9.06.2010

peach cobbler, two ways



I grew up having a peach tree in my backyard. Every year at the end of August, half of our 
family room would be covered in tablecloths covered with ripe peaches. We ate them whole, 
we canned them, we froze them... but my favorite way to eat peaches is in a cobbler.



Husband and I picked up a big bag of peaches from the local orchard. We've been eating 
peaches for breakfast and dessert all week, but still haven't managed to finish off the bag. 
So of course, I called up my Mom for her cobbler recipe...
Unfortunately, my Mom uses Jiffy Mix in her cobbler. Which they don't sell on the east coast.
So, I had to get creative. The Jiffy recipe my Mom uses has a cakey biscuit-like dough that is 
dropped on top of the fruit. However, we had a lot of peaches. So I also tried altering the topping to make it sweeter and more crusty, like the kind Husband grew up on.


I still don't think either of these are a good as Mom's, but I had trouble deciding between these two:
Filling: (same for both recipes)
5 cups sliced ripe peaches
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon

"biscuit" topping:
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 tablespoon sugar
1 whole egg
1/2 cup of milk
3 tablespoons melted butter

"crusty" topping:
1 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 tablespoon sugar
1 whole egg
1/2 cup of milk
3 tablespoons melted butter
1 additional tablespoon sugar to sprinkle on top


Start by slicing up the peaches.You can use more or less than 5 cups, depending on how many 
peaches you are trying to get rid of. I like a high fruit-to-topping ratio.


Put the peaches in a bowl or baking dish and sprinkle with the sugar and cinnamon. Mix well, 
then spoon into a 9x9 or 8x6 glass baking dish. Let sit while you make the topping.


For the topping, combine the egg and milk, then slowly add in the melted butter. 
In a separate bowl combine the flour, baking powder, and sugar.


Add the wet ingredients to the dry and stir until combined. The dough will be lumpy and sticky.
Or if you used less flour, more smooth and spreadable.

Drop the dough onto the peaches in large spoonfuls. 

OR

Smooth over the top with a spatula and sprinkle with sugar.


Place the baking dish onto a cookie sheet and bake at 350 F for 45 minutes, or until the 
filling is bubbly and the topping starts to turn golden brown.


Make sure you dig into the topping with a spoon to check that it's baked through.

Let cool for as long as you can resist the smell, then scoop into a bowl.


Top with vanilla ice cream, and ponder the great cobbler topping mysteries of the universe...

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