Last autumn, I'd frequently walk by bushes full of blackberries and think, "Mmm, pie." And then I'd forget about it.

During the following winter, I'd look at the horrible muddy blackberry patches with their shriveled moldy fruits and think about the pies I'd never made.

So this year, I'm making pies. And I've found they're much simpler than I thought.

I buy pre-made roll-out pie crusts. They're awfully unhealthy. Among its ingredient, my brand lists "partially hydrogenated lard." That pretty much combines the worst of past and present. But with the crusts pre-made, you can just toss your fruit with flour and sugar and dump it in the crust.

1. Take 4 cups of blackberries,


2. Toss with 1/2 cup sugar, 1/2 cup flour.


3. Dump in pie crust, add top crust, cut vent holes.


4. Cook at 425 for 15 minutes, then wrap the crust perimeter in foil.


5. Then cook at 375 until the top crust is golden brown (20 to 60 minutes).

You can reserve a half cup of the berries (without sugar or flour added) and spread them on top of the sweetened fruit if you like. This is supposed to make the pie's insides prettier somehow, maybe if you're doing a lattice top crust. Other recipes recommend brushing the top with milk and sugar, to help it brown nicely.

The end product is refreshingly tart, and tastes at its best with vanilla ice cream.

Around here, blackberries remind us to enjoy the fading summer. They thrive on all untended land. And for that reason, they're also feared and hated. They replace our complex native ecosystems with a boom-and-bust monoculture.

On a recent hike, I noticed the forest is almost equally abundant with tasty native berries. Big fat Salal berries hung like grapes along the path. They've got a flavor and consistency similar to blackberries. Next time, why not a Salal berry pie (Gualtheria shallon)? They were among the most important berries for native people, yet remain untouched by hikers in forests today. How about Oregon Grape berries (Mahonia aquifolium)? They're much too sour to eat fresh, but would taste great in a pie with twice as much sugar. What's the worst that could happen? If the pie's too tart, the remedy isn't so bad. I'll just add an extra scoop of ice cream.

Do you have a favorite taste of the end of summer? Or a wildcrafted crop you have always meant to, or always make sure to harvest?