Blackberry Cobbler

A delicious childhood memory started with picking a bucket of blackberries in the summer. After eating handfuls plucked off the vine, I still looked forward to eating more - cooked to perfection in Mom's blackberry cobbler.


You won't get thorn torn sleeves, or scratched-up hands, with The 99 Cent Chef's recipe. I've been buying 20 ounce frozen packages of blackberries at my local 99c only Store the last few weeks. The crust is a simple biscuit topping made with butter, flour, baking powder, sugar and water. Defrost the blackberries, and add some sugar and cornstarch (or flour) dissolved in the thawed blackberry juice.

I've also seen frozen strawberries; I bet a Strawberry Cobbler would be just as good! This easy recipe will do until the next time I visit Mom during blackberry picking season. You can make this anytime you find frozen fruit (or canned peaches for that matter) on sale.

Ingredients ( 2 -4 servings)
Berry Filling

• 16 - 20 ounce package of frozen blackberries, thawed. Okay to use less, just reduce other ingredients and use less crust.
• 1/4 cup of sugar - okay to substitute with your favorite sweetener.
• 1 tbsp. of cornstarch or flour.
• Pinch of salt.

Cobbler Crust

• 3/4 cup of flour - white or wheat
• 1/4 cup of sugar - or a favorite sweetener.
• 1 tsp. baking power - optional. It makes a thicker crust.
• 1/4 stick of butter or shorting.
• Pinch of salt.
• 1/4 cup of water.

* Double sugar amounts for sweeter cobbler - I tend to keep recipes low sugar. 

Directions
In a loaf pan add thawed blackberries. In a small bowl add blackberry juice and dissolve in 1 tbsp. of cornstarch (or flour) and sugar. Mix well and pour over blackberries.

 
To make cobbler crust, mix together (in a large bowl) 1/4 stick of sliced butter with all the crust dry ingredients. Blend well by hand for a couple of minutes. Add water and mix another couple of minutes to form a dough. It does not to be mixed to perfection, just enough to hold together in a ball. Hand press it out big enough to almost cover your baking loaf pan - to about a one inch thickness.

Lastly, place dough crust onto blackberry filling that is in the loaf pan. Dough should not go all the way to edges - so the filling will not boil out. Leave a little room at the top, so the filling can roil and bubble. Place into a 375 degree oven for about 30 minutes. You may want to place cookie sheet under cobbler loaf pan, just in case. Remove from oven when done and allow to cool for a few minutes, as the filling thickens. I like to serve warm, and with ice cream?

Happy Mother's Day -- I love you Mom