Summer Berry Slump

Summer Berry Slump

When it’s 100 degrees out, no one wants to fire up the oven, even for a delicious summer dessert (and let’s be real, we eat the leftovers for breakfast too). Slumps and grunts are the humble cousins of the famous cobbler. Grunts are named for the wet bubbling grunt they make while cooking, and Slumps for the way they slump onto your plate after serving; the names are pretty much interchangeable. Whatever you call them, both are made with a cooked fruit base and topped with a drop-biscuit type dough. Instead of being baked in the oven like their esteemed cousin the cobbler, they are often covered and cooked on the stovetop, (usually in a cast iron skillet) where the dough steams like a dumpling.

We encourage you to use any kind of fruit (fresh and frozen are equally good) and feel free to mix and match flour, sweetener, butter, and milk to customize this recipe for your dietary needs.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup unbleached wheat flour (can substitute gluten free)
• ¼ cup cornmeal
• 1 ½ tsp baking powder
• ½ tsp kosher salt
• 3 Tbsp cold butter, chopped (can substitute with vegan butter)
• ¼ cup buttermilk (can substitute with whole milk or plant-based milk)
• 4 cups berries (fresh or frozen), we used strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, and blackberries
• ½ cup organic brown sugar
• 1 Tbsp cornstarch
• ½ tsp cinnamon
• ¼ tsp cardamom
• ½ cup water
• 1 Tbsp lemon juice
• 1 tsp lemon zest
• Vanilla ice cream, for serving

Instructions:

1. In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together flour, cornmeal, baking powder, and salt. Cut in butter with a pastry cutter or fork until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
2. Make a small well in the center of the mixture, and pour in milk and buttermilk. Toss with a fork until mixture is evenly moistened. Dough will be very sticky and shaggy. Divide into 6 portions and set aside.
3. Add fruit to a 4 qt saucepan. Whisk together brown sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon, and cardamom in a small bowl. Toss with fruit. Stir in water, lemon juice, and zest. Bring to a boil.
4. Drop dumpling dough portions onto the hot fruit mixture. Cover and reduce heat to a simmer. Cook for 25 minutes, or until the dumplings are done. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream.

Makes 6 servings

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