Meatless Monday Roundup: 4 Berry Recipes
Summer’s nearly over, but summer produce is still gracing market stalls! Amongst our very favorites are berries. Berries come in all shapes and sizes, particularly when you’re shopping from local farmers. Alongside strawberries, blackberries, blueberries and raspberries, you may be finding huckleberries, black raspberries or elderberries. All of these berries are tasty just eaten out of hand, but many of them can be integrated into sweet and savory recipes. Which is why our Meatless Monday table is covered with berry recipes this week.
Berries are often paired with meat in savory recipes, because their slight acidity and sweetness helps to cut through the natural richness of most meats. That being said, the key to savory pairings with berries is to remember that berries pair well with richness and fat. Cheese, olive oil and butter all bring out the best in berries, whether they’re being used in savory or sweet dishes.
First up is a sweet-and-savory pairing: a classic Slavic dessert known as the blintz. These thin pancakes are filled with a sweetened cheese mixture and topped with a blackberry sauce. Either ricotta or cottage cheese can be used in these blintzes; each will add a different flavor or texture, so choose the one you like — or use a combination of both!
Image: Myrtle Glen Farm
Strawberries in spaghetti sauce? Absolutely! Our strawberry spaghetti is a delicious sweet-and-savory meal and definitely one of our more intriguing berry recipes. Spaghetti is topped with a truly savory sauce that uses strawberries as a base but including a variety of more traditional spaghetti sauce ingredients including olive oil, basil, balsamic vinegar and even garlic! Tomato paste adds a touch of a more authentic tomato sauce flavor, for a result that is surprising, seasonal and delicious.
Image: Tatyana Morozyuk
Yet another Slavic cheese-and-berry pairing, this syrniki is a unique berry recipe that may be unfamiliar but that you’ll surely fall for. Syrniki are griddle cakes made with farmer’s cheese and rye flour. They’re served with a strawberry-honey sauce, perfect for dipping. This dish, with its combination of sweet and savory flavors, is ideal for either breakfast or dessert.
Image: Myrtle Glen Farm
This blackberry pizza brings yet another late summer fruit to your Meatless Monday table. This recipe combines blackberries and figs atop pizza dough. But this is far from a dessert pizza. It’s topped with caramelized onions and can even be topped with a bit of crumbled goat cheese for more of a savory zing.
Related on Organic Authority
Meatless Monday Roundup: 4 Herb Recipes for Summer
Meatless Monday Roundup: 4 Summer Tomato Recipes
Meatless Monday Roundup: 4 Spicy Recipes
Top image: susanica tam
