One of the sweetest french expressions I know is: t'as la pêche! Which strictly translated means: you have the peach! But really it's a greeting used for some one radiating energy.
In France my Chef would always greet me in the morning with a big cheerful: Ça va? Comme une pêche? To which the only reply is, "Oui Chef, comme une pêche!" A nice way of saying: How are you? Like a peach? Full of energy? Ready to dominate in the kitchen today?
I don't know about you, but I'm ready to dominate peach cobbler. This recipe is a family favorite, adapted from Lee Bailey's Country Desserts, and we are purists about it. We don't add spices or thickners. No tapioca, no lemon, no cinnamon, no vanilla, no nutmeg – just fruit and crust. Nothing else.
(Oh, except a big scoop of vanilla ice cream, but that's just a garnish, not a real ingredient of the cobbler itself) T'as la pêche?
More Peach Cobbler Recipes around the Blogosphere:
Peach Cobbler by Simply Recipes
Summer Peach Cobbler by Baking Bites
Easy Peach Cobbler video by iFoods TV
Peach Cobbler
adapted from Lee Bailey’s COUNTRY DESSERTS published by Clarkson N. Potter, Inc., NY, 1988 Serves 6
1 ½ cups sifted all-purpose flour
Scant ¼ teaspoon salt
5 tablespoons unsalted butter
Frozen ¼ cup solid vegetable shortening
5 tablespoons ice water
7 very large ripe peaches, skinned and pitted
1 cup sugar (this sounds like a lot, but use all of it to make the peche syrup)
¼ cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, cut into bits
Whipped cream or ice cream
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Lightly grease a deep 7 x 9–inch ovenproof dish. Set aside. Place the flour and salt in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade. Add the frozen butter and shortening. Process until mixture is the size of small peas. Add ice water and process until mixture is the size of small peas. Add ice water and process until mixture begins to form a ball. Remove and shape into a ball. Refrigerate in two flattened disks until ready to use.
Meanwhile, cut the peaches into thick slices and set aside. To assemble the cobbler, roll the dough out into a large ragged rectangle on a floured surface. Dust with flour and roll back onto the rolling pin, window-shade fashion. Unroll over the prepared dish, allowing excess dough to hang over sides. Heap peaches into the dish. Sprinkle with the sugar and dot with the butter pieces. Flop the loose ends of the pastry over the top, use any pieces that might have fallen off as patches.
Put cobbler into the oven and turn temperature down to 425 degrees. Bake for 45 minutes, or until top is golden.
Fresh, local, delicious peaches are not yet available around me.
Do you have any tips on how to ripen up those rock-hard grocery store specimens without them turning to mush? (Or do I just need to be patient?)
Drago – Great question, because this recipe clearly relies on ripe peaches – not those mushy mealy things that some super markets pass off as stone fruit. If the peach is rock hard but fragrant (pick up and smell) normally they will ripen on your countertop in a day or two. If there is no peach perfume, then stay clear.
Many supermarkets (Whole Food especially) will give you a taste of one if you ask. Not only is it a great way to get a quick snack, but it also lets you check under cover before shilling out ten dollars or more.
Drago – There are some farmers, like Frog Hollow, which allow the peaches to ripen on the tree as long as possible so their sugars will be at a peak when picked. I’m not quite sure what the East Coast equivalent is?!?! Does anyone know?!?!
J’adore les pêches! Especialment avec des myrtilles dans une tarte. But I grew up in the South, and there is nothing like a totally ripe peach fresh off the tree for out of hand eating. This is one of the few fruits for which I’m willing to go through the hassle of preparing a gluten-free crust. And it’s going to be HOT again this week out here, so I’m thinking I’d better get one made today, so I can eat it all week long…J’ai la pêche!
I personally find it worth it to wait it out for local peaches. Not sure where you are Drago, but the start of the peaches are already hitting our farmer’s market in Boston.
I love the homey, rustic look of that cobbler.
Kelly – I’m trying to get more acquainted with East Coast produce. Do you have any favorite stone fruit farmers?
SAS – Care to share your gluten free crust recipe? I’m curious what you use instead of flour. Rice flour?
I’d be happy to share the recipe – but it’s after midnight just now, so I’ll look it up tomorrow. Generally you have to use a blend of flours in GF baking, plus some sort of additive such as xanthan gum or guar gum. It’s a bit of a fuss, which is why I save it for special occasions. I’ve also found a few good commercial GF pie crust mixes, but they cost a fortune, so I only use those when I’m feeling flush or desperate for time. The one good thing about GF crusts is that since there isn’t any gluten, you can mix it as long as you like, and it won’t get tough. :>
I had a dream the other night … peach ice cream with crispy duck skin wafers…. I reckon it’s worth a try, make the duck skin slightly sweet (like Peking duck except that the glaze is star anise, cinnamon and sugar). However, I don’t know how to make thin duck skin wafers!
Jeremy – I think you could make the wafers pretty easily! Take the skin off the duck, scrape off any excess fat underneath. Cut to the shape you want and place between 2 baking sheets with something heavy to weigh down on the the top one. Bake until crispy and flat. Meanwhile reduce duck jus with some peach jus until thick (like a lacquer) and spoon over wafers. Let it set and then spoon a second coat over. I like your idea, send pics if you do it! Peking peach ice cream?
Right on with the technique for candying duck skin and making it super flat and crispy. I do this with bacon, especially candied bacon.
T’as la pêche is much nicer than suggesting to a VP that “c’est qui ton papa?” is an appropriate greeting for senior staff (who says I don’t have fun at work).
Anyway, another alternative for the duck skin wafer is Blumenthal’s method to sew it onto a cake rack and cook at low temp; it’s a lot more work but this generates a crispy consistency where the crunchy skin “shatters” when chewed. I’ll see about securing some peaches for the glaze the next time I do this.
Duck with duck skin and peach granité. Or a Baked Alaska variant with peach ice cream inside a flaming crispy duck skin ball.
Wattacetti – I’ve ever heard that expression. Is that like “Who’s your daddy”!?!?! LOL!!! I shilled out big bucks for that Blumenthal cookbook. I’ll have to go back and read that recipe. The one that really grossed me out is the rabbit ear chips. Yuck.
It is indeed a literal translation of “who’s your daddy?” but probably not a phrase to be yelling while doing your mise en place.
The duck on a cake rack trick is in the “Further Adventures in Search of Perfection” book; Heston makes Peking duck. There’s also one of the most complicated cheeseburger recipes available if you happen to have some free time on your hands.
I still haven’t cracked open my copy of the Big Fat Duck (or Alinea or Under Pressure), but I think Heston got the ear idea from el Bulli.
I am saving up for an ice cream machine (though I get the hots for a Pacojet) – and I thought well, if duck goes with typical dessert fruits, why not the other way round? What happens if you have sauternes jelly with foie gras streaks? Pigeon with beetroot jelly? Lamb and mint ice?
This is all Heston’s fault. Should desserts always be sweet? Bacon and egg ice cream changed my life.
Hello Ms.G
I’ve been gone for a while. Love all the recipes, but OMG your foot! That’s horrible. Are you alright? I mean I know your going back to work but…
Burns were the worst part of working in kitchens. It’s been eight years and I can still see my scars.
Sorry, I hope that doesn’t sound insensitive. Just hope you’re ok.
And you’ll be great at the new post. You’re a pro. Knock em out.
All my best
I personally find it worth it to wait it out for local peaches. Not sure where you are Drago, but the start of the peaches are already hitting our farmer’s market in Boston.
I love this dessert. This would be my first recipe when i get peaches..
https://www.yousendit.com/transfer.php?action=batch_download&send_id=817789614&email=7cff47bb7cdcb76fbfa15e66c81a1961
Peach has vitamins in large amounts of carotenoids and interesting contributions that are fundamental to all therapeutic diets. Other substances that can be found in the peach is potassium, vitamin C and carotenoids allowing development of provitamin A to enhance the functioning of our body in general, both our skin, vision, bones and even improve the immune system with its great antioxidant powers..That is why i prefer to eat it frequently.
http://buyonline-rx.com/
http://buyonline-rx.com/sitemap.htmlhttp://buyonline-rx.com/
The more you learn, the more you know, The more you know, the more you forget. The more you forget, the less you know. So why bother to learn.
It is nice one, the pic is very cool, i just wonder if the real matter also cool enough. I have got a watch which have nice photo but do not really good before, it is so bad…
Do you agree that travel must one day revert to being a luxury