I agree with Julie Hasson who says, “In my book, you can never have enough berry dessert recipes. Ever!” I made the Bumbleberry Cobber from Julie’s latest book Vegan Casseroles this weekend, and as it is winter in N.Y.C., I used a mix of unthawed frozen organic blueberries and blackberries. The milk was almond and the oil was coconut.
This cobbler takes all of about 10 minutes to put together, and I baked it during dinner. The hardest part was waiting for it to cool before serving. I’m going to make the gluten-free version another time, and given that Julie’s recipes are always excellent, I know it’ll be a winner. Make this cobbler – you will love it. Don’t forget to enter the contest, which is at the end of this post, for a chance to win a BlendTec high-speed blender or one of the copies of Vegan Casseroles being given away. Vegan Casseroles is an appealing, user-friendly book, filled with have-to-make recipes as we have come to expect. Don’t forget to check out Julie’s last two cookbooks Vegan Diner and Vegan Pizza too.
Bumbleberry Cobbler
“In my book, you can never have enough berry dessert recipes. Ever!” This is another perfect berry dessert to add to your dessert rotation, no matter the season. One of the coolest things about this cobbler is that even though the berries go on the top, the batter below bakes up into a cake-like topping over them. I adapted this recipe from my pie book, The Complete Book of Pies.
Serves 4 to 6
Ingredients:
- 4 cups (1 pound) fresh or frozen mixed berries, such as blueberries, blackberries, and raspberries (unthawed if frozen)
- 1 cup granulated sugar, divided
- 1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cup plain unsweetened soymilk or other nondairy milk
- 1/3 cup nonhydrogenated vegan margarine or coconut oil, melted
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Preparation
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease an 11 x 7-inch glass or ceramic baking dish. Fran’s Note: I don’t own an 11×7 inch pan but know that it holds 6 cups. I used a 8×3 inch round cake pan instead.
In a medium bowl, toss the berries with 1/4 cup of the sugar.
In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, and remaining 3/4 cup sugar. Add the soymilk, melted margarine, and vanilla, whisking to combine.
Scrape the batter into the prepared baking dish. Scoop the berries evenly on top of the batter (don’t stir, as the batter will rise to the top as it bakes).
Bake for about 65 to 70 minutes, or until the top crust is nicely browned and looks cooked through and the berries have formed a thick sauce. If it looks like there are a few spots where the batter isn’t cooked all the way through, which you can confirm by lightly touching the spots with your finger, continue baking for another 5 to 10 minutes, or until fully cooked through. Let the cobbler cool on a rack for 15 minutes before serving.
Gluten-Free: Substitute a mix of 1/2 cup sorghum flour, 1/4 cup superfine brown rice flour, 1/4 cup potato starch, and 1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum for the all-purpose flour.
Reprinted with permission from VEGAN CASSEROLES © 2014 by Julie Hasson, Running Press, a member of the Perseus Books Group.
Follow the instructions below for a chance to win a BlendTec 725 Designer Blender. Five runners up will receive a copy of Vegan Casseroles. US residents only please. Contest ends December 11th.