Gooseberry Cobbler – A Once in a Summer Dessert

Have you ever had a gooseberry?  If you have, you know how special these little fruits are!

I LOVE gooseberries.  To me they are a rare treat, as I never see them at local markets or stores.  I remember growing up, my aunt had a gooseberry bush at her house and I loved picking off the ripe berries in the summer and eating them straight.

Because my aunt lived in Indiana, I always associate gooseberries with the Midwest.  According to Wikipedia, the gooseberry is native to parts of Europe and Western Asia.  However, they grow very well in the upper Midwest United States.

They grow on smaller thorny bushes and can be quite tart but get sweeter as they ripen.  Many people eat them plain but they are also delicious in pies, cobblers and jams.

Gooseberries do grow well in the midwest and when we moved into our house 7 years ago, outside Chicago, I decided to plant 2 gooseberry bushes.  I ordered them online and laughed when they arrived looking like little sticks.  They started fruiting the following year but since they were so small, I only got about 10 berries!  Each year, they have slowly grown larger and more productive.  I was thrilled this summer when my daughter and I went to go pick the berries and we actually had enough for a cobbler!!!  It only took 7 years!  haha!!!

Because we haven't had enough in years past to actually make a pie, and I haven't seen gooseberries at local markets here, I wasn't sure what recipe to use for a pie or cobbler.  I headed to the internet and was inspired by several recipes.  I decided on a cobbler as they are easier for me to make (I don't make the prettiest pies) plus sometimes I think pies have too much dough and take away from the fruit.

Gooseberries are tart and many recipes call for a lot of sugar.  I like them tart so didn't use as much sugar as some recipes…but you still need a fair amount of sugar to offset the tartness.

Oftentimes when I make cobbler, I just mix granola, butter, sugar and toss it on the top of the fruit.  This time, I was inspired by this recipe and decided to make more of a cookie-type topping.  It turned out fantastic.

The whole family loved it!  We had the leftovers for breakfast the next morning with yogurt.  People always think it is funny when I eat real food desserts for breakfast but when you use nourishing ingredients, why not?

The only problem was I used all my gooseberries and now will have to wait until next year! 😉

Gooseberry Syrup from Fresh Bites Daily

Gooseberry Ice Cream from Fresh Bites Daily

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