• 2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon aluminum-free baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 3/4 cup butter, softened
  • 1 large egg, yolk and white separated
  • 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
  • 1 teaspoon pure almond extract
  • 4 ounces dried blueberries
  • 1 cup white chocolate chips

I am very excited! Today marks the first week of Food Network’s Summer Fest 2013! Each week the Food Network blog, FN Dish, and bloggers like me get together to share our favorite recipes using the bountiful harvest provided by summer fruits and vegetables.

My favorite place to purchase my produce is the NC State Farmer’s Market in Raleigh, NC. The plethora of locally grown goods is absolutely amazing and I not only buy my produce there but things like my favorite local honey from Bee Blessed, salsa, dried organic spices and locally-made baked goods and breads.

Beginning in May through September blueberries can pretty much be found all over North Carolina.  Just about every farm stand at the farmer’s market has fresh blueberries. I love to see children enjoying the farmer’s market with their families. Today many of them were sampling the fresh blueberries picked this morning.

Some of our family’s favorite ways to eat blueberries are fresh with my cinnamon fruit dip, baked in my famous blueberry peach crumb cake, my wholegrain blueberry muffins, Mrs. Little’s Delicious Blueberry Cake, in my triple berry cobbler, adorning our favorite salads, and cooked down in my blueberry orange syrup.

This week my son Nathaniel came home raving about the blueberry and white chocolate cookies his boss brought in for a meeting. Nate described to his mama the cookies in great detail. I knew he wanted me to make them. I decided to try my hand at these for our Father’s Day.

Score!  They were so good and I was so happy when everyone loved them.

Fresh blueberries would have been too wet for these cookies so I purchased already-dried blueberries. Is is however very easy and much more economical to dehydrate blueberries yourself.

Dehydrating blueberries

There are many different types of dehydrators like the Excalibur.  What can sometimes be a tedious task (although great for the kiddos to help with) is poking a hole in each and every blueberry with a toothpick. With the Excalibur dehydrator there is no need to poke holes in the blueberries first. If you do not have a really good dehydrator you should definitely poke a hole in each blueberry before dehydrating which will help the moisture escape easily. Another way to avoid poking holes in each and every blueberry is to freeze the berries first.  When using a dehydrator always place your fruit and veggies in a single layer. Most dehydrators take about 10 to 12 hours to thoroughly dehydrate blueberries.

Before dehydrating your blueberries be sure to clean them well. You should remove the waxes first. Many folks choose to bring a large pot of water to a rolling boil, turn it off and gently place their fresh blueberries in it for one minute, without stirring, to remove the wax. I simply use a capful of Veggie Wash in a clean sink filled with water.

Whether you dehydrate your own blueberries or purchase a bag of dried berries, you will love these cookies – but be forewarned – it is very difficult to eat only one.

Chewy Blueberry and White Chocolate Cookies

1. Position your oven rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spray two baking stones or sheets with non-stick baking spray.

2. In a small bowl whisk together flour, baking powder, soda and salt; set aside.

3. Beat together sugar and butter on medium high speed for about 3 minutes until light and fluffy.

4. Separate your egg yolk form the white. Mix the egg yolk in with teh sugar and butter and beat until incorporated. Beat in the vanilla and almond extracts.

5. Add half of your dry ingredients and beat until on a low speed just until combined. Add dried blueberries to the remaining dry ingredients and stir. Add to your cookie dough and beat until just combined.

6. Give the dough a few turns with a rubber spatula to make sure there are no dry pockets in the dough. Scoop out a 1/4 cup measurement of dough and place 3-inches apart on your baking stones.

7. Bake for 18 minutes or until set but not too brown. Your cookies should be beige in color and somewhat soft to the touch. Allow the cookies to cool on the stone another five minutes beofre removing onto a cooling rack.

Be sure to check out more favorite blueberry recipes:

 

Feed Me Phoebe: Gluten-Free Blueberry-Almond Pancakes
The Lemon Bowl: Strawberry Mango Chia Smoothie
Dishin & Dishes: Crunchy Topped Blueberry White Chocolate Muffins
Jeanette’s Healthy Living: Gingered Blueberry Shortcakes With Light Creamy Topping
Taste With The Eyes: Blueberry Limoncello Pavlova
Sweet Life Bake: Paletas de Fresca y Aguacate
Napa Farmhouse 1885: Mixed Berry Tea Cake
Red or Green?: Strawberry & Blueberry Crisp (Red or Green-style)
Virtually Homemade: Blueberry Mint Margaritas
Haute Apple Pie: Triple Berry Ice Cream
Pinch My Salt: Strawberry Peach Cobbler With Almond Biscuit Topping
Devour: Four Healthy Berry Recipes
Domesticate Me: Summer Berry Crisp
Weelicious: Brainy Breakfast
The Sensitive Epicure: Strawberries With White Balsamic Vinegar Caramel, Orange Zest and Black Pepper
Daily*Dishin: Fresh and Easy Blueberry Pie
From My Corner of Saratoga: Mixed Berry Freezer Pops
FN Dish: Wake Up With Berries