Mixed Berry Cobbler

Last year I set out to write a recipe for a mixed berry cobbler. And then life happened. Through the sometimes magic (and sometimes horrorshow) that is Facebook's "On This Day" feature, I was reminded the other day I never got around to it.

Luckily, berries were on sale. Luckily, I had some time off. And luckily, I found my notes from before. Of course I made some changes to what I thought I was going to do because I can never leave anything alone (especially not after a year), but what I ended up with was something that is right now making my mouth water just thinking about it. I may need to have some more before I head to bed tonight.

I was really trying to make this lower carb, but I just couldn't do it. I wasn't sure if Splenda would make syrup the way sugar does, and berries themselves are pretty sugary. But what the heck... You only live once, and we've been being very good lately.

Blueberries, strawberries, red raspberries, and blackberries formed the base. Then sugar, water, and tapioca starch for the slurry. And butter, whole wheat flour (which somehow didn't make it into the picture), milk, vanilla, baking powder, and salt for the topping. Had I remembered earlier in the year I wanted to make this I'd have gotten berries at the farmer's market rather than the store, but such is life.

First, you make what I think of as slurry. Water, sugar, and tapioca starch heated over medium heat, stirring pretty constantly, until thick. One thing about using tapioca starch in place of cornstarch (something I've been doing a lot lately) is instead of just getting thick, it gets thick and kind of stringy. It sort of reminds me of thick raw egg whites when you pick the spoon up. There's nothing wrong with it, that's just how it goes. But if you're not used to it you might think something is wrong.

Totally unnecessary picture of the berries in my colander after I washed them. Why? Because they were just so darn pretty I had to take one. The variety of colours and textures is one of my favourites.

After I mixed the berries into the slurry, I intended to pour them into an 8x8-inch pan. But when I opened my cupboard I realized I'd used all three of mine for other things, and I didn't have time to wash dishes before putting this in the oven. So I improvised with a 9-inch round cake pan. Feel free to go with the 8x8 square pan (or a 9x9, it's not critical) instead. In fact, I think that's how I'll write it up, using an 8x8-inch square pan, since that was my original intent.

In a bowl that was much too large (but which I'd used for something else earlier and used instead of getting another one dirty), I creamed together the butter and sugar. My butter was incredibly soft so it never really got crumbly, but it was definitely combined and smooth.

I then added the milk to the bowl, but the picture was NOT attractive so I deleted it. This was taken after I mixed the dry ingredients and stirred them in along with the milk, and it actually looks like something you might willingly put in your mouth.

This part is very precise, as you can tell. Drop spoonfuls of batter on top of the fruit mixture, making sure a great deal of the surface is covered, but not all of it. You're not making a crust, you're just adding some cake-like texture for your bowl that'll soak up the berry juice when you eat it. Sort of like shortcake for strawberries, but different.

After a half hour in the oven, it came out perfectly. The topping should be firm and slightly brown, but not hard or burned. The berries will take care of themselves, so just concentrate on the topping.

You know what would've been great? A huge scoop of vanilla ice cream. Or some whipped cream. Not that it needed it; the cobbler is plenty sweet on its own, and equally good warm or cold. But ice cream would've been amazing with it. Next time!

Mixed Berry Cobbler

Serves 6

Filling:

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup water

1 1/2 tablespoons tapioca starch (or cornstarch)

1 cup strawberries, hulled and quartered

1 cup blueberries

1 cup red raspberries

1 cup blackberries

Topping:

1/4 cup sugar

2 tablespoons butter, softened

1/3 cup fat-free milk

1/4 teaspoon vanilla

2/3 cup whole wheat flour

3/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 375F; coat an 8x8-inch baking pan with nonstick cooking spray.

Heat sugar, water, and starch in a large saucepan over medium heat, stirring frequently, until thickened. Gently stir in berries until completely coated, then spread mixture into prepared pan.

In a separate bowl, cream together sugar and butter. Mix the dry ingredients together separately, then add to bowl along with milk and vanilla and stir until well-blended and a soft dough forms. Drop by spoonfuls onto surface of berry mixture.

Bake at 375F for 25-30 minutes, until berries are bubbling and the topping springs back when touched lightly with your finger (be careful not to burn yourself).

Serve warm or cold, as is or with a scoop of ice cream or topped with whipped cream.

Serving Size: 169g

Calories: 225

Calories from Fat: 38

Total Fat: 4.2g

Saturated Fat: 2.5g

Cholesterol: 10mg

Sodium: 133mg

Total Carbohydrates: 46.4g

Dietary Fiber: 2.7g

Sugars: 30.6g

Protein: 2.6g