When I was a kid, I loved being awakened by the yummy aroma of a blackberry cobbler baking in the oven on early summer mornings. I still remember that smell and how my mom would don her rubber knee boots and venture out on the farm the day before to pick a small bucketful of wild blackberries on her way back from chasing the cows out to pasture.
Often when she picked those dark, sweet, delicious berries, she would discover a copperhead lurking beneath the lower bushes, lying in wait for an unsuspecting, vulnerable bird to land on one of the lower twigs. So, Mom always went prepared, wearing boots, not only for protection from the snakes but also to keep her feet dry in the morning dew.
In those days, without air conditioning, we always did our baking early in the morning to keep the house from getting any hotter than it already was by afternoon. So, other times it was one of Mom’s peach pies or cobblers that penetrated my dreams those early mornings.
Blackberry and peach cobblers are two of my favorites. But, there’s another cobbler that beats the taste of both, and that’s a combination of the two. The tartness of the berries combined with the sweetness of fresh peaches is a real treat!
FRESH PEACH AND BERRY COBBLER
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup white sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup butter, softened
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1/2 cup cold water
3 cups fresh peaches, peeled, pitted and sliced
1 cup fresh blackberries
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 tablespoons coarse granulated sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Stir together flour, 1/2 cup white sugar and baking powder. Add milk and 1/4 cup butter all at once. Stir until smooth, and set batter aside.
In a medium saucepan, stir together brown sugar and cornstarch; stir in water. Add peaches and blackberries. Cook and stir over medium heat until thickened and bubbly. Add 1 tablespoon butter and lemon juice; stir until fat melts. Pour into a 1 1/2-quart ungreased casserole.
Spoon batter in mounds over hot fruit; spread evenly over filling. Sprinkle with a mixture of 2 tablespoons coarse sugar and cinnamon.
Place casserole dish on a shallow baking pan in oven. Bake cobbler for about 35 minutes or until bubbly and a toothpick inserted into the crust comes out clean.
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