The Blackberry: Enjoy Summer's Antioxidant Powerhouse
Lori Zanteson, Environmental Nutrition
The blackberry's sweet-tart flavor can be as addicting as its smartphone namesake. Native to
Also known as brambleberry, from "brambel," meaning "prickly," the blackberry was used curatively by ancient Greeks for gout and by the English, who applied the leaves topically to relieve burns. It's even said that truces were called during dysentery outbreaks in the Civil War so soldiers could gather blackberry leaves to make a tea to ward off the intestinal illness.
Despite its name, the blackberry is not a berry, but an aggregate fruit; just like raspberries and boysenberries, they're made up of lots of tiny seeds encased by fleshy fruit called drupelets. Classified as Rubus fruticosus, the blackberry family is complex, with many hybrids such as boysenberries and loganberries, and cultivars such as Apache Thornless.
The berries are plump with the protective antioxidants ellagic acid, quercetin, and anthocyanin (the compound responsible for their deep purple hue). A one-cup serving of blackberries provides half the recommended Daily Value of the antioxidant vitamin C and is a good source of dietary fiber, manganese and vitamin K--all in just 62 calories.
Blackberries top the list of foods highest in antioxidant phytochemicals, according to a study published in the
Blackberry anthocyanins may also help protect against sun damage to the skin--(
THE FINER POINTS
Blackberries peak under the hot summer sun, plump and ripe with deep, even color and a juice that's sweet with a tinge of tartness. Select only ripe berries; blackberries won't continue to ripen once picked, but they will mold quickly unless refrigerated promptly, where they will last up to a week.
Popular in juices, jams, desserts and even wine, fresh blackberries are a versatile gem when added to most any dish, from cereals, yogurt and salads to smoothies, quick-breads, a savory soup or a sauce for lean poultry and meats.
Blackberries, 1 cup raw
Dietary fiber: 8 grams (31 percent Daily Value)
Vitamin C: 30 mg (50 percent DV)
Vitamin K: 29 mcg (36 percent DV)
Manganese: 0.9 mg (47 percent DV)
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