Saucy peach and blueberry cobbler

Using boiling water creates an extra gooey sauce with this cobbler. Serve it warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream so all that sauce and fruit can run together with melted ice cream. 

Peaches and blueberries are the perfect example of the old saw “what grows together, goes together.” Fuzzy, rose-tinted peaches and dusky hued blueberries make their appearance at the farmers market at the same time, trumpeting the height of summer fruit season.

I love fruit cobbler, the traditional peach being a favorite, and I have basically used the same recipe since I came across it in a Junior League cookbook as a child; over the years substituting fresh fruit for canned and adding spices and flavorings. But in my years of reading community cookbooks, this boiled water idea has popped up occasionally, and my curiosity finally got the better of me.

The method for making this is similar to that used for making those once-trendy and always delicious chocolate or lemon “self-saucing” cakes, the kind with the gooey bottom and the cakey top. And that’s what this is, a sweet, juicy sauce with a crispy-topped cake floating on top. I was reluctant at first to call this a cobbler, but when serving it to guests, they all agreed that that was the best description, adding “it’s just a really saucy cobbler.” I like that. And all that extra bubbling juice and fruit makes the perfect with a scoop of ice cream.

Saucy peach blueberry cobbler
Serves 6 

4 medium sized peaches

2 cups blueberries

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1/4 cup butter, softened

1-1/4 cup sugar, divided

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt, divided

3/4 cup milk

1 tablespoon cornstarch

1 cup boiling water

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease an 8 by 8-inch baking dish.

2. Slice the peaches and place in the baking dish. Add the blueberries and lemon juice and toss lightly to coat.

4. Cream the butter and 3/4 cups of sugar together in the bowl of a mixer until light and fluffy. Add the flour, baking powder and 1/4 teaspoon of salt alternately with the milk until the batter is well combined. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and beat in the vanilla. Spoon the batter over the fruit and spread to cover it evenly. A few berries poking through is fine.

5. Put more than a cup of water on to boil while you finish the dish. Do not boil one cup of water, as some will evaporate. You want one full cup of boiling water. Mix the remaining 1/2 cup sugar, cornstarch and 1/4 teaspoon salt together in a small bowl. Use a whisk or a fork, making sure the cornstarch is thoroughly combined. Sprinkle the sugar mixture over the batter in the pan. Pour 1 cup of boiling water over the top and immediately place in the oven. 

6. Bake for 45 minutes, until the top is golden and firm and a tester comes out clean, and the juices are bubbling around the edges. Remove from the oven and let rest for 10 minutes before serving.