23 Consider the Blueberry
“When you eat wild blueberries, make a mindful note that they’ve been graced by God and the universe, that they are a gift from above.”
Reflection
Gift from Great Spirit, beautiful silver and blue green green bushes produce singles and even clusters of silvery-blue, plum and smooth globes of goodness—the blueberry. Now grown world-wide, the blueberry is native to North America. Growing low and wild, it was first beloved by Native Americans who called it “star berry” because of the five pointed star at its blossom’s end, and enjoyed it as food and medicine.
The blueberry is kin to huckleberries, lingonberries, and cranberries. Mostly deciduous, there are hundreds of varieties of this bush which can be categorized into three main groups: the lowbush, the highbush, and the rabbiteye.
Only found in the wild until, in the twentieth century, Elizabeth White from New Jersey, partnered with Frederick Coville and together they produced the first cultivated blueberry crop in the world. The US is still the top grower of this fruit producing 90% of the total crop.
Eating the blueberry fruit or making a tea of the leaves has many benefits.
One of the first foods to be called a “superfood,” a cup of blueberries is only 85 calories and has a great nutrient profile. This fruit is packed with antioxidants. It is super high in vitamins C and K. Because of this, blueberries have been associated with several health benefits. Eating blueberries regularly reduces the risk of heart disease, cancer, and type 2 diabetes. Blueberries reduce inflammation, regulate weight, are great for the brain and the liver, and prolong life. Wild blueberries are a detoxifying food and draw out heavy metals from the body. They also are a powerful prebiotic. According to the Medical Medium, the wild blueberry is the greatest food on the planet and is our most secure form of food. I find it interesting that Native American elders too spoke of it as relief during famine. They also spoke of how of all the plants, the blueberry would be the first to grow after a wild fire reduced all to ash.
Considering all of this, the blueberry is a good food choice. How do you like to eat your blueberries? Put in the comments below - tell me your favorite way to eat them. I would like to know. Like all berries, I like to eat my blueberries raw. I usually enjoy a cup a day and prefer them as snacks or in my dinner salads. Here is a link to a great blueberry pudding recipe that I enjoy often: How to Make Blueberry Pudding. They also work well in smoothies or as nice cream or smoothie bowl toppings. I like to puree them into sauces and salad dressings. They are also a nice addition to overnight oats. People toss them into cereals, griddle them into pancakes or waffles, bake them into scones or muffins, and stir them into cooked oats; they preserve them too—into jams and jellies. My husband likes to blend them with tomatoes and dates to make a blueberry ketchup. One of the first blueberry recipes involved crushing them and mixing them with cornmeal.
Aside from eating, some people use their branches in flower arrangements.
Sources:
“Blueberry.” Funk & Wagnalls New World Encyclopedia, Jan. 2018, p. 1; EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=funk&AN=bl120800&site=eds-live.
Henderson, Tom. “A Brief History of Cultivated Blueberries.” Crain’s Detroit Business, vol. 36, no. 49, Dec. 2020, p. 34. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=b9h&AN=147525981&site=eds-live.
William, Anthony. “Wild Blueberry.” https://www.medicalmedium.com/blog/wild-blueberries. Assessed 21 June 2021.
Zanteson, Lori. “Blueberries--A Star Among Fruits.” Environmental Nutrition, vol. 44, no. 7, July 2021, p. 8. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=f5h&AN=150758579&site=eds-live.