My mom used to make the best peach cobbler on the planet, and to this day, I have yet to find peach cobbler better than hers. When I was growing up, peach cobbler was her go-to dessert for family barbecues and potluck dinners. She always used fresh peaches, and I spent many summers up to my elbows in peaches, peeling basket after basket of the juicy stone fruit and getting wet and sticky in the process. Our freezer was filled with bags of sliced peaches, and my mom would pull from the stash to make peach cobbler whenever an occasion came up.
Now that she is in her golden years, she has no desire to whip up a pan of peach cobbler. “You can do it; I’m over that,” she said to me the last time I asked her to make peach cobbler. And I get it. She did her time, and now she’s too busy chillin’ and enjoying her life to be held hostage in the kitchen just to make her oldest (and favorite) daughter happy. I should have my kids and my niece ask her for peach cobbler, since it goes against her constitution to say no to her grandbabies, especially the girl.
Until my mom is motivated to grace her family with her world-famous peach cobbler, I will step up and make peach cobbler myself. At least she was nice enough to share her recipe with me, which amounted to a list of ingredient written on a piece of notebook paper. There were no instructions; she just made the dessert off the top of her head like my Nana used to do. I don’t have that skill, and I need directions. I came up with a recipe based on the ingredients my mom gave me. The bourbon and blueberries were my contribution to the list.
Let me know when you make this recipe. Take a picture and hashtag it #QUEENCITYKITCHEN. I can’t wait to see what you post!
Blueberry Peach Cobbler
Makes 8 servings
Filling
8 medium peaches, peeled, cored and sliced (about 8 cups)
½ cup light brown sugar, packed
¼ cup bourbon
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 tablespoons cornstarch
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup blueberries
Dough
1½ cups all-purpose flour
½ cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon kosher salt
16 tablespoons (2 sticks) cold unsalted butter
¾ cup heavy cream, plus more for brushing
Turbinado sugar, for sprinkling
Heat the oven to 375 degrees F. Grease a 9-inch by 13-inch baking dish with butter. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil.
Toss the peaches, brown sugar, bourbon, cornstarch, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt in a large bowl until coated; set aside.
Whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt until combined. Cut 12 tablespoons butter into small pieces and add to the flour mixture. Cut the butter in with a pastry blender or your hands until the mixture looks like coarse breadcrumbs. Pour in the cream and mix just until the dough comes together. Don’t overwork. The dough should be slightly sticky but manageable.
Melt the remaining 4 tablespoons butter in a large skillet over medium-low heat. Add the peaches and cook gently until heated through, about 5 minutes. Gently toss the blueberries into the peach mixture to coat. Pour the peaches into the prepared baking dish and drop the dough by tablespoonfuls over the warm peaches. There can be gaps between the dough mounds. The dough will puff up and spread out as it bakes. Brush the top of the dough with heavy cream and sprinkle with turbinado sugar. Place the baking dish on the sheet pan and bake until the top is browned and the fruit is bubbling, about 45 minutes. Cool 10 minutes before serving.