I’ve confessed a lot on this blog – about the infidelity of my faith, rising above abuse, being a stumbling fool for others. So this confession should be an easy one. Yet, I feel stupid.
Because I am, in this one area.
I am honestly clueless about sports. I once purchased Football for Dummies so I could learn some cool things to shout while watching games on TV – I fumbled through about ten pages, and then a friend told me the only two things I needed to remember.
- When any call is made that is against your team, scream “aw, come ON ref!” to the television while waving your hands in a highly demonstrative way.
- When your team has the ball and gets inside the 20-yard line, clap loudly and yell “You’re in the zone – take it all the way!” Should the one carrying the ball fail to do so, revert to your carefully-practiced “aw, come ON!” and wild hand waving.
So far, these have worked well – except when it’s not football we’re watching. This weekend, my friend Alison taught me about the scoring system of the World Cup, and I thanked her by teaching her how to make cobbler. Or make that cobblers. Because there’s honestly nothing like time in the kitchen with someone who cheers for every small moment. She celebrated peeling apples and peaches, and smiled through patting dough into little circles. She texted her grandma and posted every cobbler on Instagram – all the while yelling for Germany to beat Ghana and reminding me how the win, lose, or tie approach to scoring worked. Because it’s the World Cup, and a 3-point system is good and right and perfect. Rather like cobbler, I suppose.
I can’t remember a stinking thing about that system now. But I do remember Deutschland. Uber. Alles. And I do remember which cobbler won our own little World Cup in the kitchen.
All of them.
Alison went for apple. I was a peach girl. My son Ian picked apple too, though he thought the perfect cobbler would be a blend of all three. And my small group was divided – every flavor got some favor.
Now it’s your turn to decide. Bake all three. And select your favorite. They’re all easy to make and even easier to enjoy. Oh, and if you have any tips to help me and my challenges with sports, let me know. I seriously need help. In the meantime, I’ll go back to my waving hands and carefully-practiced yells.
PEACH SHORTBREAD COBBLER
(10-12 servings)
2 packages (1-pound each) frozen sliced peaches, thawed and drained, or about 3 pounds fresh peaches, peeled and sliced
1 t. cinnamon
1/3 cup light brown sugar, packed
1-1/2 cups flour
1-1/2 cups sugar
2 cups butter, melted
½ t. ground nutmeg
1 t. vanilla
Preheat oven to 350. Mix peaches with brown sugar and cinnamon, place in lightly greased 9” X 9” baking dish. Set aside. In a mixing bowl, blend flour, sugar and nutmeg until well mixed. Add butter and vanilla, and stir until mixture makes a dough.
Using a ball of dough about the size of a golf ball, pat until you have a round about ½” thick. Place round on top of peach mixture. Repeat until all the dough has been used and all the fruit is covered. Sprinkle with a little turbinado sugar to decorate, if you like (we did). Bake at 350 for about 45 -50 minutes or until shortbread crust is golden brown and the peach mixture is bubbly.
AWESOME DELICIOUS TRIPLE BERRY COBBLER
(makes 8-10 good servings)
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
½ cup granulated sugar
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 cups each blueberries, raspberries, and blackberries
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 t. cinnamon
2 t. baking powder
1/4 t. salt
3/4 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup butter, melted
Cinnamon-sugar for sprinkling on the top
Preheat oven to 375. In a bowl, mix sugars, lemon juice, and berries until fruit is well-coated; place in a greased shallow 2-1/2 quart casserole. In a medium mixing bowl, mix flour, sugar, spice, baking powder, and salt; add whipping cream and butter until well blended. Spoon batter over fruit, and spread it around to try to cover all the fruit. Sprinkle to your heart’s content with cinnamon-sugar.
NOTE: It may look like you don’t have enough batter. Trust me, it’s all OK. You’ll be fine.
Bake until crust is a deep rich golden brown and fruit filling is bubbly (about 45 minutes). Allow to cool slightly before indulging.
BUTTER BATTER APPLE COBBLER
(makes 10 servings)
2-1/2 to 3 cups sliced, fresh apples (we used a combination of Granny Smith and HoneyCrisp)
½ cup sugar
1 t. pumpkin pie spice (trust me)
1/3 cup sugar
3/4 cup milk
3/4 cup all purpose flour
2 tsp. baking powder
3/4 stick melted butter
Preheat oven to 350. In a mixing bowl, combine apples, sugar and spice. Toss until apples are well-coated. Set aside.
Pour melted butter into a 9×9 baking dish. Mix flour, sugar, baking powder and milk together. Pour mixture over melted butter. Place the apples on top of the batter in the dish. However tempted you may be, do not stir. Bake the cobbler for 45 minutes to an hour, or until the cobbler batter has risen over the fruit and is a golden shade of brown.