Blueberries!

 About five years ago, a friend gave my husband a couple of blueberry bushes and said fertilize them well and you will have blueberries in a few years.  We planted them, did the research on how to feed and water them, and even where in the yard to best plant them.  They didn't do a thing the first 2 years, but viola! last year we had a bumper crop!!  We netted them properly the third year when we discovered little berries, but waited too late and the birds got the most of them.   Last year we really put an effort in making sure we got the most of them and bough bird netting and covered them very well.

They are absolutely beautiful!  Big and plump and oh so sweet!  So after you get about 2 pints (4 cups) of blueberries you can start putting them up as they say in the canning/preserving world.

This year, instead of starting with jam, I decided to freeze some to have during the year and then make some jam later in the season.  Southern Living magazine is my go-to magazine for lots of recipes and in the May 2013 issue (I never throw them away!) in the "Test Kitchen" section in the back, they covered "Preserve the season's Harvest".  I am going to show you the Syrup Pack version.  The article says that the berries are like fresh picked after you thaw them in the
fridge.   So here goes!

The first step is to lightly rinse the berries and check for stems, leaves, bad berries, and drain them. 

Pack them in cleaned and sterilized wide-mouthed jars.    I sterilize my jars in the microwave for 30 seconds after cleaning them well with hot water.

Make the syrup:  It's 4 cups of cold water and 2 1/2 cups of sugar mixed together until the sugar is completely dissolved.  (See above)

Then pour the syrup into each jar over the berries saving a half inch for expansion during the freezing process.
 

Wipe clean the rim and place the cap on tightly. 

The don't forget to label your jars and place them in the freezer.   Freeze for up to 12 months.

When you want to use the frozen berries, just thaw them in the refrigerator overnight and voila!

Blueberries from our very own backyard, how nice is that??




Here's the recipe in short:

Freezer Blueberries
4 quart of cold water
2.5 cups of sugar
4 cups of freshly picked blueberries
4 wide-mouth canning jars with lids

Mix the sugar and water together until the sugar is completely dissolved.  Wash the berries gently and pick out stems, leaves, etc.   Wash and sanitize the jars and lids.  Pack blueberries in each jar, pour the syrup over the berries up to a half inch from the top. Wipe each rim with a damp clean cloth and seal with lid.  Freeze up to 12 months.   Thaw in fridge overnight to use as fresh berries.