Patriotic Fruit Cobbler

I don’t typically use shortcuts in the kitchen. I don’t buy pre-chopped this or pre-cooked that. I’m not knocking you if you do. I think it’s a great time-saver for some people, and with out the prep work already done, a lot of people wouldn’t have the time to cook.

For me, the prep-work is my therapy. It’s methodical, relaxing, and enjoyable. I spend the better part of an hour every Monday prepping the fruits and veggies for the week so they’re ready to go for meals or easy to grab for a healthy snack. You wouldn’t believe how many servings of fruits and veggies Travis and I consume in a week, and it’s all thanks to clean, prepared produce.

That being said, there are times when I’m in a pinch or I need to use what I have on hand, and in these times I have no issue turning to a box of brownie mix or a couple of bags of frozen berries, which I’ve used in the recipe below.

Patriotic Fruit Cobbler

I created this recipe when I was working at Trader Joe’s. I hosted a dessert tasting for the employees and had to utilize Trader Joe products for each recipe. The resulting dessert was not only very quick and simple, but also incredibly delicious.

Ingredients:

For the fruit mixture:

• 2 (16 oz.) packages frozen berries, any combination you like (I used blueberries and raspberries for mine)
• 1/4 cup flour
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 2 teaspoons orange or lemon zest

For the cobbler topping:

• 1 cup Trader Joe’s Multigrain Pancake and Baking Mix
• 3 Tbsp. sugar
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 3 Tbsp. cold butter, cubed
• 1/2 cup buttermilk
• 3 Tbsp. grapeseed or canola oil
• 2 Tbsp. coarse sugar, such as turbinado, for sprinkling

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400F. Grease a 9″ square baking pan or similar sized casserole dish.
2. In a large bowl, combine frozen berries, flour, sugar, and orange zest. Toss to coat berries, and pour into prepared pan.
3. In a separate bowl, stir together baking mix, sugar, and salt. Cut in butter using a pastry blender or your fingers until butter is the size of peas.
4. Stir in buttermilk and oil just until combine.
5. Pour the batter over the berries. Sprinkle the top with 2 Tbsp. coarse sugar.
6. Bake for 30 minutes until golden brown and berries are bubbling.

Serve it with a scoop of ice cream on the side. Mmmm.

I made this for a “3rd of July” later today, so I’ll have to wait and see how it tastes!

Enjoy the long weekend!

-Lou