Peach and Berry Cobbler

Keith's Recipes

Peach and Berry Cobbler

Long ago I was a camper at Philmont Scout Ranch in north-central New Mexico. At that time, the treat campers got on their first night on the trail was a peach cobbler made in a dutch oven by their ranger. The next year, i worked at Philmont as a camp counselor at an interpretive camp in the backcountry. Part of the program at that camp was a chuckwagon dinner. The chuckwagon dinner included that same simple dutch oven peach cobbler. Twenty-five odd years later, I've updated the recipe a little, no longer using a fire and camp ration biscuit mix... and optionally adding berries, but the base of this recipe is from those days at Philmont.

Peach Cobbler with Berries

Serves about 10...

Filling

• 4 cans Peaches (about 15 oz. each) in Heavy Syrup
• 2 cans Peaches (about 15 oz. each) in Juice
• 2 lbs. Blueberries
• 1/4 cup Brown Sugar (adjust to taste)
• 1 Tbsp. Corn Starch
• 1/2 tsp. Cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp. Salt

Preheat oven to 400°.

Wash blueberries thoroughly in a colander, and remove any stems.

Drain one can of peaches in syrup and one can of peaches in juice and save the syrup and juice. Mix corn starch, cinnamon, and salt in with this juice and put in a large sauce pan.

Drain the rest of the peaches and save their juice/syrup as well. (You'll use this in the crust in a few minutes.)

Add drained peaches, brown sugar, and blueberries to the saucepan with the corn starch mixture and heat over medium to medium-high for 30 minutes, stirring regularly.

Pour boiling fruit mixture into very large roasting pan or casserole pan and place in oven.

Crust

• 1 cup Butter (softened)
• 4 cups Flour
• 1/2 cup Sugar
• 6 tsp. Baking Powder
• 2 tsp. Salt
• 2/3 cup Powdered Milk (just the powder)
• Syrup and Juice from 4 cans Canned Peaches (see above)

Mix flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, and powdered milk. Cut powder mixture into shortening until fine, relatively even clumps and little or no loose powder left. Mix syrup and juice into dry ingredients to make a sticky dough.

Remove fruit mixture from oven, and spoon (or scoop) dollops of batter over the hot fruit mixture. More or less evenly cover most of the fruit. There will be gaps and unevenness. Don't fret.

Return pan to middle rack in oven and bake for 30-45 minutes. Check after 30 minutes to see if a toothpick inserted in a thick part of the dough comes out dry. Crust will be medium gold-brown.

You may want to put a layer of foil on a lower rack - or a foil covered cookie sheet... This will boil over and drip sticky stuff and generally make a mess. Welcome to baking with liquids...

Allow to cool for half an hour before serving.

I like to serve it with vanilla ice cream, or have it as a dessert on its own.

This also works with blackberries and raspberries, or without the berries at all.