Reminiscent of cobbler, these blueberry dumplings are cooked on the stovetop with fresh or frozen blueberries and drop-biscuit dough. It is an easy treat for blueberry season!
What are Blueberry Dumplings?
Blueberry dumplings seem to be a spinoff of chicken and dumplings, which is a biscuit dough dropped into a hot broth and cooked. This recipe uses lots of blueberries to make a “broth.” Then a sweetened biscuit dough is dropped into the hot liquid and simmered until fully cooked inside. The finished dish is reminiscent of a blueberry cobbler without a stiff crust.
The Difference Between Blueberry Dumplings and Blueberry Grunt
There is not a lot of difference between these two desserts. However, blueberry dumplings are dropped into a simmering blueberry sauce. They are cooked in hot liquid and may or may not stay on top of the berries; therefore, they are usually purple from the blueberry sauce. A tight-fitting lid is added to the pan and the dumplings are simmered without removing the lid.
A grunt is made similarly with dumplings that aren’t fully submerged, letting the white biscuit tops show on top of the finished dish. Unlike the dumplings, which are usually cooked in a saucepan or pot, a grunt cooks well in a large skillet on the stovetop which helps keep the dumpling tops out of the sauce. The grunt is placed in the oven to brown the tops of the biscuits.
Use Fresh or Frozen Blueberries
Use fresh (or frozen) blueberries for this recipe. Wash and place them in a thick-bottomed saucepan so they don’t scorch during cooking.
Steps to Making Blueberry Dumplings
Follow these steps to make this easy dessert.
Serving Warm
Serve these dumplings warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or whipped cream.
Add a Slice of Crust to Blueberry Dumplings
If you miss pie crust in this dessert, cut up a prepared refrigerated crust and bake it according to the package instructions. Then garnish this dessert with one or two slices.
Other Blueberry Recipes You Might Like
If you like this recipe, try these. Click on each name to link to the recipe.
- Blueberry Sauce
- Blueberry Crisp
- Blueberry Galette
- No-Bake Blueberry Dessert
- Blueberry Cookie Pudding
- Blueberry Ice Cream
- Buttermilk Blueberry Muffins
- Blueberry Cream Pie
Blueberry Dumplings
Ingredients
Blueberries
- 4 heaping cups blueberries, fresh or frozen
- 1 cup granulated sugar (add an extra tablespoon if you have tart berries)
- 2 cups water
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon butter
Dumplings
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- 1 pinch salt
- 6 tablespoons salted butter, cold
- 6 tablespoons whole milk or buttermilk (add more if needed to make a dough)
Instructions
Blueberries
- Place the blueberries, sugar, and water in a medium-sized saucepan, add a tight-fitting lid, and bring to a boil.
Dumplings
- Whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a medium-sized bowl.
- Cut the butter into small pieces (using a grater) in the flour bowl. Use a pastry cutter to mix the butter and flour. Then add the milk and stir to form a dough. Drop the dough by tablespoonfuls into the boiling blueberries.
- Re-cover the pan with a lid and reduce the heat to low. Let the blueberries simmer for 20 minutes or until the dumplings are cooked and fluffy. For best results, do not remove the lid until the cooking time is finished, and do not stir the dumplings.
- Remove the dumplings from the heat and add the lemon juice and vanilla extract. Stir to mix. Serve warm with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream. Garnish with prepared crust pieces.