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Cobblers: Crowning Glory for Summer Fruits
Three crust styles create instant variety for this traditional Southern favorite
NASHVILLE, TENN. (April 2002) - A warm-from-the-oven homemade fruit cobbler may evoke more
absolute appreciation than just about any other dessert. Once considered
too common to serve to guests, cobbler has been rediscovered
for its pure honesty and simplicity.
Although Southern cooks make wonderful cobblers, no country or region
can claim cobbler as it's own. In fact, Cooking A to Z (edited by Jane
Horn) says grunt, slump, buckle, roly-poly, flummery, pandowdy and cobbler
are all old-fashioned regional desserts of cooked fruit with a biscuit,
dough or bread topping of some type.
"No matter where cobbler originated, I do believe the South has perfected
this homey fruit dessert," observes Linda Carman, Martha White baking
expert. "Of course, we are blessed with an abundance of fruits and berries
in this area. And Southern cooks have traditionally been masters at pairing
their pie crust and biscuits with native ingredients to create all kinds
of regional specialties, including cobblers."
Cobbler Styles
Cobblers are usually defined as a fruit dessert made with a drop biscuit
topping, Carman says, but Southern cookbooks can offer as many as seven
different recipes for this simple dessert. The variety comes not only
from using different fruits, but also from how the crust is made - from
traditional pie crust or biscuit dough to a wide variety of pourable batters.
An informal survey of Southern cooking authorities verified that the
ultimate traditional Southern cobbler is made with flaky pie crust baked
in a large pan or baking dish. Most " pie crust cobblers" are made with
a bottom and top crust like our Dixie Cobbler, which may be filled with
blackberries or peaches. And some serious cobbler makers like to go one
step further -- baking pieces of crust on a baking sheet until brown and
crisp, and then layering these crisp pieces of crust with the fruit as
the cobbler is assembled.
Cobblers popular in trendy Southern restaurants are frequently topped
with rich biscuit dough and are a little easier to make. The comforting
Country Berry Cobbler features a mixture of berries topped with biscuit
dough made with butter and heavy cream. The recipe calls for these biscuits
to be rolled out, but you can make a softer dough and drop the biscuits
over the fruit. In fact, some believe that the name cobbler comes from
dropping a soft dough over fruit so that it looks rough and "cobbled".
Of course, one of the easiest ways to make a cobbler is to top fruit
with a pour-on batter crust. This type of topping, like the one used in
Georgia Peach and Berry Cobbler, is so easy to make that it can be ready
for the oven in just a few minutes. The topping -- made with self-rising
flour, sugar, milk and melted butter -- is just poured over fruit and
bakes up crisp and golden brown.
Cobbler Tips
There are so many ways to make cobblers that there has to be one right
for you. Whether you choose a cobbler made with the traditional pie crust,
a rich biscuit topping or a pour-on batter, here are a few tips to make
your cobbler perfect.
- Choose ripe juicy fruits and berries. When out of season, unsweetened
frozen fruits and berries may be substituted.
- Sugar to taste. These recipes make a moderately sweet cobbler, but
you may add sugar
to taste depending on personal preference and sweetness of fruit.
- Serve warm. Cobblers are delicious topped with ice cream, heavy cream
or whipped cream.
No matter which topping your prefer - or how much time you have for preparation,
the traditional Southern cobbler stands ready to delight both family and
guests alike. For additional cobbler recipes and menu ideas from the Martha
White Kitchen, visit Martha White on-line at www.marthawhite.com