Have Yourself a Very Berry Summer

Sam Block Instructor, Cooking School

Summer is right around the corner, which means I’m about to stock up on one thing.

OK, maybe two things.

Sunscreen. And berries.

As a Jersey local, I’m lucky to have a handful of farmers’ markets within reach. Bring on the strawberries, blueberries, and everything in between. I start thinking about all the jams, the salads, and the treats I can make at this time of year, and I go after it! The problem is I get a bit . . . too excited. Every year I come home with enough berries to feed a family of four. It’s just me and my cat, Miso. She prefers tuna.

But there’s plenty I can make for easy breakfasts and sweet treats to last me through the week—or that would be welcome at any potluck that springs up on my social calendar. So let’s get after it.

My go-to blueberry treat has to be our Best Blueberry Muffins. Half the blueberries get cooked down into an intensely flavored jam to swirl into the muffins before baking, while the other half get stirred into the batter whole for a satisfying pop. (You can watch my colleague Carmen make them in Magnificent Quick Breads with ATK Classes.) If muffins could scream blueberry, it would be these.

If I’m not in the mood to make a pie or a cobbler, I’m making a Lazy Strawberry Sonker. It takes practically no effort, hence the name. (The “lazy” part, that is. “Sonker” is colloquial to Surry County, North Carolina, where this deep-dish dessert is from.) Toss whole strawberries with some sugar and a simple cornstarch slurry in a baking dish and put it in the oven. Once the berries are syrupy, drizzle a pantry-friendly pancake batter over the top and then finish baking. The result? A lightly crisp, buttery cake crowning the tender strawberries like a queen.

Now, when I am in the mood to show off, I’m making a slab pie. You may have heard me talk about these before, like in Slab Pies to Feed a Crowd from ATK Classes. Filling an 18 by 13-inch rimmed baking sheet, our Triple Berry Slab Pie uses not two, not three, but almost four pounds of berries! Adorned with lemony ginger streusel, it’s as stunning as it is delicious. Perfect for a summer picnic or barbecue.

If you love berry season as much as I do, put these recipes on your summer baking list. And don’t forget sunscreen.

P.S. If you still have more berries than ideas to use them, I invite you to check out the latest class, which is all about Strawberry Season. ATK Classes is now available on our website as well as on the five-star ATK App. You can join my colleagues in the kitchen from any device, and they’ll walk you through how to prep, store, and prepare your fruitful summer bounty.

Berry Breakfast Bakes

Sweet Shortcuts

Berry Ambitious

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