Wineberry Cobbler

I bet you've never seen a wineberry in the grocery store before. Every July, wineberries pop up all over the mid-atlantic. And while they're actually an invasive species, they are ah-mazing. Because they are so fragile and juicy (sorry, I hate that word too, but that's what it is), they can't make it to stores. 

Wineberries are essentially smaller, brighter tasting raspberries. They have a hint of citrus with sweetness and are perfect for eating plain or baked in a cobbler. Actually, wineberries are the husband's favorite berry, regardless of how they are consumed. The first time he was introduced to them while hiking on my family property...he consistently picked and ate every red berry he saw on the walk. Needless to say, we get our wineberry on every July. And this is what he makes me.

Virginia Wineberry Cobbler

///Ingredients/// 

Topping [based on this recipe]: 

• 2 C flour
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/3 cup butter
• 1 C skim milk

Filling:

• Wineberries
• Sugar

///Directions/// 

Add wineberries to a baking pan and toss with sugar. To create the biscuits, freeze butter. In a cuisinart add dry ingredients and mix. Add the cold butter, chopped into bits, or use the shredding blade attachment. Blend and the dry ingredients should start to gather.  Pour in milk and pulse at the same time. The mixture will pull together, but be sure not to over mix. Heat oven to 425 F. Drop biscuits on the berries. If desired brush the tops with milk and sugar to brown. Cook until the top of the biscuits are browned. 

We like to go heavy on the berry filling and top it with 0% Chobani Greek yogurt...sometimes for breakfast. I would love to figure out a way to work in some whole wheat, but I've got some experimenting to do. Too bad that means eating more wineberries [sentence served with a  healthy portion of sarcasm]. 

Do you know what wineberries are? Are they in your area?