Blackberry Frosting

In Washington, August means blackberries. Along the roads, invading backyards and on trail paths, blackberries are the summer weed of choice. Honestly, I don't think there's ever been a time in my life where we've had store-bought blackberries in our fridge. 

This season, we picked too many blackberries too early leaving the taste to be less than desirable (read: sour). So, to sweeten things up a bit, I decided to turn our Thursday-afternoon pickings into frosting! 

This recipe is more jam-like than a buttercream frosting, but trust me, it's absolutely delicious. I used my batch as both the filling and the frosting for a chocolate cake that I'd made earlier in the day.

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What you'll need:

1 1/2 cup blackberries
2 cups sugar
​1 Tbsp cornstarch
​1 Tbsp lemon juice

small saucepan
blender
electric-hand mixer

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1. Put the blackberries into the saucepan and heat on high heat until the berries start to breakdown and become mostly liquid (about 10 minutes), stirring continuously.
2. Remove from heat and using the hand mixer, blend on low until the berries become entirely liquid.
3. Return to medium-low heat for 10 more minutes, or until the mixture thickens.
4. Remove the saucepan from heat and let it cool. 
5. Put the sugar and cornstarch in the blender and blend it until it becomes a powder, about a minute.
6. Slowly pour the newly powdered sugar into the saucepan with the berries, continuously blending with the hand mixer on high. Continue to add the powdered sugar until it becomes gelatinous.
7. Add the lemon juice to the saucepan and blend for 30 seconds on high. 
8. Place in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes, before applying it to your cake.
   

Tips:

• Pour a thick layer in the middle of the bottom cake round and spread it to the outside to cover the edges.
• Freeze your cake rounds for an hour or so before applying frosting. This helps to prevent the cake from falling apart, as is the tendency for vegan cakes.
• ​Try replacing the blackberries with another berry of your choice (i.e. raspberries, blueberries)!
• If you don't want to make your own powdered sugar, you can go out an buy some from the store. Use 4 1/2 cups or so.
• If using wild berries, make sure you wash them before use; you don't know what chemicals might have been sprayed around them!
• The frosting can get kinda messy because it's so liquid-y so you might want to place some wax paper below it when frosting.