Blackberry-Apricot Sonker

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A marriage of blackberries and apricots marinated in honey and wine, then capped with a golden crust, plus creamy ice cream and whipped cream—this is sonker. Hard to believe, but sonker is even better the next day. Feel free to sub other fruits.

Ingredients

Garnish

1 bag (6 ounce) of dried apricot halves

½ bottle of Riesling (we used Shelton Vineyards)

4 tablespoons honey

2 tablespoons brown sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Whipped cream and/or ice cream, optional

Berry Mix

4 containers (6 ounces each) of fresh blackberries

1 cup blackberry wine (we used Shelton Vineyards)

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar

1 orange, zested and juiced

3–5 fresh apricots, medium dice

3 tablespoons cornstarch

Batter

1 cup flour

¾ cup granulated sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

½ cup milk

1 stick unsalted butter melted

¼ teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon granulated sugar for on top

Directions

For the garnish, combine apricots through extract in a pan, bring to a boil and reduce to low and stew until 95% of the liquid has been reduced to a syrup. Keep covered in a refrigerator once cool.
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
Combine all ingredients for the berry mix in a IO-inch iron skillet.
Bring the berry mix to a boil and then turn off heat. Mix will be slightly thickened.
Combine all dry batter ingredients, and in a separate bowl, combine all wet batter ingredients just until mixed. Mix the wet into the dry. This will resemble pancake batter viscosity. Evenly distribute batter over the berry mix.
Place an aluminum-foil-lined sheet tray in the oven and then place the iron skillet onto the tray in the oven to bake. The sonker will eventually boil over and the foil-lined tray will keep the inside of your oven clean. Bake at 350 degrees for 25–35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out dry. About halfway through baking, sprinkle I teaspoon of granulated sugar over the batter. Bake the sonker until evenly golden brown. Rotate once during cooking. Let the sonker rest for I hour. Refrigerate any leftovers.
To serve, portion into a serving bowl and top with I heaping tablespoon of the stewed apricots plus fresh whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.