A Little Taste of Summer

I love summertime in Oklahoma!

I love flip flops, lawn chairs, and grilling. And summer rain. And sunflowers. And fireworks. And, watching my sister-in-law run after she's lit an artillery-style firework. And, family vacations.

As with most seasons, there are a few drawbacks. I do not love 100+ degree temperatures. I do not love wasps, flies, or mosquitoes. I detest ticks. I do not enjoy sweating. And, I do not enjoy packing for summer vacation or watching my family fist-fight our way out to the car for said vacation. No...none of those things excite me.

But, I suppose it's all worth it when you get to eat home-grown tomatoes, fresh basil from the herb garden, and wild blackberries from the bushes that have set up shop in my back yard.

This summer, the blackberry harvest has been especially abundant, so much so that I've made three blackberry cobblers this week, one of which was gluten-free for a gluten-sensitive member of my staff. She was extremely happy.

My sweet husband also has been happy. I love happy humans!

Back to the cobbler. I've made a number over the years, but all the recipes I had were time-consuming and had a list of ingredients as long as my arm. If you're a regular here at ClareMom, you know how I feel about any recipe that has more than 10 ingredients.

Ain't nobody got time for that!

Thanks to Pinterest, I was able to find a Southern Living cobbler recipe, which I tweaked slightly. Here it is:

EASY BLACKBERRY COBBLER

4 cups wild blackberries, rinsed and drained well

Juice of one lemon

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons of granulated sugar, divided

1 cup all-purpose flour (use Bob's Red Mill White Rice Flour for gluten-free)

1 large egg

A pinch of salt

1 stick of butter, melted

Braum's Vanilla Ice Cream (this is imperative!)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In an 8x8-inch baking pan sprayed with non-stick cooking spray, combine blackberries, lemon juice, and 2 tablespoons of sugar. In a small bowl, combine 1 cup flour, 1 cup sugar, pinch of salt and egg. Mix with a fork to create "crumbles." Sprinkle over berries. Pour melted butter over the top. Bake for 35 minutes.

After removing from the oven, allow to cool for at least 30 minutes. Then, scoop a serving into a bowl, top with a dollop of ice cream and watch it ooze.

Each bite is crispy, gooey, fruity, creamy, and yummy. Heavens to Murgatroyd, it's good!