Berries, Berries, Berries

One of my favorite treats are berries. I love most any berry. They are a sweet treat that compliments my favorites in life - milk and bread. Berries are delicious with milk, whipped cream, ice cream, cake, pancakes, muffins, etc. etc. etc.

So here are a few berry recipes I've stumbled across:

Warm Berries n Dumplings - This cooks on the stove top so it doesn't heat up your house like a baked desert. Another idea is to use a cast iron skillet on the grill. The other day I made cornbread (I'll post about that after another try)on the grill. It's worth a try. I also like this because you can make it any time of the year because you're using frozen berries.photo from marthastewart.com

Ingredients

• 1 pound frozen mixed berries
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 6 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1 cup all-purpose flour, (spooned and leveled)
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
• 1/2 cup low-fat buttermilk
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Directions

1. In a medium skillet, cook berries, lemon juice, 4 tablespoons sugar, and 1/4 cup water over medium until slightly thickened, 11 to 13 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, in a bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and 2 tablespoons sugar; add melted butter and buttermilk, and stir until a moist dough forms. Dividing evenly, spoon 6 dollops of dough over fruit. Combine cinnamon and 1 teaspoon sugar, and sprinkle over dough.

3. Cover pan tightly with foil, and cook over medium-low until dumplings are set and tops are dry to the touch, about 15 minutes. Serve warm.

Berry Butter - I warn you, I have not made this yet. I found it yesterday so I haven't had time or berries to put it together but it looks delicious and easy enough. I don't plan on making the french toast, I'm not as into it as I am the butter. I want to try this on Sunday rolls or one of my favorite pancakes.

Ingredients

• 1 pound Unsalted Butter, Softened
• 1/2 cup Raspberries
• 1/2 cup Blackberries
• NOTE: You can add a little sifted powdered sugar to the butter to make more of a sweet spread for bread and muffins! She uses the butter on french toast and adds syrup so it is plenty sweet enough.
  

Directions if using a Kitchenaid Mixer or the like.

1. Make the berry butters: in separate batches, whip 2 sticks of butter at a time on high using the whisk attachment.
   
   

   photos from thepioneerwoman.com
   

   Switch to paddle attachment. Add either raspberries or blackberries. Turn mixer on low for only about five seconds, just long enough for the berries to begin to mix in/break up, but not so long that it turns into a mess.
   
   
   Clean mixer bowl and attachments and repeat with other kind of berry.

2. With each batch, turn mixture out onto a long sheet of plastic wrap set over a long sheet of foil. Use the wrap/foil to roll the butter into a cylinder: first seal the plastic wrap around the cylinder, then secure the foil around it. Twist the ends, gradually applying more pressure as you twist in order to make the cylinder taut.

3. Once it's a nice, neat cylinder of foil, place into the freezer for 30 minutes in order to quickly solidify it, then transfer it to the fridge until you're ready to use it. Butter should be nice and firm.

I understand that not everyone has a mixer like the one shown here. I would take care of the sticks of butter with a hand mixer, I've done this for other recipes. But when it comes to adding the berries...you don't want them to be destroyed so I'd either rough chop the berries with a knife or pulse them in a food processor and then gently fold them into the softened butter.