A perfect, simple recipe for Valentine’s Day. Even if you go out to a nice dinner, its nice to come home to a luscious dessert so you don’t feel rushed in the restaurant. This is an easy recipe you can prepare in the morning or a day in advance. You can choose to heat it up and serve it with a dollop of whipped cream, ice cream, sweetened yogurt, or as is. The deep colors of the berries serve as a beautiful canvas in themselves.
Believe it or not, I got the recipe from a cookbook called The Art of American Indian Cooking. This recipe was in the “planters of the south” section which includes states like Georgia, Florida, Virginia, North Carolina. The Indian women from the Cherokee, Choctaw, Powhatan, Creek and others are originators for classic Southern dishes like fried green tomatoes, stewed shrimp and okra, Brunswick stew and others. It really makes me want to visit the South! It also reminds me of some of my favorite books and author growing up, about Indians, like Sing Down the Moon by and Island of the Blue Dolphins, by Scott O’Dell.
Aside from the history lesson, I hope you give this simple cobbler recipe a try, its so simple, I might make it my go-to recipe in the future. The secret is in buying 2 bags of frozen mixed berries, so you can make it anytime of the year.
Berries:
- 24 oz (1 1/2 bags) mixed berries, fresh or frozen, no sugar added
- 1/4 cup sugar
Topping:
- 1/2 cup coarse cornmeal
- 3/4 cup flour
- 1/3 cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup low fat milk
- 1/2 Tablespoon white wine vinegar
- 2 Tablespoons margarine, melted
Sauce:
- 1 Tablespoon honey
- 1/2 Tablespoon melted margarine
- 2 teaspoons lemon zest
- 2 teaspoons lemon juice
1. Preheat the oven to 375 F and get out a 2-quart square baking dish. No need to grease the dish.
2. Combine the milk and vinegar in a small cup and let it sit while you prepare the other ingredients for the topping. Melt 1 Tablespoon margarine in a small bowl in the microwave for 15-20 seconds. Set aside.
3. Whisk together all the dry ingredients in the topping- cornmeal, flour, sugar, baking powder, salt. Gently stir in the milk mixture and melted margarine. Set aside.
4. Place the frozen mixed berries in the 2-quart dish and sprinkle in 1/4 cup sugar.
5. Drop spoonfuls of the topping batter onto the berries, not covering all the berries.
I didn’t use about 3 Tablespoons of the topping batter because I didn’t want to cover all the berries. I made drop cookies with the leftover batter and baked them for 20 minutes in the same oven. They are great for dipping into the berry sauce. It also serves as a great pancake batter.
Cornmeal topping batter
Corncake cookies! I drizzled the left one with some of the honey mixture.
6. For the sauce, in a small bowl, microwave the margarine briefly, then add the honey, lemon zest, and lemon juice. Drizzle over the topping batter and some of the exposed berries.
Making the sauce
Drizzle with some of the honey mixture, and ready to bake!
7. Bake for 50 min-1 hr, or until the topping turns a golden brown and bubbling. Serve warm with ice cream, or room temperature with powdered sugar, mint, or whipped cream.
