Kendra Atkins-Boyce, Portland, Oregon

My grandmother was born and raised in the mountains of southwest Virginia. She went on to travel the world and even lived in Southeast Asia for over 30 years. When it came to dessert, she held tightly to her roots.

During the summers of my childhood, the hill outside Granny’s kitchen window was blanketed in ripe, sweet blackberries. When I was about five years old, Granny taught my cousin Kyla and me how to make her Cup-A Cup-A Cup-A Cobbler with the buckets of blackberries we collected. It wasn’t exactly “her” recipe. I’m sure she learned it from her mother or grandmother, who learned it from her mother or grandmother, back into perpetuity, but I know why this recipe has withstood the test of time. It’s a simple recipe, so it’s great for children to help make, and it can be adapted to suit a myriad of dietary needs. The recipe also is really quick to assemble and bake, so it’s just the thing for satisfying your sweet tooth without too much planning ahead.

Below, I’ve listed the recipe Granny taught me along with my additions and suggestions in parentheses. While this recipe is perfect for summer berries, it also can be suited to the fruit that’s in season any time of year. You also can use frozen berries (or rhubarb, yum!). I hope your family enjoys this treat as much as ours does.

Ingredients

• 8 Tbsp. butter (or 4 Tbsp. coconut oil or apple sauce)
• 1 to 2 cups berries or fruit (blackberries, blueberries, peaches, and apples all work especially well)
• 1 cup sugar (amount can be modified depending on sweetness of fruit, or you can substitute honey or stevia if you are trying to cut down on processed sugar)
• 1 cup milk (equivalent amount of almond or rice milk, or fruit juice can be swapped in)
• 1 cup wheat flour (coconut flour, almond flour, and rice flour or a combination of types of flour all work nicely if you are trying to avoid wheat/gluten)
• 1 tsp. baking powder (optional, I usually forget the baking powder, and it turns out fine)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Melt the butter or coconut oil and use it to coat the bottom of a 9 x 13” pan. If you use apple sauce, spread it in the pan.  Spread the berries over the pan so they are evenly distributed. Sprinkle the berries with sugar or stevia or drizzle them with honey. In a separate bowl, combine the flour and baking powder and add the milk or juice. Stir until the batter is moist and then pour it over the fruit in the pan. Bake for 30-45 minutes or until golden brown. Serve warm topped with milk or ice cream.