Strawberry Rhubarb Slump (with gluten-free dumplings)

I have been haunted lately by a vague memory of our Estonian grandmother making stewed fruit (plums I think) with delicious little dumplings and streaks of goat milk. It basically the sweet version of her vegetable soup with goat milk broth and dumplings. I have done a bit of research and I have learned that this sort of stewed fruit with dumpling desert is called a “Slump”. Slumps are a good no fuss comforting desert.

Plums aren’t in season yet but I just couldn’t wait to try to make this dish, so I made it with strawberries and rhubarb. Rhubarb and plums share a good dose of sour and I think that part of the charm of this desert is that it is not too sweet. I used cream instead of goat milk and these dumplings are larger and fluffier than my grandmother’s. These dumplings are also gluten free. If you want to make dumplings with wheat flour you can find that recipe here. Just cut out the salt and add some nutmeg.

The following recipe makes a kind of crazy amount of slump. For just my husband and I, I should have halved the recipe. Although it has been fun to eat fruit and dumplings for tea time every day this week. This is almost exactly the same strawberry rhubarb compote that I made for my strawberry rhubarb trifle last summer. I love the hint of ginger. Next time I might toss a vanilla bean into the stew.

STRAWBERRY RHUBARB COMPOTE WITH GINGER

About 10 stalks of rhubarb (rinsed, trimmed and cut into 1 inch lengths)
2 pounds of fresh strawberries (rinsed, trimmed and quartered)
about 1/2 cup water
1 cup sugar
2 tsp ground dry ginger
try adding a vanilla bean

Put everything in a pot and bring to a boil over medium heat. Cook covered for about 7 minutes, or until the fruit releases it’s juice. While the fruit stews make the dumplings.

GLUTEN-FREE DUMPLINGS

adapted from a gluten-free buttermilk biscuit recipe by Jeanne at The Art Of Gluten-Free Baking from a recipe by Lorna Yee

Jeanne’s Gluten-Free All-Purpose Flour Mix

1 1/4 C (170g) brown rice flour
1 1/4 C (205g) white rice flour
1 C (120g) tapioca flour
1 C (165g) sweet rice flour (also known as Mochiko)
2 scant tsp. xanthan gum

Dumplings

2 C (280g) Jeanne’s Gluten-Free All-Purpose Flour Mix, sifted
2 TBL baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
4 TBL (60g; 2 oz) butter, cold
4 TBL (60g; 2 oz) leaf lard or shortening, cold
3/4 cup buttermilk or yogurt (180ml)
1/4 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
Heavy cream for serving

In a mixing bowl, stir together the sifted flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
Add the butter and lard, and cut in with a pastry blender or your fingers until the fat resembles coarse, pea-size clumps.
Stir in the buttermilk. If needed, add a bit extra to get a sticky dough.
Add the nutmeg.
When the stewed fruit has released it’s liquid, use a wet Tablespoon to scoop out a spoonful of dumpling dough. Drop the dumpling into the stewed fruit and repeat with the remaining dough. Cover the pot and simmer for about 15 minutes or until the dumplings are shiny and cooked all the way through.
Scoop a few dumplings and a bit of stewed fruit in to each dish and streak with heavy cream. Serve the slump hot! If you want to serve leftovers, reheat the dumplings and compote over very low heat for 15 minutes so that the dumplings can fluff up again.