July: Peach Cobbler
An old Amish recipe, treasured and made every summer since 1972
When I encountered T. S. Eliot* wondering if he dared to eat a peach, back in Dr. Newlin’s Freshman English class during the 1965 Spring semester at Washington College, I could not identify with either Prufrock’s hesitancy or his obsessive preoccupation with the unpleasant ramifications of aging. Peaches were the best fruits of the summer, I was convinced. Why would anyone hesitate for even an instant to indulge in such bliss?
Decades later, when the sometimes regrettable aspects of aging capture my own attention or ignite my anxiety at least once in a while, I am still mystified: Even if deciding whether or not to eat a peach were the last conscious decision I could make, I am quite sure that my answer would be Yes! Peaches are still my favorite fruit of the summer. If the sweet aroma and gentle pressure confirm that a peach I hold under my nose reveals it’s perfect ripeness, I cannot imagine hesitating, second guessing, or even delaying the gratification for even a second or two!
Peaches are so delicious eaten out-of-hand with juice escaping down your chin, preferably while standing over the sink!
They’re also an easy and delicious choice if sliced into a bowl, sprinkled with sugar, and served for dessert around 15 minutes after you have complimented them with that little shower of sweetness to release the fruits’ luscious juices. (Cookies are a nice addition to this dessert, and some people pour on a bit of heavy cream, but you really don’t need anything more than sugared sliced peaches to experience completely gratifying self indulgence.)
For a wonderful dessert that I think I’ve been making at least once each summer since 1972, I invite you to try this peach cobbler. I learned to prepare this dessert when a work colleague printed out copies of the recipe for everyone at the office at my first post-college job. The cobbler, which my office mate told us was “Amish,” – then and still code for wholesome, natural, and unadulterated –is best when served piping hot and topped with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. Pouring on a stream of light or heavy cream is another completely acceptable addition.
I make the cobbler in a shallow baking dish large enough to accommodate a quart and a half of filling. If your dish has a lid, that is a preferable choice, but if there’s no ceramic lid, you can use foil to cover the cobbler for the first half of the baking time.
There are people who simply wash their peaches under a stream of cold tap water, slice them and proceed with eating the fruit or making a recipe, but I do not enjoy the fuzziness of the peach peel, and I peel them first. Bring a small pot of water to boil on top of the stove. At the same time, prepare an ice bath in your sink by adding a cupful of ice cubes to a bowl of cold water, and keep the bowl at hand to accept the peaches. Now, drop the peaches, a few at a time, into the boiling water bath and leave them there for 30 seconds. Remove with a slotted spoon and transfer them to the ice bath. Now, the peel will slide right off while you hold a peach under a stream of cold running water, and that fuzzy skin will be an annoyance of the past.
Peach Cobbler
Ingredients:
2 to 2 and a half pounds of medium-size peaches, peeled, pitted, and sliced (6 to 8 peaches)
1 cup plus 3 TBSP. granulated sugar, divided
1 TBSP. ground cinnamon
4 TBSP. (one half stick) cold unsalted butter
1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2tsp. salt
1 egg
Preparation:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees, F.
Fill a 1-and-a-half quart size baking dish with a thick layer of sliced peaches.
In a small bowl, combine the 3 TBSP. of granulated sugar with 1 TBSP. ground cinnamon. Sprinkle this mixture over peaches in the baking dish.
Slice the butter into small pieces and scatter the butter over the surface of the peaches and cinnamon sugar layer. Set aside while you prepare the topping.
In a medium-size mixing bowl, combine the 1 cup of granulated sugar, the flour, baking powder, and salt. Make a well in the middle of the bowl and break in the egg. Use a fork to beat the egg and gradually draw the dry ingredients into the well to make a crumbly topping.
Crumble the topping over the peaches in the baking dish. Use a light touch. Resist the urge to pat the topping down, but do cover the entire layer of peaches with the
topping.
Cover the baking dish with a tight-fitting lid or heavy-duty aluminum foil, crimped to seal tightly.
Bake for 30 minutes. Then, remove the lid, and continue baking for 30 minutes longer.
Remove from oven, and serve hot, with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, or light or heavy cream, whipped or not, according to your preference.
Note: You can make this cobbler with apples instead of peaches when apple-picking season rolls around in the fall. If you add freshly-grated nutmeg and a pinch of ground ginger to the cinnamon-sugar mixture, the apple cobbler will be even more delicious. Once the baking dish is filled with a layer of apples, proceed with the directions above, and you will be rewarded with a truly delicious dessert.
*If you didn’t make acquaintance with T. S. Eliot during your youth – or you somehow completely forgot about poor old J. Alfred Prufrock in the interim – you can learn more by visiting this link: https://poets.org/poem/love-song-j-alfred-prufrock
-Penny
Prints of these peaches are available via Molly’s website here.
