The Wasteful Mistake You Can Avoid With Fresh Blueberries

Blueberries may be small, but they sure do pack a punch. With loads of health benefits, including vitamins C and K and antioxidants, it's hard not to resist a pint of fresh blueberries to snack on, or to bake with, especially during the summertime. No matter how irresistible they may be, though, most of us tend to make the mistake of discarding underripe or overripe berries. Lots of people don't realize that those tiny, sour berries — and even the plump, squishy ones — actually have loads of potential in the kitchen.

Blueberry expert Sally Vargas, author of "The Blueberry Cookbook," suggests that the berries you typically throw in the trash should instead be utilized in recipes, specifically ones that blend them or melt them down. They may not taste great on their own, but those sad-looking berries still possess some nutritional value and flavor once they're given a bit of extra attention. For home cooks and bakers looking to minimize waste in the kitchen, blueberries are a great way to start.

When you come across an underripe berry, one of the best tips out there is to freeze it for a later baking project. Frozen blueberries should be a staple for smoothie lovers, and underripe blueberries work just as well in recipes that call for frozen berries, like this avocado blueberry smoothie, or these fun blueberry-lavender honey popsicles. They work well in quintessential baked goods, too, like blueberry muffins or blueberry pie.

If you prefer to keep your berries fresh, you can always try to ripen an underripe berry on its own, even after it's been picked. Vargas recommends letting underripe berries sit out at room temperature for a day or two; though it's not guaranteed they will ripen this way, it's worth a try.

Overripe berries are a different story. If you catch them at the right time, you can freeze them, but if they're too soft, they likely won't freeze as well as underripe or ripe ones would. In this case, cook the bitter berries down into a sweet compote or a jam — just be certain that the berries aren't moldy or have completely turned to mush. Since overripe berries often lose some of their sweetness, Vargas also suggests adding lemon or lime juice to the batch to bring back some of their missing flavor. However you decide to use up your imperfect blueberries, you'll feel good knowing none of them went to waste.