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Peach Cobbler has become the most requested dessert around here this summer. I don’t think Romain had ever had a cobbler – I usually make crisps, which the French call crumbles. But I’ve been revisiting some cookbooks on my shelf that I hadn’t used for a while and pulled down The Pastry Queen by Rebecca Rather, who was the owner of several bakeries in Texas.

I met Rebecca when my first book, Room for Dessert, was coming out and I was slated to do a book tour that included Texas. I had never done a book tour and I had been in a very bad car accident and was worried about navigating and getting myself from place-to-place in an unfamiliar state, and doing baking demonstrations, which require a lot of planning and organization. I don’t know how we came to meet each other but Rebecca had a bakery in Texas and, being Texan, knew how to get around the massive state (someone told me the entire country of France could fit inside Texas), and she knew how to bake. So we became a team

My first demonstration was at an upscale supermarket with a cooking program. After the guests arrived, I baked some of the recipes from the book, mixing batters, scraping them into baking pans, forming cookies and placing them in prepared baking sheets, and popping everything in the oven so they’d have enough time to bake, and cool down so they could be served. You need to do all of that while talking to a roomful of people and working with assistants you’ve never met before, so it was nice to have a familiar face (and hands) helping me out.

That evening I’d figured out how to successfully get everything in the oven so they’d be ready in stages, so there’d be no long, uncomfortable lapses while things baked. But out of the corner of my eye, I saw through the oven windows that everything seemed to be taking a lot longer than usual to bake. I kept talking to the crowd, with an occasional sideways glance toward the oven, where things were taking their own sweet time rising and browning. I couldn’t say anything to Rebecca in front of the guest, such as “What the heck is going on?” but figured it was my timing that was off.

As it became harder to hide my rising panic, the owner went to check on things in the oven and realized that one of the assistants had accidentally turned both of them off. When Rebecca and I got back into her truck (after all, it’s Texas) we both breathed a sigh of relief that I’m made it through the evening, and joined some of the guests, who’d invited us to go out for a very welcome margarita afterward. (One of the guests had raised his hand during the demonstration to ask me where I was staying that night, and offered to let me stay with him. I know Texans are friendly but that was another first for me – someone asking me to spend the night with them in front of sixty people, an offer that I politely declined.)

In the years that followed, I’d run into Rebecca at cooking events and we always had a good laugh about our trip through Texas together. She’s since closed her bakery in Austin then opened another in Texas Hill Country, which seems to now be shuttered as well. Unfortunately, we lost touch* but fortunately, I kept her book with me. And when I saw the recipe for Hill Country Peach Cobbler, which she calls “a Texas standard,” I thought it would be a good way to use some of my summer peaches all the way across the Atlantic, in Paris.

As they say in Texas, “Don’t mess with Texas.” Still, I decided to peel the peaches which she left unpeeled. I also made a few other changes, like dialing down the sweetness. Romain absolutely loved this and said the contrast of textures and caramel-like crust (due to the brown sugar sprinkled over it) reminded him of Kouign Amann, the classic Breton caramelized butter cake. He’s been asking for it over and over again and I think I should pick up more peaches this week and make him happy. And thanks Rebecca, wherever you are, for the inspiration.

Texas Peach Cobbler

Adapted from The Pastry Queen: Royally Good Recipes from Texas Hill Country's Rather Sweet Bakery & Cafe by Rebecca Rather with Alison Oresman Being a pastry chef, Rebecca gives the cobbler a chef's touch and browns the butter to ramp up the flavor, rather than just using melted butter. If you don't want to brown the butter, you can use melted butter. I toggled a few of the ingredients in the original recipe, adding a little cinnamon to the peaches and some lemon zest to the batter. I dialed down the brown sugar in the topping to 4 tablespoons but you could cut it down to 2 tablespoons, or omit it entirely. I did like the nice crust it 4 tablespoons gave it though. You could add some fresh or frozen berries to the peach mix, although am not sure they're authentic to the Texas original. Cherries, sweet or sour, would work as well. And I'm thinking of giving this a try with plums when they come into season. If you don't have an 8-inch square baking pan you could use a similar-sized baking dish or cast-iron skillet.
Servings 5 servings
  • 4 ounces (115g) unsalted butter, cubed
  • 1 cup (140g) flour
  • 1 cup (200g) granulated sugar
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder, preferably aluminum-free
  • 1 teaspoon freshly grated lemon zest
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 3/4 cup milk, whole or lowfat
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 3 cups sliced, peeled peaches, (about 5 medium peaches)
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 4 tablespoons light brown sugar
  • Preheat the oven to 350ºF (180ºC.) Melt the butter in a skillet, watching it carefully and swirling it gently. When it starts to take on a light brown color and smells a little nutty, and the bubbles begin to subside, pour the browned butter into an 8-inch (20cm) square baking pan, leaving the blackened bits back in the skillet.
  • In a medium bowl mix together the flour, sugar, baking powder, lemon zest, and salt with a whisk. Add the milk and vanilla extract, and stir until smooth.
  • Pour the milk mixture over the butter in the pan without stirring. (Don't worry, the batter will rise up over the peaches as they are baking.) Toss the peach slices with the cinnamon and strew them over the batter in an even layer. Crumble the brown sugar over the top and baking until the top is golden brown and the center of the cobbler feels just set, about 40 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool on a wire rack.

Notes

Note: For information about brown sugar, flour, and other baking ingredients, check out my post, American Baking in Paris.
Serving and storage: Serve warm or at room temperature on its own, with whipped cream, crème fraîche, or with vanilla ice cream. The cobbler is best served the day it is made but can be kept overnight. This isn't a fancy dessert so don't count on getting neatly sliced portions of it. You can spoon it in a bowl, as I did.

*Several comments, and the owners of the establishment, reached out to me that Rebecca is now the chef at Emma + Ollie, in Fredericksburg, Texas.

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124 comments

    • Rich

    Is this really a cobbler?

      • Lee R

      It is more like a peach cake, but it is easy and delicious. Easier than a biscuit or shortbread type of cobbler.

      • Cassandra

      Yes, this is how we make cobblers in the south. It has a cakey/chewey topping by the end, but it’s very wet. The peaches sink down, the batter rises to the top and bakes mostly on top of the peaches. I know that cobblers vary around the country in the way they are made.

        • annie swan

        Hi David,
        I’m forwarding this post to my friend who is in touch with Rebecca. Rebecca lives in Fredericksburg Texas so let’s see what happens
        Annie

      • Cathy

      I would call it a “buckle”, meaning a cake-like batter with lots of fruit and a crunchy topping. To me, “cobbler” is fruit on the bottom and biscuits on the top so it looks like cobblestones. But lots of people/places use the word “cobbler” for this type of dessert as well.

        • Scott M.

        I picked up a flat of beautiful peaches at Sodaro Orchards near Maryville, California, and made this cobbler with several of them. It was amazing. I didn’t burn the butter, so I cooked the cobbler in the same 10 inch cast iron skillet I melted it in. Thanks for another winner David!

      • Amy Iversen

      I thought it was more of a buckle.

    • Margaret

    Yep, Texans are friendly like that :)
    The “upscale supermarket with a cooking program” must have been Central Market? Peach cobbler was my Mom’s favorite dessert — it’s the dessert you’ll find at bbq places all over the state.

      • David
      David Lebovitz

      I’ve taught classes at Central Market but this was at another venue ;)

        • Alison

        Super easy, and a wonderful use of delicious summer fruits, but I found the ratio of 1 cup sugar to 1 cup flour in the batter was way too sweet.

        • Ann

        Whole Foods flagship store before Amazon bought it and made the cooking venue/school disappear

    • Suzanne Ehlers

    I grew up in San Antonio, TX, with a version of this– and we loved it so much that Grandma Rosie (as we called her) made it throughout the year using (her own) canned peaches and Bisquick, topped with Cool Whip–because , what else?!

      • Bill Siroty

      This is a fancier version of Nathalee Dupree’s peach cobbler-melt the butter in a baking dish, pour the batter on top and sprinkle the peaches on top

    • Sandra H.

    Thank you for this! I want to make the peach cobbler with peaches, but I just bought some Rainer cherries for the first time and since I had recently made your clafoutis recipe with bing cherries (great!), I was looking for a different recipe using these cherries. Will try this cobbler!

      • Linda B

      I did it with cherries and it was fabulous!

        • Rebecca Curry

        I am a Texan and my Mom makes cobbler like this for my birthday (I make David’s white chocolate ice cream to serve with it). It reminds me of a dessert called Wamkim’s peach pudding from Hyde Park Bar and Grill in Austin. Great restaurant and dessert.

        • Sandra H.

        An update, I did make it with the Ranier cherries I had and you’re right, it is wonderful! My new favourite summer dessert!

      • Reese DB

      I made the peach version last week as directed. I just put in the oven, a sour cherry version. I will need to look at the bing clafoutis!

      • Lara

      I have never made a peach cobbler but now I am inspired. This place sounds delicious too! Loved the idea of bread pudding having a new state of matter. Thanks for sharing!

      • David
      David Lebovitz

      Thanks for letting me know! I tried to find where she was online and couldn’t come up with anything, but figured she was doing something interesting…and delicious!

        • Anastasia Widiarsih

        Delicious and versatile! I made half a recipe using a mix of blackberries and raspberries and baked it in a toaster oven. It came out amazing! Thank you for another awesome recipe!

      • Laurie

      This is the cobbler I remember from school cafeteria lunches. I made a cake-style cobbler a few weeks ago and while it was good, it didn’t quite meet the mark. The difference here, I think, is the brown butter, so I’m keen to try it—anything that results in a Kouign Amman is delicious in my book—or just the melted butter directly into the pan because in the recipe I tried, the melted butter was mixed into the ingredients. But here’s a question … is this an 8×8 or 9×9 pan? I ended up adapting the recipe I saw for individual ramekins but would equally happy to bake it in a pan. Just didn’t want a 9×13-amount of dessert for two or three people!

        • Laurie

        Plz respond to my revised comment. This one is not right.

          • David
          David Lebovitz

          It’s an 8×8-inch pan that I used. You can see it here.

      • Laurie

      This is the cobbler I remember from school cafeteria lunches. I made a cake-style cobbler a few weeks ago and while it was good, it didn’t quite meet the mark because the batter was thick and baked off like cake top to bottom. This looks looser underneath. Is the difference the brown butter, or that the butter is melted in the baking pan altogether? (An added plus here is that anything giving off Kouign Amman vibes is delicious in my book.) In the recipe I tried—from Duff Goldman’s book—the melted butter was mixed into the ingredients, I downsized it and baked it off in 4 ramekins because a 9×13-amount of dessert is too much for two or three people, so your recipe is an added bonus in another way.

    • Sandra H.

    Thank you for this! I want to make the peach cobbler with peaches, but I just bought some Rainer cherries for the first time and since I had recently made your clafoutis recipe with bing cherries (great!), I was looking for a different recipe using these cherries. Will try this cobbler.

    • Jen from Jenography.net

    The hardest bit about peach cobbler is finding good peaches! As a native Texan, can’t wait to try this one!

      • bebe

      for sure. so many mushy tasteless peaches in the market.

    • Carolyn

    Oh David perfect timing! We spend a lot of time in Fredericksburg and have loved all of Rebecca’s endeavors there. I just got home with 4 lbs of peaches and was considering how to use them all up quickly. I will be making this today!

    • Cooking in Mexico

    The best peaches I ever had were from Fredericksburg. There is nothing that compares to the beauty of the Texas hill country all around, while peach juice runs down your chin. Lots of good German restaurants in Fredericksburg also. ~ Kathleen

      • Alaska_Girl

      I agree! I went to grad school in Austin and picked up peaches in Fredericksburg one weekend on a field trip. I still dream about the peach pie I made. Now that I live in Alaska, I know I’ll never taste peaches like that again, unless I’m back in Texas for a visit.

    • Beth

    Is the one cup of sugar called for in the recipe the reduced amount you mentioned in your post? Just making sure, it still seems like a lot to my northern eyes, and we plan to make this with some beautiful southern peaches recently gifted to us.

      • Texan in Exile

      Beth, I have been using this recipe for years. That’s the sugar called for, but I cut it in half. I could probably use even less.

        • Beth

        Just what I needed to know, thanks so much! I will try 1/3 of a cup sugar in the batter and taste it before deciding how much brown sugar to put on the top.

    • Sally Porter

    All the years I’ve read your blog, this one makes me cry! Oh for a Fredericksburg peach! I love you both!& you’re cookbooks.
    Sally

    • Peter Longenecker

    Good timing, David. We just picked up a 25 lb. box of peaches from the (Georgia) Peach Truck which visited Pittsburgh yesterday. As soon as they soften up . . . . dessert this weekend.

      • Texan in Exile

      From the Tree Ripe family? We wait for their peaches every summer in Wisconsin!

        • Nancy

        Yes! We do too. We got 2 boxes peaches last month, they are coming again this week and we will buy more peaches & blueberries.

    • Karla

    Not a West Texas Peach Cobbler! We and everyone I grew up with in Texas make a peach cobbler with a pie crust. I never say one like yours (which sounds yummy as a peach cake) until I was grown and had some Southern friend! so call it something besides a Texas Peach Cobbler.

      • Karen Richardson

      I agree – our cobbler always has a pie crust. But we make one like this and call it cake cobbler…

        • Martha

        O

      • Sharon Feather

      Ha, ha, we called it Boy Scout Cobbler, as our uncle was a Scout master and used a somewhat similar recipe with canned fruit on camping trips with his troop.

        • Barbara Ebert

        It looks like you knife peeled the peaches? Perhaps my eyes are fooling me.
        You can peel peaches by pouring boiling water over them, then skinning like tomatoes.
        Just an observation.
        Love you’re recipes and observations. You’re helping us all through this I’m sure. Thanks. Barbara

      • Michael

      I have to agree. Although David’s sounds wonderful, a Texas Peach Cobbler has a double pie crust. No brown sugar, please.

        • David
        David Lebovitz

        Rebecca is a pretty notable baker in Texas Hill Country, and I know Lisa of Homesick Texan and Texas Monthly (and here) both use a batter as well. (I also saw the Dallas News posted a recipe from a hotel in Dallas that tops theirs with streusel!) Seems like Texans like to go rogue with variations of the recipe :)

    • Jo Holzman

    What size pan?

      • David
      David Lebovitz

      I used an 8-inch (20cm) square pan, mentioned in the headnote, but you can use a similar-sized pan. It’s a fairly homespun dessert!

    • Terry

    What would happen if you de-fuzzed, but did not peel, the peaches?

    • Heather Smoke

    I agree, the peaches should be peeled! I always peel peaches for pies and jam, and there’s nothing like summer treats made with fresh peaches. I have to admit, I’m not crazy about most cobblers – they end up seeming too sweet, and I feel like I can lower the sugar more in a crisp, and would lowering the sugar in this recipe even more alter the way the crust forms on top? Also, I just love the crumbly topping on a fruit crisp.

    • Sandra Brooks

    This is very similar to the $10 Fruit Pie my family made all the time, starting in the 60’s or 70’s. Only differences:
    1 cup milk, 1 quart fruit (heated), no brown sugar on top and made in a 9×13. My mother made it with fresh fruit, canned fruit and even mincemeat! Can’t wait to try it with the brown sugar on top! It always fascinated me that the batter would rise through the fruit and end up on top. I agree with other comments that it has a buttery, cake-like texture but quite delicious!
    To me a cobbler needs to have pie crust on top. Just saying…!

    Love your blog and the recipes!!!

    • Darrell Bucket

    I know the upscale market must have been Central Market—one of the things I miss the most about living in Texas. Sometimes I would shop there just for the pleasure of walking through the heady aromas of the cheese department.

    • Laura

    Having grown up in Texas, I was treated to my grandmother’s peach cobbler for many summers. She never used cinnamon but used nutmeg instead.

    • Jennifer born and raised on Texas (and Louisiana) peaches

    Not sure if anyone has mentioned this yet… Rebecca Rather has a place in Fredericksburg called Emma+Ollie’s.

    • Eleanor

    I very much enjoy your blog and musings!
    It would be very helpful to state the quantity of of fruit required in weight since, at least in the states, some growers are selling huge fruit these days. (Why, why, why do so many people think bigger is better? – Generally it’s not!) This would help with most recipes calling for fruit so you know how much to buy.

      • David
      David Lebovitz

      Thanks. I often do that in all my recipes but it wasn’t in the original recipe and none of the other Texas Peach Cobbler recipes I looked at, but this recipe will work whether your peaches are small or large, or medium. I did give the weight of the peach slices however. It’s just a lot to do them all.

      I’m going to be recasting the blog in the fall, changing the format and presenting recipes and content differently as there are too many variables (such as two systems of measurement, sometimes three) and it’s not sustainable so will be working on a new format…to be decided!

        • Heidipie

        Make it easy on yourself, David!

        • Ellen N.

        Hi David,

        Thank you very, very much for your wonderful blog. I’ve made many of your recipes. They always come out delicious.

        May I cast a vote for your new recipe format to be metric weights? I’m American, but once I started cooking by weight instead of volume I’ve never looked back. I appreciate the accuracy and the ease of clean up (no measuring cups to wash).

        • Julie

        David – how deep is that 8×8 pan? Mine is 2” but my batter and butter overflow. This recipe is delicious but I can never get the batter to cook except on the edges. Not sure if I’m using too many peaches – I measured everything else very carefully. The batter doesn’t rise at all in the middle. It’s still tasty but I’d like to end up with more cake and less warm batter. :D

          • David
          David Lebovitz

          My pan is about 2-inches high as well and it didn’t reach the top of the pan when baking it. No one else in the comments mentioned they had an overflow problem so can’t say what happened in your case but if you try it again, you may want to do so in a larger baking dish or pan.

    • Carol

    It’s nice to see this recipe again! I used to make it out of Rather’s book but don’t know what became of it. It’s a good version of cobbler. But, I’ve always been conflicted about cinnamon or nutmeg in peach pies. It seems to coverup the pure peach flavor.

      • David
      David Lebovitz

      In France, people rarely (if ever) use spices in tarts and fruit desserts like this. (Yes, there are some exceptions, but in general, fruit desserts aren’t spiced.) I don’t mind a dusting of spice, but I find cinnamon sometimes boring so might add a pinch of allspice, which has a nice spiciness, to peach desserts. But here, I think it’s better off without any spices.

        • Sharon Feather

        Ha, ha, we called it Boy Scout Cobbler, as our uncle was a Scout master and used a somewhat similar recipe with canned fruit on camping trips with his troop.

          • Sharon Feather

          Sorry, the above comment went in the wrong spot. Freshly ground nutmeg is great w/ peaches.

      • Merle

      Agreed…I actually love almond or even ginger with peaches. Will make this since peaches have been phenomenal this year

    • Jan

    My mother, who lived in Central CA, made a version of this called boysenberry cobbler. It was our absolute favorite. I have since cut down the sugar and butter with good result, though a side-by-side taste test might change my mind. I don’t know where she got the recipe. I was happy to see it in the recent Bon Appetit: Mom’s cobbler! Hers had a bit of granulated sugar on top and melted, but not browned, butter. I will try both, but who knows when. Even at the central CA coast, it’s hard to find peaches that approach the ones of
    my childhood in Modesto. I added a note on the recipe card, which is in Mom’s hand, that it wasn’t as good with stone fruit! I have revised that opinion since using apricots, nectarines, peaches, and even a combination of these, with some berries as well.
    I have made biscuit cobblers and love them, too, but this “cobbler” is the best.

      • Jan

      In BA and *here*, even better!

    • Vicki

    Just made this with nectarines and blueberries instead of peaches because that’s what I had. Delicious. Thanks for sharing

    • Philip

    Right now in the NE US, our first peaches are high-acid, so I’ll use the full amount of sugar. I can see using less sugar when sweeter fruit comes along.

    • Adrienne

    Is there a way to use frozen sliced peaches instead w/o the cobbler becoming watery?

      • David
      David Lebovitz

      Generally if you don’t defrost frozen fruit before using it, it doesn’t become too watery. So I’d advise trying it with frozen peach slices in the batter. If you give it a go, let us know how they work!

    • Deborah HH

    I’m a West Texas girl, and a “batter” cobbler is the kind I grew up on. Cobbler and corn bread are the first two recipes I learned to bake (and memorize). Husband will happily eat any kind of fruit or combinations of fruit, but his favorite cobbler is made with crushed frozen strawberries—and it’s so easy to keep a large carton of strawberries in the freezer.

    Thank you, David, for this recipe. I know we will enjoy it very much.

    • Barbara

    I live in Houston (world pandemic capital at present) and have a counter full of beautiful peaches ready to ripen very very soon.

    This cobbler will certainly make us happier this week. Thank you!

    • Marianne McGriff

    David,
    I’m from central IN(Zionsville, IN), but a new phenomenon—new to me, anyway—is the Peach Truck which comes from the south to deliver LOTS of peaches. I’m picking up my 25 lbs. next week, thank you SO much for this recipe. Looking forward to your live Instagrams this week!

    • Jaime K.

    David, thank you for another fantastic post! Your vivid storytelling along with great recipes and fabulous photos is consistently outstanding. Best wishes on recasting the blog. I am sure it will be awesome.

    • Debra M.

    David, Peach Cobbler is a very personal touchstone for Texans. Of course everyone loves their mother’s recipe but once I visited Mrs. Deal and her recipe was completely different. It was chewy, doughy almost raw it was so unusual. I begged her for the recipe to which she said ” I dunno hun” just come over and watch me. Any idea what she could of done?

    • Gavrielle

    I recently thought I had finally straightened out that the difference between a crumble and a crisp was that the crisp used melted butter but in a crumble it’s rubbed in, but I see in your crisp recipe that the butter is also rubbed in – back to square one:). It seems that they’re pretty much the same thing with perhaps some variation in the crisp recipe.

    • Jude Jackson

    I am 66 and I started making this cobbler when I was 14. I grew up and live in the south. It’s a sweet little homespun dessert regardless of the name. I used to call it funeral cobbler, because back when there was a death in the community, it was something quick to take to the family.

    • Querino de Freitas

    your readers are something else….One either likes a cobbler or not…Querino

    • Liz

    So glad for an update on the whereabouts of RR! Made a pilgrimage to F’burg many moons ago. Now I have an excuse to return to this charming town (and RR’s wonderful food)!

    • DBS

    I made this last night and it was a hit with me and the hubby who proceeded to take additional helpings. So this is the only way I will make peach cobbler. Thank you for the IG mention, BTW.

    • Ann B

    Oh my gosh! Romain is right, this does give off a kouign amann vibe.
    It is scrumptious beyond belief.
    I will be making this a lot during peach season!

    • RuinedDiet

    I can’t stop eating it!

    • Lynn

    My Texas grandmother (from Alsace) made something similar to this with cherries and called it cherry roll served with whip cream. I loved it growing up but not its way too sweet for me. I never thought about making it with peaches. I agree with some of the posts that the peach cobbler I grew up eating in Texas was made with pie dough. Must try this version, thanks!

    • Patricia

    I grew up in very southern Oklahoma and this is the cobbler my great aunt made. I had forgotten about it! Thanks for the recipe and the memory. Funny the comment that France could fit within Texas. I read a similar thing in a Texas magazine. This sentence is something only a Texan could conjure and write: France fits inside of Texas with Switzerland as a “side piece”. In original no quotes needed of course. We’re still in our own by choice of lockdown. The virus came roaring back in Kansas.Fortunately we have an organic pop up will deliver store. Peach cobbler on Saturday!

    • Annette

    If you know anything about cooking you know there are often many different versions of a recipe depending on the region. I used to get frustrated by this but I now embrace it and as a result have discovered innumerably more well loved recipes. Even though I was expecting the “cobblestone” version, I have to say David, this was the best cobbler I’ve ever had.
    I adapted it by not peeling the peaches (too lazy), using a blend of sourdough discard, flour and milk and reduced both sugars by about half. I am not usually a dessert person but I made it last night for my husband who loves dessert and is a bit of a peach cobbler connoisseur. We’re currently fighting over the leftovers for breakfast.
    Thank you for sharing this recipe!

      • David
      David Lebovitz

      Glad you liked it! It’s not the way I normally make cobbler (I often use biscuits although I have one in my book Ready for Dessert that’s more of a batter and has some almond paste in the topping that’s really good) but I liked it a lot as well. Happy could adapt it with the sourdough discard! :)

    • Fran

    This recipe calls for an 8″ x 8″ pan. It seemed too small to me so I used a 9″ x 9″ pan. I am an experienced baker. I had a huge mess in my oven because of dripping from the cobbler. I definitely needed a bigger pan, at least 10″ x 10″ but preferably 12″ x 12″. Despite the mess, the dessert was delicious!

      • David
      David Lebovitz

      That’s interesting that you used a larger pan but you had a mess from dripping. What dripped? (My square pans are all made from a solid piece of metal so only leak if they overflow.) I posted pictures before and after of mine, and the batter & fruit only came up to about the halfway point on my 8″ square pan, and stayed in nicely. What happened to yours?

        • Gail Cannady

        Mine made an incredible oven mess too. 8”x8” pan. Maybe the peaches were too juicy, or in my enthusiasm I cut up a tad too many… Anyway it was delicious. Next time I’m using an 8” circular casserole pan with 4” high sides!

          • David
          David Lebovitz

          Someone tagged me with a photo of their results in what looks to be an 8-inch square pan and didn’t have issues (photo here) so not sure what happened with yours.

    • carla west

    Just got this cobbler out of the oven and it’s a real winner: perfect ratio of cake to fruit, cake was tender inside and crispy around the edges, fruit held together, was jammy and not too sweet.
    I made a couple mods:
    * 150 g granulated sugar
    * 1/2 t salt
    * almond extract instead of vanilla
    * 300 g fruit (unpeeled peaches, rainiers)

    • Helen

    This turned out wonderfully in a 8”x8” square pan. I substituted peaches with seasonal cherries and used almond extract instead of vanilla. Browned butter is divine and cobbler served with a scoop of ice cream is recommended. I will be using this as my cobbler base recipe in the future!

    • Janet C

    I made this exactly as directed except I didn’t peel the peaches. It was absolutely delicious! It is 5 a.m. here now and I’m wondering if it is too early to have some more. Also, now going to check my copy of Ready for Dessert to check the cobbler recipe there, I happen to have some almond paste. Thanks David!

    • Laura

    Hi David,

    I’m eating this right now and it’s delicious! Wondering though if the weight listed for the peaches is off. I weighed out 2 medium peaches and was at 300g. It didn’t seem like enough so I just added the 4 peaches I had on hand. 250g for 5 peaches doesn’t seem right. Thanks for the recipe! I’ll definitely make it again.

      • David
      David Lebovitz

      You’re right. Not sure why that 250g is written on my testing notes (!) The original recipe didn’t list metrics so I’ll remove that. Thanks!

    • Bonnie

    Very easy, made as written except with 9-inch round cake pan, melted butter in cake pan directly and just left brown stuff in. Five people adored and devoted it. New peach favorite.

    • Ann Hill

    This was INSANELY good! I blanched then peeled the peaches. I also had to bake a bit longer. My boyfriend was French and he never ate the skins/peels of anything. He was a restaurant critic so I’m not certain if it was a French thing or a him thing?

    • BRIGITTE

    YUUUMM. I’m Texan, so I appreciate a great cobbler recipe! Can’t wait to try this one out.

    I’ll seek Rebecca out next time I’m in F-burg, she sounds fantastic!

    • E Thai

    A neighbor shared his homemade peach cobbler with us last week. We loved it; the crust tasted like the SE Asian cassava cake. Now I’m inspired to make it. Your post and recipe came at a perfect time. Peaches are in season too!

    • JOYCE MCKINNEY

    I am a Southerner and the cobbler in my universe has always been fruit forward with some kind of biscuit or shortcake topping, but I tried this anyway. It took over an hour to bake — maybe because I used a Corning Wear dish — but it’s good in a clafoutis sort of way. I don’t think I would make it again because the fruit gets subsumed in the batter and I love cobblers because the fruit is the star.

    • Becky Dominguez

    Oh my – the combination of juicy fresh peaches and puddingly dough! I only had two fat peaches so halved the recipe, increased the salt to taste for the batter and baked in a 9×5 glass loaf pan – perfect for two and that’s a Home Run!

    • San

    Too bad u don’t have a print option.

      • David
      David Lebovitz

      Recipes have a print option: Click on the printer icon on the top right of the recipe.

    • Jan Rutledge

    Rather weird, neither a cake nor crumble nor cobbler. Quite greasy with all the melted brown butter Not worth the calories, sorry.

    • Susan

    Served it for a birthday (with actual Texans in the group:) to rave reviews – even after preparing it dairy free. Topped with coconut milk ice cream. Yummy consistency. Will make again! Thanks for the recipe

    • Susan Lampley

    Finally got around to reading this recipe. I delayed because I was raised in Candor, North Carolina(the peach capital of NC pop.500 back “then”) and we know all about peaches so didn’t need to spend time reading a non-Candor person’s peach cobbler recipe. I have been making my grandmother’s recipe for 50 years. Sure enough, yours is almost the same but ours is:
    1 stick butter, melted in 9×13 dish
    1 cup milk
    1 cup sugar
    1 cup self-rising flour
    5-6 peeled peaches
    Ours has none of up-to-date niceties(lemon juice/brown sugar) but still, it’s the same and the best ever—so get with it folks, this us how you make cobbler in the South!

    • Christy Wilson

    Enough with the “is this a cobbler” or “too much sugar” or “why cinnamon”…Make this! It is absolutely delicious. Loved it and thank you.
    #canalwaystrustDavid.

    • Karen

    This was the best cobbler I’ve ever made and I’ve been on a real cobbler kick this summer. I always make this style with the batter rather than the one with biscuits on top (don’t care for that version). My runner up was this one from Smitten Kitchen https://smittenkitchen.com/2015/08/crispy-peach-cobbler/ It’s a lighter version. But my family and I preferred the texture of yours. My only change was to sprinkle just one Tbsp of brown sugar on top and it still turned out super crunchy and caramelized! I also used Meyer lemon for the zest which was over the top heavenly!

    • Traci

    I LOVED this. I could have eaten the whole thing! I usually prefer peaches fresh to anything I’ve cooked. This is one of two exceptions for me. The other is Bradley Ogdens peach dumpling with caramel sauce. The Texas Cobbler is about a zillion times easier to make. Thank you for posting it.

    • Stefana

    Hello! Just wanted to say this was absolutely amazing. We ate it hot out of the oven for breakfast and the cinnamon flavor was just perfect. The sugar on top turns crunchy and almost caramel-y, don’t skip it!

      • Stefana

      Also, I just wanted to mention that I made this with whole wheat flour as I had run out of all-purpose and it turned out really great! If anyone is hesitant- don’t be. The flavors worked extremely well together.

    • Nancy Schemanski

    This is one of the best desserts I have ever eaten! I made 3 times in 3 weeks, and pretty soon won’t be able to fit in my clothes, I fear. I cut the sugar by half and it was still splendid! Thank you for your awesome recipes.

    • Claudia

    I baked this today in a 9″ inch round pan. I peeled three peaches but I think I only ended up using two because I had no room to keep layering, but after it was baked I see why that I could’ve added more. I used about 1/2 cup of sugar and I think I could cut back even more next time. I won’t cut back on the brown sugar though, I liked that. My only sort of complaint is that it stuck to stuck to the pan, maybe need to use a non-stick. I liked the lemon zest touch. I’d never had cobbler before and I’m glad I tried the recipe. I’ll be making it often while peaches are still in season. Delicious, ate half the pan by myself.

    • Cindy

    This was such a treat on this hot summer day in Austin, Texas, using some Fredericksburg peaches! Used Meyer lemon zest and more peaches than it called for so pulled out my paella pan…worked beautifully! Next time, will add a few raspberries but thinking blueberries with lemon zest would be great also….and cherries as referenced above. Yum, yum! This is a make again and delicious although different from my grandmother’s east Texas version of peach cobbler.

    • Michele

    I used peaches from our tree. Peeled.
    Absolutely divine! Nothing like it. Comfort food dessert…so glad peaches have a short season, I could gain a ton of weight because it’s so delicious and addictive.
    Love the browned butter as the base to the baking dish.
    All around excellent recipe.

    • Kim

    Excellent flavors and easy to make. Had it for dessert and then we finished it off for breakfast the next morning. Followed the recipe exactly but if I made it again, I would cut the sugar down a bit (but leave all the brown sugar on top because the crispy top was the best part).

    • Tracy

    Perfection! Love this recipe, a bit hit in my family

    • Mary Schreiber

    Hi David
    Made the peach cobbler and loved it.
    The leftovers served warmed with half and half tasted like a peach bread pudding.
    I can peaches and was wondering if I could use my peaches in extra light syrup in this recipe?
    Looking forward to your advice.
    Thanks

      • David
      David Lebovitz

      I think you could use those peaches but you may either want to rinse them or at least blot them to remove some of the sugar. And you could likely cut the sugar down around 25% to compensate for the sugar in the tinned peaches.

    • Cristina

    I made this tonight and it was really good. A couple of notes as I improvised a bit. I browned the butter in a 10” cast iron skillet and decided out of laziness about cleaning to continue in the same pan. It turned out well but I think an 8” skillet might be a bit better.
    I used frozen peaches as fresh peach season is over here. But frozen peaches worked great. My package of frozen peaches was 13 oz, which was OK, but for anyone interested in weights, I would say anywhere from 16-24 oz would be fine.
    I really liked the batter and it rose nicely. I will definitely make this again, but probably use an 8” pan or skillet. This is a keeper recipe for me.

    • Chi

    Is the batter supposed to cover most of the peaches? My batter rose in between the peaches but otherwise my finished cobbler is mostly peaches on top of the batter. I did cut the sugar amount in half, and the batter was rather thick; could that be the reason the peaches didn’t sink under the batter? Also, did it matter if the batter was added to the hot butter or should I have waited for the butter to cool a bit?

      • David
      David Lebovitz

      Most likely, yes. As I mentioned here, sugar isn’t just for sweetening but adds moisture (and steam, while baking), which adds height and lightness.

A

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