Berry Sweet Dumplings - sounds yummy! by Liz

[Dept of PMM Artists & things]

I love berries AND dumplings and thought this looked good even though it looks like it takes a while to make!

Berry Sweet Dumplings

Ingredients:

Filling:
3 cups of mixed berries
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/3 to 1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup water
1/2 teaspoon Saigon cinnamon

Dumplings:
1 1/8 cup Jiffy baking mix
2 to 3 tablespoons sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/3 cup half-and-half

Directions:

Put the berries in a medium bowl.  Add 1 tablespoon lemon juice.  Sprinkle with 1/3 cup sugar.  Allow berries to macerate for 10-20 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Test flavor and add a little more sugar if necessary.

Pour berries into a small crock pot and turn it on High.  Pour 1/2 cup water into the berry bowl and scrape the bottom with a spoon to release any stuck-on sugar and berry juice.  Pour all that into the crock also.  Stir in 1/2 teaspoon Saigon cinnamon.

Cover the crock pot and allow berries to cook for 2 to 3 hours, until bubbling.

In a medium bowl, combine 1 1/8 cup Jiffy baking mix, 2 tablespoons sugar, and 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger.  Add 1/3 cup half-and-half, then stir to form dough.  Dumpling dough should be fairly stiff and slightly sweet; add a little more Jiffy mix or sugar if necessary.

Use a tablespoon to drop dumpling dough onto the surface of the bubbling berries.  There should be enough dough for 7 dumplings: 6 in a ring and 1 in the center.

Cover the crock pot and cook for 15-20 minutes, until dumplings are done.  They should be fluffy inside.

To serve, scoop out one or two dumplings into a bowl, then ladle some of the fruit and juice over the top.

Notes:

The basic concept of this recipe should work with most types of berries and some other fruits as well.  You might want to experiment with different spices.

Berries that have been frozen and then thawed will soften and release their juices more readily than fresh berries.  If using fresh berries, you might need to mash them a bit, add a little more lemon juice and sugar, or add extra water.

This dessert goes well with homemade vanilla ice cream.

 

http://greenhaventradition.weebly.com/imbolc-recipes.html

(there's a lot of Imbolc recipes that look yummy here at this site!)