Lake House Cooking

Blackberry Cobbler

When you hear the words "lake house," what comes to mind? A huge lodge on a hillside overlooking the lake? A small fishing cabin tucked in the pines close to the shore? A permanent residence with a double garage? A weekend get-away place with no TV? A lake house can be any of these. And they are all good.

We always like to take the boat out to see what has changed since last summer. There is plenty of new construction to see. There are massive new homes with soaring roof lines going up everywhere. Some are the size of a boutique hotel. I imagine they have state-of-the-art kitchens with granite countertops, large stone fireplaces and many bathrooms. And they are beautiful.

But I love seeing the old places. Well worn and comfortable. Some have passed "comfortable" and look like a good wind could blow them over. In a few lakeside spots, there are clusters of campers and small trailers, some with a permanent roof on poles over the top. They are squeezed together, usually next to a landing. They would have to be good neighbors! There are campers in tents at the state park way down the lake from us, who love the rustic approach to lake life. And there is a new RV park for campers who don't love rustic. There is a lake style for everyone.

One of my favorite homes looks like two original cabins were connected, and then added on to. And it is a masterful combination of old and new. As our family grows, I appreciate the need for more space. 

Our lake house is more of the small cabin variety, built over 60 years ago when all those big houses didn't exist. Back then, this cabin was considered "good sized." The photo above flatters the space. But trust me, it's small. We added a huge porch several years ago and that is where we stay. But even though the cabin is not very large, I love it. I love the old cedar walls and pine floors. And the postage stamp size kitchen has managed to feed us many meals. I love the memories that have seeped into the walls.

Memories aside, we have to be practical down there and get food on the table. One trick has helped me manage cooking in this tiny kitchen. I learned it from Becky, a faithful blog reader. She does this for vacation trips. And a few days at the lake falls in that "not cooking in my own kitchen" category. 

Becky pre-measures ingredients for seasonings and spices for her recipes so there is no need to take or buy several bottles of that things you use by the teaspoon. I've done this for several recipes, like the slow cooker Balsamic Chicken and the Bourbon Marinated Pork Tenderloin. Becky mixes the marinade for the pork tenderloin with soy, mustard and maple syrup and freezes the tenderloin in the marinade, then packs it frozen in a cooler. Let it thaw at your destination, and then it's ready to go into a slow cooker, which she takes with her. This is a great tip to keep in mind for your summer travels.

When it was obvious I was not going to get a pound cake baked for the weekend, I opted to make a blackberry cobbler when we got to the lake. In my own kitchen at home, I measured and bagged the dry ingredients for the filling and the topping. Then at the lake, I only had to stir in the frozen berries and pop that into the oven while I cut a stick of butter into the topping mix. 

BLACKBERRY COBBLER

Filling:

5 cups frozen blackberries ( two 12-oz bags)

1-1/4 cups sugar

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

dash of cinnamon

dash of nutmeg

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray a 2-qt. baking oblong baking dish with PAM. Mix all the ingredients together and pour into the baking dish. Cook for 20 minutes. Remove from oven. Stir the berry sugar mixture. Add topping.

Topping:

1/2 cup sugar

1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

1 stick butter

cinnamon & sugar, mixed

Mix together sugar, flour and baking powder. Cut the butter into dry ingredients until it is thoroughly blended. Spread topping evenly over the filling mixture. Sprinkle the top with a cinnamon/sugar mixture. Return to oven for an additional 20 minutes. 

If it's not lightly brown (and mine never is,)  I'll turn the oven to BROIL for a few more minutes. Watch closely for this part.

I didn't have any cinnamon sugar with me. It was fine to leave it off.

Serve warm with ice cream.

Recipe tips:

• The frozen berries are in 10 ounces bags, we use 2-1/2 bags.

• If the berry mixture looks dry when you take it out of the oven the first time, stir in a couple tablespoons of hot water before you add the topping. It should be "juicy." Some berries just aren't as juicy as others, so you may have to "help" them.

• The juicy filling will cook up around the edges of the topping. That is normal. You're going to scoop it up into dishes anyway.

Here is our porch that is the center of our lake days. We had one dinner with newlyweds, who were the first to arrive. Then, every seat was full for the rest of the weekend. The porch is the best place for shared meals and shared conversations. Summer is just beginning. I'm hoping there is lots more porch time ahead. Maybe some of it will be rain free.


PS...This weekend I'm back home in my nice big, well equipped kitchen and I find that I've cooked less here than I did in the tiny make-do kind of kitchen at the lake. 😊