Every Wednesday this August, we’re giving you sneak peeks of some of the most gloriously summery recipes in our almost-born cookbook Genius Desserts. (You can order your signed copy now to get your mitts on the rest when the book drops September 4th!)
As I mentioned last week, this month is a full-tilt Genius Desserts extravaganza, in which I sneak you summery recipes straight out of the book every Wednesday till you can see the real book in all its glory on September 4th.
This week’s sneakery was one of my favorite shock discoveries in recipe testing for the book, which mostly happened in the Food52 test kitchen on Saturdays from morning until very late into the night. Only with great help from my testing assistant Makinze Gore, I was able keep my head on straight as we tried up to 11 or 12 recipes in a day.
Around 5 p.m. that particular Saturday, we finally had to brave the (as I now know, necessary, fully genius) step of dumping a cup of boiling water over the beautiful batter we’d just made (not to mention 4 1/2 pounds of perfectly good peaches).
Needless to say, my faith in following Erickson’s recipe through any doubts paid off handsomely, in layers of crispy-sweet cap, fluffy cake middle, and juicy-bright peach pool party down below. Hers is unlike any cobbler I’ve had, yet reminds me happily of the mini cobblers we’d make on Girl Scout camping trips: biscuit mix and peaches bundled up tightly in their cans and thrown into the campfire coals.
Join The Conversation
Top Comment:
“Our recipe was a newspaper or magazine clipping, saved in an album of such finds, called "Bailey's Shiny-top Cobbler". One of my early baking accomplishments was successfully pouring the boiling water and getting the whole thing into the oven. Also great for blackberries.”
Just like other recipes that start with an “Oh, there is no way this is right”—much like tackling a daunting hike or art history midterm or escaping the room with friends—I felt immediately bonded to it. Below are the full recipe and story from Genius Desserts—I can’t wait to hear how you and yours bond with it, too.
Genius Desserts Sneak Peek!
Renee Erickson’s Peach Cobbler With Hot Sugar Crust
When beloved Seattle chef Renee Erickson took over Boat Street Café from Susan Kaplan in 2003, she inherited this quirky peach cobbler recipe along with it. The café closed in 2015, but its spirit lives on through a half dozen other sunny Erickson restaurants, and in recipes like this one. The peaches aren’t peeled or even thickened with flour or starch, because the fruit is the point—juicy and textured however it may be. It’s brightened with lemon juice and zest and nothing else, a counterweight to the sweet batter and sugary top.
Only after smoothing on a layer of batter and dusting the top with sugar do you encounter the uncomfortable step of sloshing hot water over the top of your lovely cobbler. You won’t want to do it, but if you poke around on enough blogs or in community cookbooks, you’ll find similar recipes— though the water is usually poured over a mix of cornstarch and sugar. The topping here is pared down to just sugar, which melts and then fuses together in the oven as the water steams away. A dainty crust forms, blanketing the cake and saucy peaches like a sheet of Bubble Wrap, begging to be popped.
large, ripe peaches (about 4 1/2 pounds / 2kg), pitted but not peeled, cut into 1-inch (2.5cm) chunks
1
large lemon
1/2
cup (110g) unsalted butter, softened
2
cups (400g) sugar
1 1/2
cups (190g) all-purpose flour
2
teaspoons baking powder
1
teaspoon kosher salt
3/4
cup (185g) whole milk
1/2
cup (120g) hot water
Heavy cream, for serving
10
large, ripe peaches (about 4 1/2 pounds / 2kg), pitted but not peeled, cut into 1-inch (2.5cm) chunks
1
large lemon
1/2
cup (110g) unsalted butter, softened
2
cups (400g) sugar
1 1/2
cups (190g) all-purpose flour
2
teaspoons baking powder
1
teaspoon kosher salt
3/4
cup (185g) whole milk
1/2
cup (120g) hot water
Heavy cream, for serving
Photos by James Ransom
Got a genius recipe to share—from a classic cookbook, an online source, or anywhere, really? Please send it my way (and tell me what's so smart about it) at genius@food52.com.
From our new podcast network, The Genius Recipe Tapes is lifelong Genius hunter Kristen Miglore’s 10-year-strong column in audio form, featuring all the uncut gems from the weekly column and video series. Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts so you don’t miss out.
I'm an ex-economist, lifelong-Californian who moved to New York to work in food media in 2007, before returning to the land of Dutch Crunch bread and tri-tip barbecues in 2020. Dodgy career choices aside, I can't help but apply the rational tendencies of my former life to things like: recipe tweaking, digging up obscure facts about pizza, and deciding how many pastries to put in my purse for "later."
I have been making peach cobbler this way for at least 25 years. A neighbor (long since deceased) loved to bake for us (her chocolate cream cheese cupcakes were so good that I would hide them from my husband and kids so as not to have to share!) and she shared the recipe with me, but sadly, not her cupcake recipe. She said the cobbler was a southern recipe. Every time I make it for family or guests they love it. Warm with vanilla ice cream (or without, or cold straight out of the fridge) it's excellent. Don't used canned peaches.....ever. It's not the same animal.
OH wow, this looks amazing and easy to veganize for my husband. I’m thinking of doing fresh cranberries and apples as the fruit. Do you think the cranberries would be too tart?
I think it would be great! I actually made an apple version earlier this fall on Home & Family TV on the Hallmark Channel—adding cranberries would be fabulous too, since there's plenty of sweetness going on, though you might want to scale back the lemon juice a bit. Here's the apple version of the recipe: http://www.hallmarkchannel.com/home-and-family/recipes/apple-cobbler-with-hot-sugar-crust
I absolutely love this recipe. I made it twice last weekend and have another batch in the oven as I type this :). Many thanks for sharing this wonderful, new iteration for peach cobbler. By far, my favourite.
Hi Hieu, it wouldn't be as fluffy of a cake layer (for that you might want to look into gluten-free blends, homemade or otherwise), but it would probably make something tasty anyway. If you make it, can you let us know how it goes?
This recipe is delightful although I was caught between the original post and the corrected one. I made the dough with 1/4 cup of milk and knew immediately something was terribly wrong. By the time I reviewed the recipe to make another crust, the mistake had been corrected to 3/4 cup milk. I briefly thought I was losing it so was grateful to hear others had a similar experience. It was a great success and made a delicious dessert for brunch too the next day.
This is how I grew up making cobbler! Our recipe was a newspaper or magazine clipping, saved in an album of such finds, called "Bailey's Shiny-top Cobbler". One of my early baking accomplishments was successfully pouring the boiling water and getting the whole thing into the oven. Also great for blackberries.
I actually made this the other day pulling from Smitten Kitchen's website. It was outstanding. i flicked the water over the crust, instead of pouring, a little less scary and I did end up with a crackly sugary crust! Also, as someone suggested below, I did macerate the peaches beforehand and reduce their juice, so it wouldn't be super runny. I made it for my in-laws and it was completely devoured, which never happens as they don't usually care for dessert!
Ya know, I understand mistakes are made. But I made this as originally posted and it was awful to work with. I ended up deconstructing it after baked, rebaked it to make it something edible. I also know you're sorry. I'm just asking all you Internet posters and writers to please be more careful. Thanks in advance.
Hi Kathy, I'm so sorry for the hassle and wasted time and energy—I feel terrible and hope that you were able to finagle something tasty out of it. Thank you for understanding.
That's a great idea—I think it would be fun to try, just scaled down to the surface area of the baked good in question. (Our Recipe Developer Emma Laperruque might be scheming up something similar with a mini cobbler...)
Yes, sure thing—by the way, in case you printed out the recipe already, I wanted to let you know that I just fixed a typo in the online version of the recipe. It should be 3/4 cup milk, not 1/4 cup, though the grams listed are correct.
As you know curiosity killed the cat..lol..so I'm heading to the grocery to pick up the peaches (I only have 2) so I can make this. I love peach cobbler so I'm hoping it tastes fantastic!!
Good for you, Bea! In case you printed out the recipe already, I wanted to let you know that I just fixed a typo in the online version of the recipe. It should be 3/4 cup milk, not 1/4 cup, though the grams listed are correct.
Yes, in fact Luz (who'd in the video with me above) made it with blueberries and it was delicious! By the way, in case you printed out the recipe already, I wanted to let you know that I just fixed a typo in the online version of the recipe. It should be 3/4 cup milk, not 1/4 cup, though the grams listed are correct.
Hi Nancy, almond milk or other alternative milks should work fine here. If you need a sub for the butter, too, you could try coconut oil (refined if you don't want a coconutty flavor) or I know some vegan bakers like Earth Balance.
By the way, in case you printed out the recipe already, I wanted to let you know that I just fixed a typo in the online version of the recipe. It should be 3/4 cup milk, not 1/4 cup, though the grams listed are correct.
This looks and sounds divine. But I'd prefer that the peaches be less runny. How could you use some cornstarch or arrowroot to make the juices a bit more syrupy?
Hi Marcie—ripe fruit is always a little unpredictable, but I would just make a point of aiming for peaches that are ripe but still a bit firm (as we used in the photo) and be sure to cool the cobbler at least 30 minutes before serving. The peaches we had on the video shoot day were supersoft and exploding with juice, which is why we ended up with a very juicy, but still very tasty, cobbler. That should do it, but if you still want to add cornstarch or arrowroot, I'd just compare to the ratio of other cobblers or pies you've enjoyed in the past. Or, with a little extra prep time, you could use Rose Levy Beranbaum's brilliant pie trick of macerating the fruit in sugar to draw out the juices, then straining and reducing them, so that you can use less thickener. That recipe will be in Genius Desserts, or you can find it in her books The Pie & Pastry Bible or the newer Baking Bible, or on her blog here: http://www.realbakingwithrose.com/blog/2008/07/30/heavenly_peach_galette
By the way, Marcie, in case you printed out the recipe already, I wanted to let you know that I just fixed a typo in the online version of the recipe. It should be 3/4 cup milk, not 1/4 cup, though the grams listed are correct.
Hi Gershmiller—I think the tartness and slight bitterness of plums would be nice here with the sweet top. Let us know how it goes! I'd aim for ones that are ripe but still firm, not supersoft, so they have a hope of holding up through baking. Nectarines are a great substitution, if he's not allergic to those. Mm, apricots would be good, too. By the way, in case you printed out the recipe already, I wanted to let you know that I just fixed a typo in the online version of the recipe—it should be 3/4 cup milk, not 1/4 cup, though the grams listed are correct. I hope you love it!
Hi Lee, sure that should be fine—by the way, in case you printed out the recipe already, I wanted to let you know that I just fixed a typo in the online version of the recipe. It should be 3/4 cup milk, not 1/4 cup, though the grams listed are correct. I hope you love it!
Thank you, ,will be making it on Saturday, will let yall know
This website uses cookies to ensure you get the best experience.
When you visit our website, we collect and use personal information about you using cookies. You may opt out of selling, sharing, or disclosure of personal data for targeted advertising (called "Do Not Sell or Share" in California) by enabling the Global Privacy Control on a compatible browser. See our Privacy Policy for further information.
Join The Conversation