Cobbler

My love for Farmer’s Markets knows no end. I’m serious. Where some girls love the mall, you will find me with my reusable bag in hand, cash in my wallet, at least one child, and sometimes the dog. Oh, and my phone camera is on, because I am enchanted by bins of melons or stacks of radishes. I will be snapping pics as I go. At one point, I had a Farmer’s Market crush on the bread truck man. It could have been the chewy molasses cookies or the almond croissants he sold. I may be that shallow.

Why is a pile of beets or bags of freshly picked greens so alluring? I love the idea of local farmers and artisans selling directly, the camaraderie of the people shopping, supporting organic produce, and the fact that rain or shine, the sky is overhead and you get to know the people from whom you are purchasing your ingredients.

There are days I make Target runs. I also go to my grocery store, often. I have yet to be romanced by an end cap and florescent lighting like I am the vegetable laden table under a tent.

Anyways…this week one of the farmer’s market in my area (yes, I frequent several) had peaches. Fresh, locally grown peaches. White and Yellow. I needed both. The farmer told me not to eat them the day I purchased them, but within two days they would be perfection. They were. Peaches on salad, peaches in oatmeal, peaches next to my sandwich, and yes. Two desserts. I made a Peach Galette and this Peachy Peach Cobbler. Peachy Peach, because I used both white and yellow peaches combined.

When it comes to cobbler I need two things: The fruit has to be cooked down before the topping is added so it is bubbly and beautiful at the same time the topping is finished – AND – the topping can’t be biscuit like, nor crisp like. (We get enough crisp in the fall with apples).

So my dilemma. Can I make a topping that had the best of both worlds? Light like a biscuit and crunchy like a crisp without being so Crumbly and heavy? I tried!

I started the topping like a dough, cutting in butter. I used a quick cook oats so it would absorb moisture and have density but not heavy crunch. And to make it light? A trick where you add Baking Powder and boiling water right at the end. The boiling water and powder fizz up and give the mixture a little bit of puff without making it like a biscuit.

Also, I used light brown sugar to match the peaches and give the topping a little more caramel feel.

Two baking times, pre topping and post topping resulted in the sweet juicy bottom and the perfect texture top to match. If I could change this again (and I will) I would play with the spices. I kept it simple to not overpower the peaches, but part of me wanted more cinnamon.

Serve this warm with the good vanilla ice cream, (or maybe cinnamon ice cream?) and enjoy. It’s really the perfect dessert for the end of August, and hey, now I have room to go buy more peaches at the next farmer’s market.

I hope you enjoy this recipe, and as always, thank you for coming to the table!

Chrissy

Peachy Peach Cobbler

Print Recipe

Making use of fresh summer peaches with just the right amount of topping. Cobbler topping is right between a biscuit and crisp topping, matching the sweetness of the peaches for a delicious summer dessert!

• Author: chrissy@mythankfultable.com

Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

Peachy Peach Cobbler

Chrissy@mythankfultable.com

Filling:

• 6 Cups Peaches (I used a combination of white and yellow peaches)
• 1/3 Cup Light Brown Sugar
• 1 tsp Cinnamon
• Juice of one lemon

 

Crumb Topping:

• 1 Cup AP Flour
• ½ tsp salt
• 1 Stick (8 TBSP) Butter (grated on box grater or cut into small cubes)
• 3 TBSP Light Brown Sugar
• 1 Tsp Vanilla
• 1 Cup Quick Oats
• 2 Tsp Baking Powder
• 2–3 TBSP Boiling Water

Instructions

 

Preheat oven to 350*

Combine filling ingredients and place in baking dish. Bake for 30 minutes until peach filling cook and thicken.

Combine flour, salt, brown sugar. Cut in butter into dry ingredients. Add quick oats and baking powder and combine. Add in vanilla. Add boiling water and stir quickly until mixture is moistened and combined.

Sprinkle crumb topping on top of peaches and return to oven. Bake for another 30-35 minutes. Peach filling should bubble up through the crumble topping. Serve warm!