Drunken blueberries

Last week, I got drunk on red wine...and made blueberry cobbler. Some people get in fistfights when they drink! Some drunk-dial ex-boyfriends! Some cry about the color of the sky. And when I imbibe, I hug people, drunk-text my happy feelings to them, and now make blueberry cobbler. Well done, Kate! Maybe next time, I can drunk-text people messages like, "I love you! I made blueberry cobbler." Usual suspects, keep an eye on your Inboxes.

I don't usually shoot for drunkenness like free throws at basketball games; however, when I learned that the blurriness in the cobbler photos came from my unstable hand, not my camera, I realized that "helping finish" wine while baking can get messy. It also got tasty!

Don't let this badly lit photo deceive you. The "one for me, one for you" way I "shared" with this cobbler turned out badly for me...but deliciously for the cobbler. During a crazy-boring-wonderful Knitting Party last week, Kristen and I cracked open a bottle of wine. Then half the bottle sat on the counter. Staring. Waiting. Giving me the pouty face. I gave in. "Fine! I'll drink you!"

At first, I just poured a little sip for me and a glug for the cobbler. The longer I sipped, the more the cobbler sipped. But it worked out well! The wine mellowed the berries and sugar, stirring in some mystery to an church picnic-ready dessert. Raymond and I polished off the first cobbler in a day, with some help from Kristen and Eric.

I made a second one while sober for a neighbor potluck. I measured with more accuracy and care this time, though I forgot to take a photo of the finished product until it was too late. Gone in 10 minutes!

Drunken berry cobbler
serves 6

Filling:

• 4 cups blueberries (fresh or frozen is fine)
  
• 1 cup mixed berries (optional - makes the cobbler less sweet but more complex)
  
• 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2/3 cup red "sweet" or dessert wine
• 1 tsp. lemon juice
• 2 Tb. corn starch

Topping:

• 1 cup flour
• 1 Tb. sugar
• 1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
  
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 3 tb. firm butter
• 1/2 cup milk

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Heat the berries in a saucepan on the stove top and stir in sugar and cinnamon until well and evenly combined. Sprinkle the cornstarch on top, then stir in until there are no lumps or bumps of cornstarch. Bring the berry mixture to a low boil and stir in the lemon juice and wine.

Keep the filling bubbling until it's thickened. Resist the urge to eat it all, spoonful by spoonful, out of the pan. When the sauce is thickened, remove the filling from heat and pour into a small baking dish. Let it cool while you prepare "sweet dumplings" for the top.

Toss together the flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon and salt in a bowl. Cut in the butter with fingers, a fork, or a pastry cutter until the butter is broken into tiny flakes, distributed well into the flour mixture. Create a small well in the flour, then pour in the milk slowly, stirring with a fork as you pour.

Top the berries with spoonfuls of dumpling, then bake the cobbler for 20 - 30 minutes, or until the topping is golden brown and the filling bubbles. Let the cobbler cool for 10 minutes, then serve warm with ice cream!

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Cranberry peach salad with ginger
Dried fruit pie
Strawberry rhubarb tart