Blackberry Sonker with "Dip" (Kopie)

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Blackberry Sonker with “Dip” (from A Year of Pies by Ashley English)

Filling:
4 1/2 half-pints blackberries
1 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup arrowroot powder or cornstarch
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Topping:
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, cubed
3/4 cup buttermilk
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Dip:
2 cups whole milk
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 tablespoon arrowroot powder or cornstarch
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 425°F. Butter a 10-inch skillet or a 9-inch pie pan and set aside.

Prepare the filling:

Combine all the ingredients for the filling in a medium-size bowl. Stir until the dry ingredients are thoroughly mixed and the berries are well-coated. Cover bowl with a kitchen cloth and set aside for 15 minutes.

Prepare the biscuit topping:

Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium-sized bowl.

Using a pastry blender or fork, cut in the butter cubes until the mixture is crumbly and the size of peas or smaller.

Create a well in the center of the mixture. Pour in the buttermilk, and using a large spoon, gently incorporate just until all of the dry ingredients are moistened. The mixture will look quite wet at this point, but that’s fine.

Prepare the dip:

Heat the milk in a medium-seized saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a gentle boil.

Whisk the sugar and starch in a small bowl to mix well, then add to the milk along with the vanilla extract, stirring until thoroughly blended and smooth.

Reduce the heat under the saucepan to a gentle simmer and cook, uncovered, 15 to 20 minutes until the mixture is reduced by half.

Remove from the heat and transfer to a pourable container. Cover and set aside while the sonker bakes.

Assemble the sonker:

Place the blackberry mixture in the prepared skillet.

Using a large spoon,dollop the surface of the blackberries with the biscuit topping, aiming for mounds of about 3 tablespoons of batter. You needn’t be terribly specific on the biscuit amounts; as long as the surface is dotted with reasonably similar biscuit mounds, you’re in good shape.

Pour the melted butter over the biscuit topping and bake for 15 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 350°F and continue baking an additional 30 minutes.

Cool at least 30 minutes, then, just before serving, drizzle each portion with several tablespoons of dip.

http://www.lottieanddoof.com/2012/08/blackberry-sonker/#more-11536