Pioneer Woman Ree Drummond Shares 4 Blueberry Desserts Perfect for a Labor Day Picnic
Blueberries are in season. And for those looking for an easy way to incorporate the sweet fruit into their Labor Day picnic menu, here are four of The Pioneer Woman Ree Drummond’s delicious blueberry dessert recipes.
The Pioneer Woman’s Blueberry Ice Cream recipe is perfect for summer
As detailed on her website, Ree Drummond’s Blueberry Ice Cream is simple to make and requires very few ingredients. To get started, she cooks fresh blueberries (frozen works too) with sugar for about 15 minutes to make a compote.
While the blueberry compote cools, Drummond combines sugar with heavy cream and salt in a pot and lightly warms it over medium heat to dissolve the sugar.
Then while whisking egg yolks, she slowly drizzles a third of the cream mixture in, and then adds that to the pot with the cream. Drummond then reheats the mixture until it hits around 170 degrees, and strains it into a bowl sitting over ice.
She then mixes in the blueberry compote, vanilla, and buttermilk and transfers it to an ice cream maker. Once the cycle on the machine is done, Drummond suggests freezing it for at least four hours.
Ree Drummond’s Blueberry Cobbler is a hearty dessert
The Pioneer Woman’s Blueberry Cobbler is a great dessert to take on a Labor Day picnic. Drummond starts by combining fresh blueberries with sugar, lemon juice, and all-purpose flour in a large bowl.
In a separate bowl, she blends flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt with cold butter. She then whisks milk and eggs together and adds them into the flour mixture to make a lumpy dough.
Drummond then pours the blueberry mixture into a baking dish, dots them with pieces of butter, and then adds pinches of dough on top. She sprinkles sugar on top, covers the dish with foil, and bakes it for 20 minutes covered, and again for 25 minutes uncovered.
Drummond suggests serving the Blueberry Cobbler warm or room temperature, and alone or with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
Her Blueberry Crumble Sundaes have a sweet crunch
Drummond’s Blueberry Crumble Sundaes are a cool summer treat that features a sweet crunch. To get started, fresh blueberries are gently cooked with water, sugar, and cornstarch to make a syrup.
While the syrup cools in the refrigerator, Drummond gets to work on the Crumble. She pulses all-purpose flour with ground oats, chopped pecans, sugar, brown sugar, butter, and salt. When the mixture is combined, she adds heavy cream and egg yolks and pulses them again.
Drummond then pours the mixture onto a parchment-lined baking sheet and bakes it for approximately 20 minutes. Once the mixture is cool, she breaks it into crumbles.
To assemble the Blueberry Sundae, Drummond layers ice cream (she suggests using black raspberry or vanilla ice cream) and the reserved blueberry syrup in a tall glass. She then tops it with whipped cream and the crumbles.
The Pioneer Woman’s Blueberry Buckle is a versatile dessert
Drummond’s Blueberry Buckle is a fruity coffee cake that’s versatile enough to serve at home, at a party, or on a picnic. After preheating the oven, she starts with the streusel and mixes melted butter with brown sugar, white sugar, and cinnamon in a bowl. She then adds all-purpose flour and salt, and sets it aside.
In a separate bowl, Drummond starts on the buckle, stirring together flour, salt, and baking powder. In a mixer, she beats butter and sugar at medium speed until creamy, and adds eggs one at a time. The flour mixture is then mixed gradually with milk. She then flavors it with lemon zest and vanilla, folding in the fresh blueberries last.
Drummond spreads the buckle batter in a greased baking dish, tops it with blueberries, and then crumbles the streusel over it. The dessert bakes for about 45 minutes and is cooled before slicing and serving.
