Homemade Blueberry Compote (or smoothie!)
Blueberries are quite expensive, but many people buy them in punnets, and if not eaten, this causes food waste. Those who buy blueberries throw away around 336 each year, due to buying too many (most are sold pre-packaged) or not eating them quickly enough.
Homemade Blueberry Compote (The Simple Veganista) is a great way to use up leftover berries. You can cook up fresh or frozen berries with lemon and sugar, to make a tasty topping for porridge, pancakes or vegan ice-cream.
Only rinse blueberries just before eating (the ‘silvery bloom’ is what protects them). Once bought, they only keep in the fridge for a few days.
Who Should Avoid Eating Blueberries?
Most people are fine with eating blueberries, though should be avoided for babies, young children and those at risk of choking.
Avoid if on certain medications (blood thinners, blood sugar, kidney stones and G6PD deficiency – check paper inserts). If making drinks, avoid unpasteurised juice for pregnancy/nursing, children and weak immunity.
All fruit pips/seeds (and citrus often combined with blueberry recipes) are unsafe near furry friends. Read more on food safety for people and pets.
Due to acids, it’s best to avoid composting citrus fruits, as they could harm garden creatures (just bin to break down naturally). Same with tomatoes, rhubarb and alliums (onion, garlic, leeks, shallots and chives).
If using tinned ingredients, fully remove lids before recycling (or pop ring-pulls back over holes, to prevent curious wildlife getting trapped inside).
Why Are Blueberries so Popular?
Blueberries have soared in popularity in recent years, their sweet taste meaning so-called affluent ‘yummy mummies’ feed them as a ‘healthy treat’ to children. People on diets often ‘pop some blueberries’ as a snack, over a slab of chocolate or cake!
Pack’d sells organic frozen blueberries (certified by the UK Soil Association) in paper packaging. This is a good way to avoid plastic punnets, support organic farming and avoid food waste.
However, although they can be grown in England (the season is from July to November), farmers have mostly given up growing them, as they have been squeezed out by cheap imports. Today, nearly all punnets sold in supermarkets are from Peru (which also has cold winters).
One farmer gave his surplus crop to charity, and is now consider selling off his land for building development. This is what happens, when parents choose expensive imported fruit, instead of local organic produce.
We looked up the ‘finest’ range of blueberries from a major supermarket online, and found that the punnet contained a combination of fruits from ‘Chile, Egypt, Spain, Morocco, Peru, Portugal, South Africa and Zimbabwe and UK’ . Why so, if this high-priced item could be supplied by local farmers? And they aren’t even organic, with reviews like ‘squishy and tasteless’.
Cinnamon Blueberry Banana Smoothie
This cinnamon blueberry banana smoothie (The Simple Veganista) is a wonderfully healthy start to the day. It contains organic nut butter for protein (or use sunflower seed butter for nut allergies).
If you make a lot of smoothies, it’s worth investing in a small quality one that’s easy to clean. Know that it’s UK law for stores that sell electrical appliances, to recycle your old one.
A good excuse to take that rusty big old blender to the store, and replace it with something smaller and more modern, that will get used!
