Berry Delights

Freshly picked berries are a tasty summer treat. Simply wash them and eat them by themselves as a healthful snack, or sprinkle them as a garnish on cereal, ice cream or pudding. Bake them in pies, cakes, cobblers and tarts, or turn them into jams, jellies and preserves. Or, perhaps best of all, serve them in a bowl with a little cream for a simply delicious dessert.

U-Pick farms across the nation open their fields to eager pickers during the summer months. But even if you can't make it to a farm, you'll find the year's freshest berries in stock at your local grocery store.

Donna Roane of Aberdeen, Miss., sent us her recipe for Blueberry Pound Cake. Using fresh berries from her blueberry farm, she whips this dessert together using a boxed cake mix.

The recipe for Blackberry Dessert was submitted by Gilberta Rayl of Palmyra, Mo. "This blackberry dessert is easy to make, beautiful to serve and heavenly to eat," she says.

As always, American Profile looks forward to receiving—and publishing—your favorite recipes each week, and sharing them with our millions of readers across the nation.

Blueberry Pound Cake - Donna Roane , Aberdeen, Miss.

• 1 package butter-flavored cake mix
• 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 3 eggs
• 2 cups blueberries

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Lightly grease and flour a 10-inch tube pan. Combine cake mix, cream cheese, oil and eggs. Beat until smooth. Gently fold in berries. Spoon into prepared pan and bake for about 1 hour or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Serves 12 to 16.

Tips From Our Test Kitchen: Serve this cake with whipped cream flavored with 1/2 teaspoon of almond extract.

Blackberry Dessert - Gilberta Rayl, Palmyra, Mo.

Crust:

• 2 sticks butter
• 1 and 1/2 cups flour

Filling:

• 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
• 1 cup confectioners' sugar
• 1/4 cup milk

Topping:

• 1 and 3/4 cups sugar
• 1/2 cup water
• 4 cups blackberries
• 6 tablespoons cornstarch
• 12 ounces whipped topping

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Melt butter and mix well with flour. Press into a 13-by-9-inch baking dish. Bake for 20 minutes. Cool. Mix together ingredients for filling and pour over cooled crust. For the topping, mix together sugar, water, blackberries and cornstarch in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil and cook 3 minutes. Cool, pour on top of cream cheese layer, and spread evenly. Top with whipped topping. Refrigerate. Serves 12 to 16.

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