Blueberries are a berry big deal in Waterloo region, and they're ready to pick: Jasmine Mangalaseril

Blueberries are a beloved fruit in Canada, growing in every province and territory, in a vast swath of land that stretches from the Atlantic to the Pacific.

Waterloo region's soil doesn't naturally support them, but in a less-than-two-hectare plot in rural New Hamburg, it's blueberry season right now.

"These berries were planted in 1986 by the previous owner of the property. He then sold the farm and the people who bought didn't want to do anything with the berries," said Rob Walker, who started Walker's Blueberries 15 years ago.

Blueberries grow in soils with pH levels of 4.2 to 5 — much more acidic than local soils are generally. Walker remediates the soil, but Mother Nature lends a hand.

"We're lucky here because the north edge of the property is bush and a lot of organic matter changed the soil type. But we have to keep testing and keep adding sulphur," he said.

The sweet and the savoury

Blueberries are a versatile addition to sweet dishes, and are often added to scones, muffins, jams and pies. But sometimes their vibrant colour gets dulled.

"The pH of a blueberry can change really easily, so if you're putting it in a muffin and it's interacting with the baking soda, it will turn kind of a greyish colour. To keep that bright blue colour, you'll add a little bit of acid. That can be lemon juice or even a little bit of vinegar. That will help keep the colour really bright," explained Lauren Edgar, pastry chef at The Blackshop in Cambridge.

She said using powdered, freeze-dried blueberries in buttercream icings, cheesecakes, and macarons can add a pop of blue. She also suggested tossing frozen blueberries in flour to help keep in the juices they tend to release.

If you're looking to use blueberries in a savoury way countering their sweetness can be a challenge.

Jon Rennie, co-owner and culinary director of Kitchener's Odd Duck Wine and Provisions, said blueberries add background flavour to sweet and sour gastriques that are used to cut through fat.

"You want to counter that with some amount of either acid or salt. Maybe a little bit of heat. So, you're kind of balancing sweet and sour or sweet and heat," Rennie said.

Keeping with the sweet and tart idea, quick blueberry pickles are one of Rennie's favourite things to do with the fruit. Simply boil and cool a brine made with spices, sugar and salt. Then pour it over the berries and let them sit for a week, to infuse flavours.

Plays well with blueberries

The chefs suggest these flavour pairings to help improve your blueberry game:

• Citrus
• Cheeses: brie, cream cheese, ricotta, sharp cheddar
• Florals: rose, lavender, lilac
• Miso (Lauren Edgar's recipe below)
• Herbs: basil (Thai, holy, tulsi), mint, parsley, tarragon
• Nuts

Blueberry cinnamon rolls with miso-cream cheese icing

Blueberry cinnamon rolls are a trend right now, and the miso in the icing complements their tart-sweetness, creating an almost savoury caramel flavour.

This recipe uses a tangzhong starter, a paste of flour cooked with milk and water. The result is a tender, almost marshmallowy crumb that stays soft for days.

Yield: 24 rolls

Preparation time (including resting): 2½ to 3 hours

Baking time: 25 minutes

Ingredients:

For the tangzhong/water roux

• 75 ml water
• 75 ml whole milk
• 25 g bread flour (50 ml)

 For the blueberry compote

• 290 g fresh blueberries (500 ml)
• Zest of 2 lemons
• 1 to 2 whole star anise, to taste
• 1 x 6 cm cinnamon stick
• 1 sprig thyme

For the filling:

• 150 g light brown sugar (190 ml)
• 4 teaspoons cinnamon

For the dough:

• One recipe tangzhong (above)
• 495 g bread flour (880 ml)
• 21 g instant milk powder (3 tablespoons)
• 1¾ teaspoons table salt (9 g)
• 180 ml whole milk
• 2 large eggs, beaten
• 85 g unsalted butter, melted (90 ml)
• 1 tablespoon traditional instant yeast (9 g)

 For the assembly

• 28 g to 55 g softened unsalted butter, as needed
• Sliced almonds or something crunchy (optional)

 For the miso-cream cheese icing

• 250 g cream cheese, softened
• 30 g white miso paste (2 tablespoons)
• 145 g icing sugar, sifted (250 ml)
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 to 3 tablespoons milk, as needed

WATCH | How-to with Lauren Edgar:

Learn how to make blueberry cinnamon rolls with Blackshop's Lauren Edgar

4 months ago

Duration 2:37

Lauren Edgar, the pastry chef at Blackshop in Cambridge, shows how she likes to make blueberry cinnamon rolls.

Instructions:

Make the tangzhong:

• Whisk together water, milk, and flour in a small saucepan, until no lumps remain.
• Place saucepan over medium heat. Whisk constantly as it thickens. After about 2 minutes, draw a line through the mixture with a spoon, on the bottom of the pan. If it doesn't fill in, remove from heat and cool until hand-hot (5 minutes or longer).

 While the tangzhong is cooling, make the blueberry compote:

• Add blueberries, lemon zest, star anise, cinnamon stick and thyme to a small saucepan. Simmer while stirring, until aromatic, approximately 5 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside to cool.

 Then make the filling:

• Combine brown sugar and cinnamon. Set aside.

When the tangzhong has cooled, make the dough:

• Place tangzhong in a mixing bowl. Add flour, milk powder, salt, milk, eggs, butter, and yeast. Mix until it comes together (this will take a couple of minutes in a stand mixer).
• Cover and rest for 20 minutes, to let the flour absorbs the liquid (this will make it easier to knead).
• Knead dough until elastic and somewhat sticky, approximately 5 minutes in a stand mixer.
• Shape dough into a ball. Place in a lightly buttered bowl and cover. Rest on the counter for 60 to 90 minutes, until puffy but not necessarily doubled in bulk.

Make and bake the cinnamon rolls

• When risen, gently deflate the dough. Divide in half.
• *Lightly flour your counter and take one piece and roll into a 45 x 20 cm (approx 18" x 8") rectangle. Brush or spread with butter on the surface, edge to edge. Spread half the compote on top, leaving a 2 cm (a little less than an inch) edge. Sprinkle half the cinnamon filling over top.
• Roll the rectangle by the long edge into a log. When done, pinch the edge to form a seam. With the seam underneath, cut the log into 12 equal slices. Place each piece in a muffin tin or lightly grease a 23 x 33 cm (9" x 13") pan and space the rolls in the pan.
• Repeat from * with the second piece of dough, and remaining compote and filling.
• Cover pans and let rise for 45 to 60 minutes, until they are quite puffy.
• 10 minutes before the rise is done, preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F.
• When the buns are done rising, uncover and bake for 22 to 25 minutes until they feel set (a thermometer inserted into the centre should read 86°C/188°F). They won't necessarily have a lot of colour (that's okay: it's better to underbake these rolls than overbake them).

Make the miso-cream cheese icing while the rolls bake.

• In a bowl, beat together cream cheese and miso. Beat in icing sugar a few spoons at a time. Add vanilla and continue beating. If the icing is too thick, add just enough milk to make a thick spreadable icing.

Finishing the rolls

• When cooked, remove rolls from oven and turn them onto a cooling rack. Spread with icing while hot so the icing partially melts into the rolls. Top with optional crunchy almonds or devour as-is.

Recipe adapted from PJ Hamel.