Desserts · American

Easy Peach Cobbler

Name: Easy Peach Cobbler
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 45 min
Total time: 55 min
Yield: 8 servings
Cuisine: american
Ingredients: 0.5 cup (113 g) unsalted butter; 1 cup (125 g) all purpose flour; 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar, divided; 2 tsp baking powder; 0.5 tsp salt; 1 cup (240 ml) whole milk; 1 tsp vanilla extract; 5 cups (about 700 g) sliced peaches, drained canned, thawed frozen, or 5 fresh; 1 tsp ground cinnamon; 1 tbsp lemon juice; 2 tbsp brown sugar, for the top; Vanilla ice cream, to serve

Peach cobbler is the dessert that convinces people you can bake, and it asks for about ten minutes of actual effort. Peaches bubble under a buttery batter crust that puffs and crisps into golden ridges, and the whole pan comes out of the oven looking like it took all afternoon.

The style here is the Southern batter cobbler: liquid batter on the bottom, fruit on top, and as it bakes the crust rises through and around the peaches. No cutting butter into flour, no rolling, no lattice. The only technique is pouring, and the only judgment call is knowing when the crust is done, which the deep golden color tells you.

Canned peaches work perfectly and make this a year round dessert; fresh peaches need a little sugar adjustment depending on how ripe they are. Either way, the non negotiable is serving it warm with vanilla ice cream melting into the crevices. That is not a suggestion, it is the recipe.

Jump to recipe

By the TasteBoard team. Timed in a home kitchen, with total time added up and safe temperatures checked.

Photo: @NumismaticLinguist / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0

Prep: 10 min
Cook: 45 min
Total: 55 min
Plus waiting: 15 min
Servings: 8
Course: Desserts
Calories, about: 340 per serving

Instructions

1Heat the oven to 350 F (175 C). Put the butter in a 9 by 13 inch baking dish and melt it in the oven for 5 minutes, then take it out. Do not let it brown.
2If using fresh peaches, slice them 0.5 inch thick and toss with the lemon juice. Canned peaches just need draining well.
3In a bowl, whisk the flour, 0.75 cup of the granulated sugar, baking powder, and salt. Whisk in the milk and vanilla until smooth; the batter will be thin, which is correct.
4Pour the batter evenly over the melted butter in the dish. Do not stir, and resist the urge, the layers are the whole trick.
5Spoon the peaches and their juices over the batter. Mix the remaining 0.25 cup granulated sugar with the cinnamon and brown sugar and sprinkle it evenly over the fruit.
6Bake 40 to 45 minutes, until the top is deep golden, the fruit bubbles thickly at the edges, and a knife into the crust comes out clean. Cool 15 minutes, then serve warm with ice cream.

Tap a step to mark it done, saved on this device only. Timer buttons count down right here and beep when time is up.

Why you will love it

10 minutes of prep, no mixer, no cutting in butter.
Works with canned, frozen, or fresh peaches, so it never waits for peach season.
Feeds 8 generously from one 9 by 13 pan.
Warm fruit plus crisp crust plus melting ice cream, which is the whole dessert textbook.
Doubles as a breakfast justification the next morning, if we are being honest.

Tips

The unmelted-batter-over-butter layering looks wrong and bakes right. Stirring it turns cobbler into peach cake, which is a different, lesser dessert.
Frozen peaches need no thawing; add 5 extra minutes of bake time.
Deep golden, not golden. Pale cobbler crust is doughy, and the extra 5 minutes of color is where the crisp lives.
Serve from the pan with a big spoon. Cobbler is not a dainty dessert and nobody wants it to be.

Swaps and variations

Mixed berries instead of peaches: what changes: a berry cobbler, tart and jammy. Add 0.25 cup more sugar for very tart berries.
Bisquick style: what changes: 1 cup pancake mix replaces the flour, sugar, and baking powder. Faster, slightly sweeter, still good.
Spiced fall version: what changes: pears or apples with 0.5 tsp extra cinnamon and a pinch of nutmeg.
Gluten free: what changes: measure for measure gluten free flour in the batter, everything else identical.

What to serve

Vanilla ice cream, melting, no substitutions.
Cold heavy cream poured over the warm slice, the old school alternative.
A pitcher of sweet tea, because some desserts have a dress code.

Storage and reheating

Cover and refrigerate up to 4 days. Reheat single portions in the microwave for 45 seconds, or the whole pan covered in a 350 F (175 C) oven for 15 minutes until warm and re crisped at the edges. Freezing works for 2 months, though the crust softens; thaw overnight and reheat uncovered in the oven to bring back some crunch. The crust is crispiest on day one, best flavored on day two.

Calories shown are an estimate from standard ingredients, not medical advice. Brands and amounts change the number.

Questions cooks actually ask

Can I use fresh peaches?

Yes, 5 medium ripe peaches, sliced. Taste one first: if they are very sweet, use 0.25 cup less sugar; if they are firm and tart, add 2 tbsp sugar to the fruit. Toss with lemon juice to keep the color bright.

Why is my cobbler crust doughy in the middle?

The batter layer was too thick, usually in a smaller deeper pan, or it was underbaked. Use a 9 by 13 dish as written, and bake until a knife into the center of the crust comes out clean, not just until the top looks done.

Can I make it ahead?

Assemble the dish up to 2 hours before baking and keep it at room temperature. For a true make ahead, bake it, cool it, and reheat covered before serving, which is exactly how potlucks have always handled it.

What is the difference between cobbler, crisp, and crumble?

A cobbler has a biscuit or batter topping that rises in patches. A crisp has an oat streusel. A crumble is streusel without oats. Same fruit, three different textures, and all three are easier than pie.

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Easy Peach Cobbler

Instructions

Why you will love it

Tips

Swaps and variations

What to serve

Storage and reheating

Questions cooks actually ask

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Keep exploring

All desserts recipes

American recipes

Vegetarian recipes

Picnic and BBQ recipes

Summer recipes

Thanksgiving recipes