Feral blackberries are very abundant around here during August. This was a terrific and simple recipe made from them.
Ingredients:
4 cups fresh blackberries
1/3 cup honey or sugar
2 Tbsp cornstarch
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
6 Tbsp butter
5 Tbsp milk (or rice milk)
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Rinse and pick through blackberries. Combine berries, honey, cornstarch, and vanilla. Put into a 8-9 inch round or square baking dish and set aside. Mix flour, baking powder, and salt. Cut butter into small chunks and scatter in flour mixture. With pastry cutter or food processor, combine until it resembles coarse cornmeal. In bowl, add milk and mix until lumpy. Turn out on floured suface and knead, adding flour or milk as needed until it just comes together and is not sticky. Press into the shape of the pan, but 1/2 inch larger all round. Lay over fruit and tuck in sides. Cut air vents in top. Bkae until golden, 45-55 minutes. Let cool 30 minutes and serve warm.
Variations:
For a cobbled appearance on top, instead of rolling out the dough, pinch off walnut-sized pieces of dough and arrange evenly over the top of the fruit so they don't touch each other.
Pandowdy
Halfway through baking, cut crust into 2-inch squares. Press the edges into the fruit. Finish baking.
Grunt or Slump
Cover the cobbler before baking, so that the crust is steamed instead of toasted.