Haskap Sour Cream Muffins

Haskap Sour Cream Muffins marry tart juicy berries with a rich moist sour cream muffin base. It’s a winning combination but many of you might be asking, what’s a Haskap? Also called Honey Berries, these bright blue oblong berries are native to Japan, Russia and parts of Canada. The name Haskap means “little present on the end of a branch,” in Japanese. Professor Bob Bors spent 15 years learning from the Japanese and choosing the best traits to cultivate these bush growing berries back at the University of Saskatchewan.

Now, you’ll find Haskaps growing in every province. Over two million plants have been sold. An edible berry producing member of the honeysuckle family, Haskap bushes were previously only found on the edges of swamps in boreal forests in Northern parts of Canada. They’re prized for their delightful flavour (a mix of raspberry, blueberry and tart apple) and the fact they’re the first berry to ripen in the season and can often be picked by mid-June.

I have friends with a small orchard near High River who invite me to come pick each summer because their bushes produce in great abundance. So, I have a nice (but dwindling!) stash of these blue honey berries in my freezer. Now, because of the work of one of the Food Artisans of Alberta that I know, Kreg Alde of Broken Tyne Orchard, you too can access Haskap berries.

Alde and his family, children Konnor and Nevada and wife Lee-Anne, farm 2400 acres in Alberta’s Peace Country near Beaverlodge. A marketing whiz and social connector by nature, Alde is helping to popularize the farming of these berries. “Because the leaves of the plant contain natural pesticides, they can be grown without chemicals. They are much better for the land than most conventionally grown crops. And, they aren’t subject to the diseases Saskatoon berries are.” He is also building market demand for Haskaps through a coop he’s started called Vitalaberry Corp. Alberta businesses like Village Ice Cream, Mackay’s Ice Cream, Foothills Creamery and Sobey’s stores are key clients. If you’d like to get your hands on some, you can request “North 49 Fruit Coop or Vitalaberry Haskap Berries” at your local Sobey’s franchise grocery stores.

Beyond my recipe for Haskap Sour Cream Muffins, try them as a sauce for cheesecake, make jams or jellies or fold them into ice cream. The Alde family also use the juice to make a Melomel Haskap Wine. I think you’ll be seeing a lot more of these berries in the coming years. When it comes to eating local, they are one more way to help us savour it all.

Note: This post is NOT sponsored.

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