9.07.2008

Lynchberries


I was convinced to buy these berries last week because they looked so intimidating. This little son of a bitch does not want to be eaten. The really sharp spines are quite effective deterrents for anyone who might want a taste of this "sweet tomato-like berry" (according to the guy at the farmers market). In actuality, these berries have the acidic, tart flavor of a kiwifruit and only look like a tomato inside. The small seeds are really hard to chew and eat. It was a pain in the ass to remove the stems and small leaves from these berries without stabbing myself repeatedly with the tiny spines or wasting half of the fruit to avoid injury. It wasn't worth it (the $4 or the time). But maybe my sad story will prevent others from falling prey to the evil lynchberry. Google doesn't have any helpful information about the existence of this fruit. I'm betting the farmers:

1. found some wild bushes by the side of the road
2. forced their kids to pick the berries as punishment
3. named them for their bloodletting tendencies
4. sold them to shoppers like me as punishment for naivete

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

You're supposed to boil it.


Just kidding. I have no idea how I would have attacked that thing.

Carrie said...

Hahaha, those do look evil. Consider me warned.