Easy blackberry recipes

Bramble season is here! There’s no better time to head out to your favourite patch and collect blackberries. We’ve pulled together our very best recipes you can try with all the family, as well as some foraging tips.

How to forage for blackberries

Bramble is a common shrub you can find across the UK. You can use our bramble page to help you identify it.

Once you’ve found a bramble bush, follow our tips for safe blackberry-picking:

• Wear trousers to avoid getting scratched, and make sure kids are aware of the sharp thorns.
• Pick only the blackest and shiniest blackberries.
• Be careful to not crush other plants when you're picking.
• Only pick when you're completely sure about your plant ID.
• Only take as much as you need for your recipe, wildlife relies on the fruit.

Read our foraging guidelines for more advice on picking wild food responsibly.

Blackberry crumble

Delicious with a dollop of cream! You could even split this recipe between ramekins for cute individual puds.

• 500g blackberries
• 250g plain or wholemeal flour (swap 50g of this for porridge oats if you prefer)
• 150g soft brown sugar
• 180g cold unsalted butter, cut into cubes

1. Heat the oven to 200C/gas 6.
2. Wash the blackberries and put them in a lightly buttered ovenproof dish. Sprinkle them with a little sugar if they're a bit sharp.
3. Put the flour into a bowl and add the butter. Rub the ingredients together between your fingers until they look like breadcrumbs.
4. Mix in the sugar (and the oats if you're using them).
5. Sprinkle the crumble topping over the blackberries and bake on the middle shelf of the oven for around 30 minutes until golden brown.

Blackberry flapjacks

These yummy bars are just the right mix of chewy and fruity. This recipe makes around 10 bars and they’re great for popping in your picnic basket when you’re heading to the woods.

• 350g blackberries
• 25g golden caster sugar
• 250g porridge oats
• 140g butter, cut into cubes
• 50g light brown sugar
• 140g golden syrup

1. Preheat the oven to 190C/gas 5.
2. Grease a tin of around 18cm square.
3. Put the blackberries and caster sugar in a small saucepan with two tablespoons of water, put the lid on and simmer on a low heat until they're soft. Keep giving them a stir to make sure they're not burning. Mash them up a bit and then let them cool.
4. Slowly melt the butter, brown sugar and syrup in another saucepan. Stir in the oats and mix well.
5. Press half the oat mix into the tin, spread the blackberries on top and cover with the rest of the oat mixture.
6. Bake for 25 minutes minutes or until golden. Cut into bars and leave to cool before taking them out of the tin.

Blackberry sauce

This simple sauce is delicious over ice cream! You will need:

• 250g blackberries
• 50g caster sugar
• Half a tablespoon of vanilla essence

1. Put the blackberries and sugar into a saucepan with 100ml of water.
2. Bring to the boil and simmer until the fruit is mushy.
3. Remove from the heat and mic in the vanilla essence.
4. Strain the sauce through a sieve to remove the seeds.

Super summer pudding

This traditional pudding is especially delicious when drizzled with cream. You will need:

• a pudding basin
• a mix of blackberries and other summer fruits, such as raspberries, blackcurrants, redcurrants (you could use a frozen mix) – enough to fill your basin one and a half times is about right
• sliced white bread that's not too fresh – around a day old 
• 3 tablespoons of caster sugar

1. Grease the basin with butter.
2. Cut the crusts off the bread and line the basin with the slices, pressing it firmly against the sides. Make sure there are no gaps. Also cut a lid from the bread.
3. Put the fruit into a small pan, add the sugar, and heat gently until it simmers – it should now be fairly runny with syrupy juice. Turn off the heat and taste it to see if you need to add more sugar – careful as it's hot!
4. Fill the basin with the fruit mixture. Save some syrup and any fruit that's left over. Put the bread lid on. Place a plate on top so it's pressing down into the pudding, and weight it down with a can.
5. When the pudding is cool, put it in the fridge overnight.
6. To serve, turn it out onto a plate, pour over the rest of the syrup to cover any white bits and decorate the base with the fruit you've put aside. Scrummy!

Foraging is a great way to get kids involved in cooking, as well as connecting with nature and wildlife. And when your family joins the Woodland Trust you’ll enjoy adventures together all year round.