Last Updated on January 5, 2024 by Carne Diem
Origin: North American, American Northeast
Equipment: Dutch Oven or Skillet
Jump to RecipeThis fresh blackberry slump is made with sweet blackberries and homemade drop dumplings for the perfect summer dessert.
During our time living in eastern Washington, one of our favorite activities to do with the kids was to visit one of the many orchards in the area and pick fruit. In Washington this typically consisted of cherries, blueberries, and apples. Making fruit cobblers, crisps and jams are always a favorite with the family, but this fresh blackberry slump is by far the mot requested dessert to make with fresh blackberries.
History of Slump
Also called a grunt in some areas of the U.S, a slump is very similar to a cobbler, except where a cobbler may be topped with dough or dumplings and then cooked in an oven, a slump is cooked on the stove top, grill, or campfire in a covered skillet or Dutch oven. Drops or balls of dumpling are added to the fruit and as the fruit is steamed during cooking the dumplings are also cooked to chewy perfection. This fruit dessert is served warm, typically with ice cream.
While a slump or grunt originates from New England, I was first introduced to slump in Washington, where Anthony's Seafood had possibly the best dessert ever, Huckleberry Slump. No visit to Anthony's was ever complete without a warm helping of slump topped with a scoop or two of the ice cream of the day.
Making the Fresh Blackberry Slump
To make the Dutch oven blackberry slump you will need to make the stewed fruit and the drop biscuits or dumplings.
Make the stewed fruit for the blackberry slump
To make the sweet fruit portion of the fruit slump you will need fresh blackberries, vanilla, sugar, cinnamon, lemon juice, sugar, and nutmeg.
Mix the sugar, nutmeg, and cinnamon together in a bowl, and set aside while you make the drop dumplings.
Make the drop biscuits for the Dutch oven fruit slump
To prepare the dumplings whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar in a medium sized bowl or food processor.
If using powdered buttermilk, reconstitute it in a measuring cup. Dice the butter into small cubes and cut into the flour. Continue to cut in the butter until the flour resembles small peas.
Stir in the milk all at once and mix until just combined. Then form into a loose ball and set aside.
Cooking the Blackberry Slump in a Dutch Oven
Prepare a Dutch oven or skillet on the stove top. Add the blackberries, sugar mixture, lemon juice, vanilla, and water to the Dutch oven and heat until boiling, stirring a few times to make sure the berries are well coated in syrup.
Tear small pieces off of the dumpling dough ball and drop into the boiling fruit mixture. You want about 8-10 drop dumplings and try not to crowd them too much in the pan.
Cover the pan or Dutch oven and reduce heat to simmer. Cook for 25 minutes, without opening the lid, then remove the lid and check the dumplings for doneness with a tooth pick. This Dutch oven dessert can also be made over a campfire or on a grill or smoker.
How do you know when your fruit slump is done?
When done the drop biscuits should be swollen and puffy and when you poke them with a toothpick the toothpick should come out clean.
Serving the Dutch Oven Fruit Slump with Fresh Blackberries
Serve the slump warm with ice cream and top with a couple pieces of fresh fruit.
Looking for more great recipes to use up your fresh fruit? Give a few of these a try.
- Blackberry Red Sangria
- Blueberry Moscow Mule
- Southern Comfort Blackberry Bramble Style Arnold Palmer
- Grilled Peaches with Amaretto Whipped Cream
Frequently Asked Questions
Also called a grunt in some areas of the U.S, a slump is very similar to a cobbler, except where a cobbler may be topped with dough or dumplings and then cooked in an oven, a slump is cooked on the stove top, grill, or campfire in a covered skillet or Dutch oven. Drops or balls of dumpling are added to the fruit and as the fruit is steamed during cooking the dumplings are also cooked to chewy perfection.
We hope you enjoyed this summertime treat. Thanks again for visiting Carne Diem. If you tried and enjoyed our recipe, please share with others. Also don’t forget to tag us @Carne_Diem_Culinary or #CarneDiemBlog, we love to see your pics! To be notified of future recipes please follow us on Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest, or sign up for our e-mail notifications.
📖 Recipe
Fresh Blackberry Slump with Drop Dumplings
Equipment
- Skillet or Dutch Oven
Ingredients
- 4 cups Blackberries preferably fresh
- ¾ cup Sugar
- ¼ teaspoon Cinnamon
- 1 Tablespoon Lemon Juice
- ⅓ cup Water
- ¼ teaspoon Nutmeg
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla preferably bourbon barrel aged
Dumplings
- 1 Cup Flour
- 1.5 teaspoons Baking Powder
- 2 Tablespoons Sugar
- ½ teaspoon Salt
- ½ Cup Buttermilk liquid
- 2 Tabblespons Butter
Instructions
Dumplings
- Whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar in a medium sized bowl.
- If using powdered buttermilk, reconstitute it in a measuring cup.
- Dice the butter into small cubes and cut into the flour. Continue to cut in the butter until the flour resembles small peas.
- Stir in the milk all at once and mix until just combined. Then form into a loose ball and set aside.
Fruit
- Prepare a dutch oven or skillet on the stove top. Add the blackberries, sugar, cinnamon, lemon juice, nutmeg, vanilla, and water to the dutch oven and heat until boiling, stirring a few times to make sure the berries are well coated in syrup.
- Tear small pieces off of the dumpling dough ball and drop into the boiling fruit mixture. You want about 8-10 dumplings, and try not to crowd them too much in the pan.
- Cover the pan or dutch oven and reduce heat to simmer. Cook for 25 minutes, without opening the lid, then remove the lid and check the dumplings for doneness with a tooth pick.
- Serve the slump with ice cream and a couple pieces of fresh fruit.
Comments
No Comments