September 17th
2007
Don't get deluded, we're still on the road. After indulging ourselves in fabulous food in California (including a Yountville adventure...) and a few thousand miles later - haunted accompanied by serious roadfood - we finally reached our last destination, Colorado Springs. We were fortunate to meet dear fellow food bloggers along the trip and are packed with countless stories and delicious recipes, more upon our return home next week. For the time being, luckily our dear friend Stephanie agreed to jump in and share her mom's delicious peach cobbler recipe with us, the one we savoured during a fantastic family dinner a couple of years ago. Need to stop now, because it's breakfast time and a very tempting frangrance of pecan pancakes with fresh raspberries lies in the air...
On a balmy night in mid-August, we sat on our patio with friends enjoying food and wine of the season. For the “contorni” course, I served a late-summer rendition of Caprese salad -- all credit to my friend Mary Beth -- substituting fresh peaches for tomatoes. As we relished the aged balsamico dripping off the peaches, creamy mozzarella, and freshly picked basil from the garden, our friend David warned that we should be aware of the dangers of becoming stone fruit fanatics (David’s brother has apparently been found in front of the kitchen sink with a blank stare and juices from the first peach of the season running down his chin). I confess to have enjoyed a mango that way myself, one found fallen from the tree, having warmed to full ripeness in the Costa Rican sun. I highly recommend adding this to the “things to do before I die” list, if you haven’t already. Let the juices run!
In Colorado, local stone fruits such as cherries, apricots, nectarines, and plums can be found at markets as early as July. But it isn’t until mid- to late-August that Colorado’s orchard queen, the “Palisade Peach,” fulfills its calling. Colorado stone fruit fanatics believe it’s Palisade’s high altitude mesa and semi-desert climate that make the local fruit a superior peach. At an elevation upwards of 1417 meters (or 4650 feet), Palisade enjoys a growing season with intense sunny days and cool, dry nights, which provide an ideal balance of sugars and acid. There are many varieties of peaches grown in Palisade, but the free stones are always in high demand because they make eating and cooking with them so very easy.
Sadly, we missed the family pilgrimage to hand-pick Palisade peaches this August, but we were able to find plenty of ripe bushels at our local produce market. Now the storehouse (my refrigerator and freezer) is full as we head into autumn, and I have big plans for these peaches, namely, my mom’s peach cobbler. Cobblers are as American as can be (originally a quick and “cobbled” together version of fruit pie) and a simple and delicious way to enjoy seasonal fruit. As you are soon to discover, there are few things that compare to the aroma of a peach cobbler baking on a cool autumn evening.
Note: Let there be cobbler for everyone! For the best cobbler, use peaches that have been picked ripe, and if your geography doesn’t allow for peaches, find a local fruit in season to substitute. Also, to make the process go quickly, blanch peaches in boiling water for just one minute before peeling.
To prepare:
Sift together dry ingredients, excluding almonds. Cut in butter until you have coarse crumbs. Combine milk and egg and then add to dry mixture, stirring just until moistened.
Combine cornstarch, cinnamon, brown sugar and water in saucepan and cook until thickened. Add the sliced peaches, lemon juice, and butter. Cook about five to ten minutes, until peaches are hot and juice is bubbling. Pour into an 8-inch (approximately) round or square baking dish. Spoon biscuit topping over the peaches in about 6 biscuits/mounds (don’t panic- they will not cover the peach mixture, but will grow in the oven). Scatter topping with sliced almonds. Bake at 400F (205C) for 20 to 25 minutes, until golden. Serve hot out of the oven with a scoop of vanilla bean ice cream.
Mama Rita's Peach Cobbler
Recipe source: Rita Salazar Dickerson
Prep. time ~20 min & baking ~ 20 min.
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Ingredients (serves 4-6):
Peach filling:
1 and 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/3 cup/~70g brown sugar
1/2 cup/125ml water
5-6 cups sliced, peeled peaches (~5-6 medium peaches)
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 tbsp/10-15g butter
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Biscuit topping:
1 cup/130g flour
2 tbsp/~25g sugar
1 and 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 cup/50g butter
1/4 cup/50ml milk
1 egg, slightly beaten
small handful (~30g) of thinly sliced almonds (reserve to top before baking)
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to serve: preferably hot from the oven with vanilla ice cream
I look forward to your stories about CA! First summer in my life I didn't spend a part of it in CA. :(
Lovely recipe! And the photo is just so classic and elegant!
Glad you got to enjoy Colorado's famous peaches and how cool you are visiting our town! Have fun! Up Highway 24 at the Pikes Peak turnoff is a place called Wines of Colorado that sells nothing but Colorado wine (as it were); not as famous as California wine but you won't find it anywhere but in this state. In our ongoing quest to eat local, we've adapted fairly well to it! Otherwise, this town isn't really known for its culinary sophistication....
Yummm! I can't wait for some time to spend at home either making this cobbler or persuading my mom or sister to make it. With the plea, of course, that I am a busy student and I need this kind of sustenance while the peaches are in season to remind me that the food from the dining hall is not real (not that it takes much convincing).
Mmmm....Stephanie. You hit the nail on the head. Peach cobbler is about as good as it gets! I have had three perfect moments of heaven this summer- two involved the measured and breathless consumption of the agonizingly perfect peach with eyes squeezed shut, juices dripping into my cupped hand and the world slowly whirring outside my consciousness. The third, focused on the consumption of a delicious peach cobbler. Thank you for sharing the immeasurably valuable recipe from your mother's treasure trove of delectability. First tamales, and then peach cobbler. Ahh, what lucky readers we are. Have fun with Nicky and Oliver!
Thanks for this american trip and summer recipe (even if it's difficult to find good peaches in Munich now).
Peaches and sliced almonds - what a great combination. Thanks, I can't wait to try it!
Looks so yummy.......but can u pls advise if I can use canned peaches instead?? Tks for yr time. And I love yr blog!
I LOVE the polka-dots and stripes! Fab!
The cobbler looks good to ;-)
Really great dish and I am already looking forward to try it...yummy ;)
This is the second crumbly and peachy recipe I've seen today; it must be the season. This looks great and really really tasty!
¡Sabroso! Currently in Cedaredge, CO, I think I'll see if Grandma & Grandad have any remaining peaches from the harvest here and perhaps try out the family recipe. Thanks for contributing Steph, and for posting, Nicky! It was so awesome to see you guys.
I wanted to try something different with what might be the very last peaches of this year and it will be your cobbler. "Cobbler" is not known in Germany, but the mouthwatering picture convinced me immediately!
I gave the recipe a whirl and it worked absolutely wonderfully. It's a really great way to begin the surge into summer here in Aust.
Appetizing!
How come I did not discover 'Delicious Days' until today?
I love your design.
I might whip up a cake for my 9 year old birthday.
It probably will be a quatre-quart (apple or pear and some chocolate...as my baking time will be limited...you know work...
Have a great day.
Serge
'The French Guy from New Jersey'
Blog:
'Serge the Concierge'
The cobbler looks delicious! It's such a beautiful photo too.
This looks amazingly delicious - I can't wait to try it. I've never made a Peach Cobbler with almonds, but it sounds like a perfect match.
My mouth is pretty much watering now!
The ultimate comfort food. This is just what I was looking for:-))
Di
oh my stars. i can tell i'll be returning here again today, tomorrow.. the next day...
:) this indeed looks delicious.
This looks delicious...yummy peaches..maybe with ice cream?
[...] of the ultimate comfort foods: peach cobbler, explained in detail at Delicious: [...]
Hi! I tried this recipe last nite and the taste is great. I've a question about the biscuit toppings in this recipe -- it turns out that the toppings is pretty chewy and moist. It's a bit different from my impression to cobblers, which the top is crumble-like. Is that because I stirred the dough too much? Thank you very much for any insights.
Hi Nicole,
Actually, there are many renditions of cobbler out there...and "cousins" to cobbler, like "crumble," "buckle," etc. Here's a great link to sort out the differences.
In my mom's recipe, the topping should indeed be soft- just like a biscuit. But I do take care to barely mix the topping, only until just combined. Happy baking!
-S-
Hi Stephanie, Thank you very much for the tips. Have a good day.
We found some absolutely marvelous pluots at the Cabrillo Farmers' Market on Saturday. I used part of them in an open-face tart, but this cobbler recipe looks like a good way to use the rest. Thanks,