Blueberry Slump

Wow, people! What a couple months it has been! I've moved across the country - nine states, three hotels, a Jeep with three broken hoses and a dead battery, last-minute trailer rentals, almost getting towed, 40 to 102 degrees in a three-hour span, endless drive-thrus, some great restaurants, a new hard drive and computer battery, packed and unpacked my life, said goodbye to my family and friends, said hello to new friends, started a doctorate program...and those are just the highlights. The transition has been challenging, yet rewarding...and perhaps the best news, my new kitchen is finally settled! With my photos from the last two months finally uploaded to the computer and a rekindled motivation to get back to work in the kitchen, Simply Delicious is back!


So what is a slump? It's an east-coast tradition that describes a dessert with steamed fruit atop warm dumplings. I'm sure you can already see why I wanted to try it! I adapted this recipe from the blackberry slump recipe over at Simply Recipes...my dad brought me a ton of fresh blueberries from Michigan on the final trip he made to Chicago before the move, so I set some aside for this recipe. I threw in some warm spices (this Christmas-candle), and man...the kitchen smelled awesome!


Ingredients
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 tbsp. granulated sugar + 1 1/2 cups
1 tsp. baking powder
Pinch salt
1 tbsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1/4 tsp. cloves
1/2 cup butter, at room temperature
1/4 cup milk
Zest and juice of one lemon
1 quart fresh blueberries
1 1/2 cups water
1 tbsp. cornstarch
Vanilla ice cream, for serving


Directions
1. Combine flour, 1 tbsp. sugar, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl.
2. Cut the butter into the dry ingredients using a stand- or hand-mixer until the size of peas.
3. Add the milk to form a dough, and set aside.
4. In a large saucepan, combine the berries, 1 1/2 cups sugar, lemon zest and juice and water. Bring to a boil.
5. Roll the dough into tbsp.-size balls and drop them into the boiling berry mixture.
6. Cover the pot, reduce the heat to low, and cook for 30-40 minutes. 
*Note: do not remove the lid before the 20-minute mark, and do not stir the dumplings!
7. Serve hot with vanilla ice cream .
*Note: Breyer's natural vanilla (with vanilla beans) is the best!