • A few drops of almond extract

Directions

  1. Prepare the lower pie crust, allowing ample crust margins, and place in refrigerator.
  2. Pit the cherries and place in a metal saucepan. A cherry pitter is a must-have.
  3. Mix sugar and cornstarch into the cherries and let rest until juicy, about 10 minutes.
  4. Add the lemon juice to the filling and place over medium heat, stirring constantly. Allow to boil for one minute, then remove from heat, continuing to stir. Remove from heat if juices thicken completely before boiling. Note: the filling is forgiving if you cook for too long as long as you stir continuously.
  5. Mix in the lemon zest, butter, and almond extract. Allow the filling to mostly cool.
  6. Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. while cutting the upper crust dough into lattice strips with a serrated pastry wheel. Fill the bottom crust and layer the lattice on top.
  7. Bake for 45 minutes to an hour until crust is golden brown and filling is oozing.
A cherry pie with red filling oozing through a tight diagonal lattice crust

Five small round pumpkins fill a wooden basket in front of a white picket fence.

Pumpkin Bread

Servings:
18 Large Muffins or 5 Mini Loaves

Prep Time:
15 minutes

Cook Time:
45 minutes

Home-grown pumpkins are great for a variety of uses. Pumpkin bread is a moist pastry that goes well with morning coffee. This recipe emphasizes the pumpkin-to-bread ratio and features a warm blend of complimentary spices. The resulting bread is light and fluffy.

Ingredients

  • 2 1/2 cups pumpkin puree (fresh pumpkin instructions)
  • 3 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
  • 2 cups dark brown sugar
  • 1 cup canola oil
  • 3 eggs
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • Spice blend:
    • 2 tsp cinnamon
    • 1 tsp allspice
    • 1/2 tsp cloves
    • 1/2 tsp nutmeg

Directions

  1. Whisk sugar, eggs, and oil together. Add pumpkin and beat until monolithic.
  2. In a separate bowl, mix all remaining (dry) ingredients with a fork.
  3. Add the dry ingredients to the wet mix gradually, whisking constantly until the batter reaches a mouse-like consistency.
  4. Distribute to buttered baking vessels as desired. Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 30 minutes for large muffins, 45 minutes for mini loaves, or 60 minutes for a full loaf, or until a toothpick comes out clean.
A sunlit golden brown pumpkin bread muffin sits on a small blue and white plate on a weathered cedar deck.
Freshly-harvested white onions, Purple Cherokee tomatoes, and jalapeno peppers in a garden basket.

Purple Cherokee Salsa

Servings:
Variable

Prep Time:
15 minutes

Cook Time:
N/A

Garden-fresh Purple Cherokee tomatoes bring a deep and balanced flavor to homemade salsa. Nearly all of the ingredients can be grown in Oregon gardens.

Ingredients

  • 4 parts Purple Cherokee tomatoes, chopped
  • 1 part jalapeno peppers, finely chopped
  • 1 part yellow or white onions, finely chopped
  • Juice of 2-4 limes, to taste
  • Fresh cilantro, to taste
  • Salt and pepper, to taste

Directions

  1. Start by chopping the onions. Marinate the onions in lime juice while preparing the other elements.
  2. Add the chopped jalapenos to the onions and lime. Include some seeds for hotter salsa.
  3. Chop the cilantro and add to the mixture along with salt and pepper.
  4. Add the chopped tomatoes with all juices and seeds. Ensure that the flesh and skin is consistently cut into pieces no larger than 1/4″ in any dimension.
  5. Refrigerate for at least one hour, preferably one day, before using to allow the flavors to blend.
Purple Cherokee Salsa in a blue and white bowl on a stainless steel countertop.

Purple Cherokee Tomatoes also make delicious Tomato Sauce for a variety of applications.

Dozens of rain-soaked green Jalapeno peppers grow on a plant supported by a wooden stake.

Jalapeno Quinoa Sausage Stew

Servings:
8

Prep Time:
20 minutes

Cook Time:
55 minutes

This stew blends several garden vegetables with sausage and quinoa for a rich, filling meal.

Ingredients

  • 3 Medium Onions
  • 12 Jalapeno Peppers
  • 1 (Quart) Jar of Tomato Base
  • 1 12-oz Kielbasa Sausage
  • 1-2 Cups Quinoa

Directions

  1. Chop onions and saute in olive oil over medium-high heat for about 10 minutes.
  2. Halve, seed, and slice the jalapenos. Add to the onions and continue cooking for another 10 minutes or so.
  3. Thinly slice the sausage, add to to the onions and vegetables, and cook until the sausage has lightly browned and the onions have softened into a sauce.
  4. Add the tomato base and reduce to low heat. Stir in the quinoa and cover for 20 minutes.
  5. When the quinoa has cooked, uncover and stir. Continue cook for a few more minutes if needed until most of the liquid has cooked down.
Jalapeno Quinoa Sausage Stew in a blue bowl on a sunlit wooden table with the shadow of Jacaranda tree leaves.
Three freshly-harvested pumpkins sit on a concrete curb between a gravel pathway and a backdrop of green plants.

Fresh Pumpkin Pie

Servings:
8 Slices

Prep Time:
15 minutes

Cook Time:
45 minutes

Pumpkin pie is a delicious and easy-to-make treat. Home-grown pumpkins lend a surprising freshness to the pie. Play with a variety of spices to enhance the pumpkin pie flavor.

Ingredients

  • 9″ Single Pie Crust (recommended recipe)
  • 20 oz (about 2 1/2 cups) Pumpkin Puree (fresh pumpkin instructions below)
  • One 14-oz Can Sweetened Condensed Milk
  • 2 eggs
  • Spices

Directions

  1. For garden-fresh pumpkins, start by making the pumpkin puree. This puree can be frozen, thawed, and used to make fresh pumpkin pies throughout the year. Volume yield depends heavily on the size and variety of pumpkins. Leftovers are easily made into a flexible-ratio pumpkin soup.
    1. Cut the top and bottom off of the pumpkin and remove the seeds and guts. Rinse the seeds, then salt and oven-roast until golden-brown.
    2. Cut the pumpkin into large slices and place them in a glass baking dish with the skin on. Roast at 350 degrees for about 90 minutes, until soft when pressed with a fork. Longer roasting will induce caramelization, providing a deeper, richer flavor and resulting in a color closer to the traditional orange for the pie filling. Roasting until just soft offers a fresher flavor and an unusually-yellow pie color.
    3. Allow the pumpkin slices to cool, and peel off the skin. Also remove any portions of the flesh that became hard when roasting.
    4. Puree the roasted pumpkin until very smooth.
  2. Roll out the single pie crust and place into the pie pan. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
  3. Whisk together the pumpkin, eggs, sweetened condensed milk, and spices until uniform and slightly foamy. Pour into the prepared crust.
  4. Bake for about 60 minutes until pumpkin custard is set and lightly browned. Rotate as required to evenly brown the crust.
  5. Serve at room temperature or chilled with freshly-whipped cream.
A slice of fresh pumpkin pie on a navy blue plate on a vertical-grain Douglas Fir table with a view of a white picket fence out the window.

A sea of freshly-roasted pumpkin seeds
Bright sunlight illuminates a branch of ripe plums on the tree, in front of a towering backdrop of dark-leaved oak trees.

Spiced Plum Crisp

Servings:
4 – 6 (11″ x 7″)
6 – 8 (13″ x 9″)

Prep Time:
10 minutes

Cook Time:
45 minutes

Plum tree owners face an abundance of sweet, ripe fruit in summer and early fall. This plum crisp is a flexible way to transform fresh plums into a rich dessert. Plums of any variety and state of ripeness work well.

Ingredients

  • At least 20 (up to 80) fresh plums. Use any variety available, ideally a blend.
  • 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/4 tsp nutmeg
  • 1/4 tsp cloves
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 4 tbsp butter

Directions

  1. Halve plums, removing pits, and place skin side down in a glass baking dish. Fill the dish in 1 – 2 layers. Either an 11″ x 7″ or 13″ x 9″ dish will work depending on the volume.
  2. Melt butter. Mix flour and spices into the melted butter. Note that added sugar is not necessary as long as the plums are ripe.
  3. Brake the crisp mixture into small pieces and sprinkle over the plums. Arrange so that the juices will partially soak into the crisp.
  4. Bake at 375 degrees Fahrenheit for around 45 minutes until all of the plum flesh has been dyed a rich red color by the skins (this requires the fruit to cook down significantly).
  5. Cool and serve slightly warm. Top with fresh honey-sweetened whipped cream or vanilla bean ice cream.
Vibrant purple spiced plum crisp glistens in a glass dish over a reflective cedar deck.
A wooden basket sitting on a gravel pathway is filled with a rainbow of heirloom tomatoes, from Dr. Wychee's Yellow to Purple Cherokee.

Tomato Sauce

Bountiful late-summer tomato harvests typically exceed a volume that can be effectively eaten fresh. Surplus and misshapen tomatoes are easily converted into a base tomato sauce that can be canned, jarred, or frozen for up to one year. The resulting rich, sweet sauce can be used in place of canned tomatoes in sauces and other dishes year-round.

Tomato Sauce Base

Start with a varied blend of garden-fresh tomatoes. Cut tomatoes into 1-inch cubes or smaller, removing the stems and any damaged or rotting portions. Then, place them into a glass baking dish, up to 2/3 full. Crack black pepper evenly over the tomatoes and stir to blend the varieties. Optionally add whole cloves of garlic and/or garden-fresh basil depending on your intended future use.

Roast for 1 – 2 hours at 325 degrees Fahrenheit until tomatoes have reduced by at least half of their volume, stirring every 30 minutes. When done, can, jar, or bag and freeze the tomatoes for future use. Continue reading for a few suggestions.

Continue reading Tomato Sauce →
Ripe red raspberries hang from a branch suspended on decorative patio string lights. Wildfire smoke tints the scene red.

Raspberry Scones

Servings:
12

Prep Time:
20 minutes

Cook Time:
15 minutes

Fresh raspberries offer a tart burst of bright flavor in every bite of these tender fluffy scones.

Ingredients

  • 3-1/2 Cups AP Flour
  • 1/2 Cup White Sugar
  • 2 Tbsp. Baking Powder
  • 1/2 Tsp. Salt
  • 1 Tsp. Ground Allspice
  • 3/4 Cups Cold Butter
  • 1 Egg
  • 1 Cup Cream
  • 1/2 Tsp. Vanilla Extract
  • 1 Cup Raspberries, frozen to aid handling

Directions

  1. Mix flour, sugar, baking powder, allspice, and salt in a large bowl.
  2. Cut butter into 1/2″ square cubes and cut into dry ingredients with a pastry blender until most of the butter pieces have been incorporated.
  3. Whisk cream, egg, and vanilla together in a small bowl.
  4. Create a well in the pastry mixture and pour in the wet ingredients. Swiftly mix until just incorporated. Limit to 15-20 stirs to avoid toughening the pastry.
  5. Briefly knead, up to 10 times, and roll out into a 1″ thick rectangle. Press the raspberries into the dough at tight spacing covering half of the dough. Fold the other half over the raspberries.
  6. Refrigerate the dough for 30 minutes to allow the butter to harden and the raspberries to thaw. Cut the dough into 12 wedges, spread out, and bake at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 15 minutes until golden brown.
Freshly-baked raspberry scones on a sunlit stainless steel countertop.
One medium and two small orange freshly-harvested pumpkins sit on a concrete and gravel pathway in front of a concrete wall.

Pumpkin Soup

Servings:
Varies

Prep Time:
5 minutes

Cook Time:
35 minutes

This flexible-ratio pumpkin soup is a great way to use leftover pumpkin puree when making pies. Its earthy flavor is a great way to warm up an autumn or winter lunch. Adjust the flavoring agent ratios as desired to taste.

Ingredients

  • 2 Medium White or Yellow Onions
  • Turmeric
  • Cumin
  • Dijon Mustard
  • Dark Brown Sugar
  • 1 – 4 cups Vegetable Stock
  • 2 – 4 cups Pumpkin Puree (fresh pumpkin instructions)
  • 1 – 2 cans Garbanzo Beans

Directions

  1. Dice the onions and sautee in olive oil until golden brown. Mix in the turmeric, cumin, and dijon and cook until thick.
  2. Add the brown sugar, then de-glaze with vegetable stock or broth. Boil for about 10 minutes.
  3. Stir in the pumpkin puree and garbanzo beans. Cover and cook over low heat for 20 minutes, until garbanzo beans are done.
A small bowl of pumpkin soup on a wood table.
Three ripe zucchinis grow from a lush plant with several orange flowers

Zucchini Bread

Servings:
(1) 8-slice full-size loaf,
(4) 3-slide mini loaves, and
(6) large muffins

Prep Time:
20 minutes

Cook Time:
80 minutes

Zucchini plants consistently produce fresh squashes throughout the summer in Oregon gardens. Zucchini bread freezes well and serves as an excellent breakfast pastry for individuals or to share all year. Flaxseed meal and whole wheat flour enhance the zucchini bread flavor.

Ingredients

  • 4 – 6 Cups Shredded Zucchini (with juices)
  • 4 1/2 Cups Whole Wheat Flour
  • 3 Cups Packed Dark Brown Sugar
  • 1 1/2 Cups Flaxseed Meal
  • 2 Tsp. Salt
  • 1 Tbsp. Baking Soda
  • 1 Tbsp. Baking Powder
  • 2 Tbsp. Ground Cinnamon
  • 4 Eggs
  • 2 Cups Vegetable Oil
  • 2 Cups Plain Whole Greek Yogurt
  • 1 Tsp. Almond Extract

Optional Substitutions & Additions:

  • Substitute: 1 1/2 Cups Flour and 1 Egg for 1 1/2 Cups Flaxseed Meal
  • Substitute: 2 Cups Milk for 2 Cups Greek Yogurt
  • Add: 2 Cups Walnuts
  • Add: 1 1/2 Cups Chocolate Chips

Directions

  1. Mix all dry ingredients in a very large bowl.
  2. Mix wet ingredients, including eggs, in a medium bowl.
  3. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients along with the zucchini until the batter is just combined and no dry pockets remain.
  4. Bake at 350 degrees Farenheight until a fork comes out clean, approximately:
    • 35 min for large muffins
    • 50 min for mini loaves
    • 75 min for large/full-size loaves (reduce heat if required to prevent burning)
Zucchini bread loaves are stacked on a blue plate on a teak table in an outdoor garden.