Tigernut Cherry Cobbler (AIP, Coconut-Free, Paleo)

So...this just happened. Our massively overgrown cherry tree was happy this year and produced an extraordinary amount of fruit. We think we picked about 200 pounds yesterday and there's still so much more left on the tree.

Needless to say, I had to figure out what the heck to do with them all. We gave most of it away to family and friends but still have more than I can handle.

I've never done anything with fresh cherries before, besides eating them as-is. Or throwing a few frozen cherries into a smoothie. The idea of pitting cherries just seems so daunting. But since I don't like wasting, I took to the internet to find the best way to pit a cherry.

I found this excellent video over at Sunset that explains what to do.

All you need is: - a cutting board

- parchment paper

- a mallet or something with weight to give the cherries a little squish (I used a 2 cup liquid measuring glass.)

- Place a few handfulls of cherries onto a cutting board and cover with a piece of parchment paper.

- Take your mallet and gently pound the cherries. You want to apply just enough pressure to break the skin, not squish them completely. (See pic below for perfectly "squished" cherries)

- Remove the parchment paper and pinch the cherries one by one to remove the pits. I squished them right into a container, to save on the mess of cherry juice flying everywhere.

It was still a little messy, I'm not going to lie, but not too bad. AND I was able to do the whole process with 1 hand, as I was holding my baby in the other arm. Yes, I do have a baby carrier, but I didn't think to put it on until after.

Now onto the yummy part! I recently discovered tigernuts, after reading an article by Lauren over at Empowered Sustenance. See here. Following the Autoimmune Paleo protocol means no nuts and seeds. Throw my coconut, avocado and banana allergies into the loop and I'm almost entirely out of dessert options. Thankfully, tigernuts came to the rescue. Despite the name, tigernuts are not a "nut" at all, but rather a starchy tuber. This makes them AIP safe!

I was quite happy with my first attempt at making a cherry cobbler or any cobbler, ever. I hope you enjoy it!

Tigernut Cherry Cobbler

Ingredients

Fruit Base

3 cups - Pitted Cherries

2 Tbsp. - Maple Syrup

Topping 1 Cup - Tigernut Flour

1/3 Cup - Palm Shortening

3 Tbsp. - Maple Syrup

1/4 tsp. - Salt

1/2 Cup - Water

Instructions

- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

- Place cherries in glass pie dish.

- Drizzle with maple syrup (2 Tbsp.).

- To make the topping, using a separate bowl, combine tigernut flour, palm shortening, maple syrup, salt and water. Stir until well combined.

- Spoon and spread the mixture evenly over the cherries.

- Bake in the middle rack at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

- Turn the broiler on, move the cobbler to the top rack and broil for 2 - 3 minutes until nicely browned.

Enjoy!

I ate mine piping hot out of the oven, because that's just what I do. Then I had to freeze the rest or else I'd eat it all and get a tummy ache. I have no self control when it comes to these things.

(*Note: It was on the sweet side so I'm sure you could cut back on the some of the maple syrup and still satisfy your sweet tooth.)

#AIP #Paleo #Tigernut #Cherry #Dessert #Foodie #CoconutFree #Yum