The Blackberry Slump at the Four Swallows, Bainbridge Island, Washington

For my money, there is no better dessert on Earth than the ** blackberry slump** at the Four Swallows restaurant on Bainbridge Island, in Washington State. Slump doesn't sound all that appetizing to you? Fine; refuse to order it, as I did, and watch as it arrives in front of your tablemate smelling like home-baked memories and looking like a cake crossed with a crumble, with blackberries glistening like jewels amid vanilla ice cream and a toasty brown crust. When I finally persuaded my husband to share it, I discovered that the slump tastes even better than it looks. —Amanda Allington, Honolulu, Hawaii