I was trimming agave plants a couple days ago. If any of you have trimmed agave plants you know you have to wear gloves and long pants and sleeves and take great care. In Nature’s infinite wisdom, she gave the agave plant a way to defend itself by giving it spines along each side of the leaf and a tip that is like a hypodermic needle. Only worse. It’s not tiny and slim. It’s wide and honkin’ and nasty, nasty, nasty. By the way if you ever have to trim agave I have a word to the wise. Do NOT, I repeat, do NOT use a chainsaw. The other thing Ma Nature gave the agave is noxious sap that if sprayed on you by the action of a chainsaw you will likely get a dermatitis in the worst way. So you’re now warned.
Back to my story …
So I lost concentration and got careless and jabbed my knee on one of those needles I just mentioned and now I’m on antibiotics and can’t bend my knee without it hurting like a son of a gun. Makes you want to plant agave, right? Probably not and I would not blame you. I never will plant it on purpose but since it’s already here I have to deal with it. So if you already have agave please at least go around and cut off those hypodermic needles on the tips. Save some poor soul, maybe you, from bodily injury.
And you thought this post was about Peach Cobbler. Well, it is. It is about Peach Cobbler because cobbler is one of my favorite comfort foods and I need comfort right about now.
Cobbler is one of the easiest desserts to make. You just need some fresh fruit in season and a crust to go on top. I make everything from scratch, but if you’re of a mind you can used canned fruit and a store-bought crust. Today I’m making it the way Gramma would have, and she might have had access to her own canned fruit, but she sure didn’t have store-bought crust. So there ya go.
Gramma’s Peach Cobbler
FILLING:
1 3/4 pounds ripe peaches pitted and sliced. I peel mine, too, but that’s up to you. (If you don’t have peaches, you can use any juicy fruit like raspberries or blackberries equaling 6 cups)
1/2 cup sugar
CRUST:
2 tablespoons cornstarch or 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 to 6 tablespoons chilled butter or lard
3/4 cup milk
Melted butter to brush on top
Sugar and cinnamon to sprinkle on top
Preheat oven to 375 F. Butter baking dish of about 2-quart capacity and 2 inches deep; set aside.
Combine filling ingredients. Spread evenly in baking dish.
Prepare crust by combining flour, baking powder and salt in bowl. Using pastry blender, cut in the butter until it’s roughly pea size. Make a hole in center and pour in milk. Stir until dough comes away from sides of bowl.
Turn dough out onto lightly floured surface and knead gently about 8 to 10 times. Roll out with lightly floured rolling pin.
You can cut it into shapes or lattice or just put the whole layer of dough over the fruit.
Poke holes in dough if in one layer. Brush top with melted butter and sprinkle a little sugar mixed with cinnamon over top.
Bake 45 to 50 minutes, or until top is golden brown and the juice has thickened. I love heavy cream poured over the still warm cobbler or use vanilla ice cream.
