Bourbon Peach Cobbler (inspired by Tyler Florence)

Bourbon Peach Cobbler (photos by Lauren Phegley)

I've had a lot of good peach cobblers in my day, growing up in Texas and all...but this...THIS peach cobbler...well, it's a real peach! My husband now requests this dessert more often than any other. I've made it 6 times in the last 2 months since peaches have been in season. Tyler Florence was onto something when he came up with this one. I slightly revised mine and below is what I did. If you'd like to follow Tyler's recipe exactly you may find it here - Tyler's Bourbon Peach Cobbler.

Serves 6-8

Oven 375 degrees F

Special equipment: 10-inch cast iron skillet

Filling:

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  7 -8 large fresh peaches, peeled and sliced
• 
  
  1/4 cup bourbon (I used Jack Daniels)
• 
  
  2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
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  1/2 cup sugar
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  2 tablespoons cornstarch
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  1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Mix together in a bowl till peaches are evenly coated and set aside.

Topping:

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  1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
• 
  
  2 teaspoons baking powder
• 
  
  1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
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  12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) cold unsalted butter (I store extra butter in the freezer so it will be cold when I need it), plus 2 tablespoons butter for skillet
• 
  
  2 tablespoons heavy cream, plus more for brushing
• 
  
  2 tablespoons sugar for sprinkling

Place flour, baking powder and salt in food processor and pulse a few times to blend. Chop cold butter into small pieces and place in food processor. Pulse until it's the consistency of wet sand. Add 2 tablespoons of heavy cream and pulse just until dough starts to barely come together. You should be able to squeeze it and have it stick together.

Heat 10-inch cast iron skillet over medium-low heat and melt the 2 tablespoons of butter. Add the peach filling and cook until heated through, about 5 minutes. Take small handfulls of dough (about 2 tablespoons each) and squeeze together, then drop onto the top of the peach filling to cover the top, leaving gaps between dough. It will expand as it bakes. Brush the top of dough with heavy cream and sprinkle with sugar. Place skillet on baking sheet lined with parchment paper to catch any drips. Bake for 40 minutes until the top is lightly browned and the peach filling is bubbling.