Click to Enlarge Missouri gooseberries redden as they ripen but can be eaten when green. Prepare them for eating by pinching off the tail and stem of each berry.   Pucker Up For Gooseberries by Joan McKee photography by Cliff White When you are walking through the woods, sometimes sharp thorns on an arching branch will hook your shirt or your pant leg. If the leaves on the branch are small and graceful, you probably have become attached to a Missouri gooseberry bush. It's easy to become attached to gooseberries, and not just because the branches seem to reach out and grab you. Gooseberries are a natural treat. They taste great in desserts and preserves and, as a bonus, they're high in vitamin C. Gooseberry grows throughout most of the state. The only places it doesn't grow is in a few counties in southeast Missouri. Look for the plants in rocky or open dry woods, in thickets, along forest edges and in fields that have been grazed. Be careful where you put your hands, though, because the delicate leaves hide sharp thorns that grow on the branches. These small, prickly shrubs provide great places for birds and small mammals to hide from predators, and from June to September, the bushes often abound with round, greenish-white to red-purple berries for them to eat. You, too, can have a tasty treat if you are willing to brave the thorny branches. To harvest gooseberries without getting punctured, hold a branch steady but delicately in one hand while picking the fruits with the other. Some people like to make jelly out of the sour green fruit. Gooseberry pies are another favorite. On the next page we provide a recipe for an easy-to make gooseberry cobbler that tastes great served hot with vanilla ice cream. Gooseberries usually are picked green, but if you can wait for them to turn red, they won't be as tart. The problem is that birds usually will beat you to them. Gobble-It-Up Gooseberry Cobbler 3 cups gooseberries 1/2 to 1 cup sugar to mix with the fruit 2 tablespoons sugar to mix with the flour 1 cup flour 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder 1/4 teaspoon salt 1/4 cup butter, softened 1 egg 1/4-cup milk vanilla ice cream flour sifter measuring spoons measuring cups 3 bowls fork spoon 1 9x9-inch baking pan or pie pan pot holders to remove cobbler from oven Pick 3 cups of gooseberries. Pinch off the stems and tails. Wash the berries and place them in a bowl. Eat one of the berries. If you pucker up and shout, "No way," add 1 cup of sugar to the berries. If you like the tart taste, just add 1/2 cup of sugar. Stir until the moist berries are frosted with the sugar. Put the coated berries into the baking pan. In another bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, salt and 2 tablespoons sugar. Add the softened butter to the flour mixture. Use a fork to mash the butter into the flour until the entire mixture looks like small crumbs. In yet another bowl, beat one egg. Add 1/4-cup milk and stir. Add the milk and egg to the flour mixture and stir with a spoon until the flour is moist. Spoon the moist flour mixture on top of the berries in about six mounds. Bake at 400 degrees for 20-25 minutes until the crust is slightly brown. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream on top.