How to Make Blueberry Grunt
Grunt, Slump, Bang Belly, Fungy…It’s called a lot of things, but let’s stick with the name that best explains how this treat makes us feel - Grrrrrunt! Give me some of that goodness!
Let’s take a step back. What on Earth is blueberry grunt? It’s like cobbler, but instead of being baked in the oven and topped with dry biscuit, blueberry grunts are cooked on the stovetop where the biscuits are steamed while nestled amongst stewed blueberries. It earned the name “grunt” because of the barnyard-like noises that the berries make whilst bubblin’ and gurglin’ all around the tender drops of dough.
It sounds like a science experiment, I know, but this simple delicacy has been around for decades. I stumbled across the recipe after a sweet and special young man at our church picked four quarts of blueberries as a thank you to my husband gifting him some photography equipment. On the hunt for the perfect blueberry recipe, I turned to Gram’s trusted cookbook, that doubles as a treasured scrapbook. That’s where I found the recipe for Cape Cod Blueberry Grunt.
I’ve adapted the recipe to add my own flair and to make it gluten-free.
Berries:
4 cups fresh blueberries
1 cup coconut sugar
1/2 cup orange juice
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
Biscuits:
2 cups gluten-free flour
1/4 cup coconut sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons butter, room temperature
1 cup milk
Topping:
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1/2 cup Mascarpone cheese
1-2 drops Young Living Lemon Vitality Essential oil or 1 teaspoon lemon juice
Here’s what you’ll need to do:
In a deep cast iron pan or dutch oven, with a tight-fitting lid, add four cups of fresh blueberries with 1 cup of coconut sugar (or regular), 1/2 cup orange juice and 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon. Stir to mix. On the stovetop, grill, or campfire, bring the berries to a light bubble. Start out with medium heat, stirring occasionally and adjust accordingly so as not to burn the berries.
As they stew, mix 2 cups of flour (I used gluten-free), with 1/4 cup coconut sugar, 2 teaspoons of baking powder, 1/2 teaspoon salt, two tablespoons of butter and one cup of cold milk. Stir until fully combined and smooth.
Drop 1/4 cup scoops of the batter into the stewed, bubbling berries. Cover with the lid and let it do its thing for 10 minutes. Be sure not to peek! You don’t want to ruin the steamy sauna environment for the dumplings.
You’re more than welcome to top your blueberry grunt with vanilla ice cream or regular whipped cream, but I highly suggest kicking it up a notch.
In a large glass bowl, whip one cup of heavy whipping cream with the whisk attachment until you’ve got a stiff-peaked whipped cream. Add 1/2 cup mascarpone cheese and stir until mostly combined. Add one or two drops of Young Living Lemon Vitality Essential oil. Whip again until fully combined.
Spoon a helping of warm blueberry grunt onto a plate and top with a dollop of the whipped topping. Serve immediately…that’s what you get to hear the satisfying grunt of your guest, enjoying their first taste of blueberry grunt.
My hubs took his first bite, let out a satisfied grunt and said that it made him feel like he had been transported back in time to when our ancestors enjoyed a delicious, simple blueberry grunt.