Friday Food Craft: Strawberry Peach Cobbler

It must be summer, the farmer's market is finally starting to have yummy berries for me to turn into things like this! This cobbler recipe was an experiment of sorts, and again a hodgepodge of various recipes I have sitting around. Peaches and strawberries make quite the nice combo with a not too sweet crust. Yum! You can make a delicious Strawberry Peach Cobbler of your very own!



You will need:
3 ripe peaches, peeled and cut into thick slices
1 pint ripe strawberries
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
3/4 cup plus 1 Tablespoon Sugar
1 1/2 cups flour
1 Tablespoon baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/3 cup chilled butter, cut into cubes
1/4 cup milk
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon (optional)
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg (optional)


Preheat your oven to 400 degrees and grease a baking dish (I used butter). After peeling and slicing your peaches, toss them with 1/4 cup of your sugar and 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla. Place them into your dish to bake for about 20 minutes, or until the peaches are tender and the sugar starts to caramelize.

Remove from oven and add your strawberries(washed and sliced if needed, I used Hood strawberries which are quite small) and another 1/4 cup of sugar. Place into the oven another 5 minutes while you prepare your cobbler topping.

To make your topping sift together your flour, salt, the last 1/4 cup of sugar and baking powder (plus cinnamon and nutmeg if you choose) and cut in your cold butter until the texture is close to coarse sand. Beat together your egg and milk and then add into the flour mixture. Spoon over the top of your fruit. Use your final Tablespoon of sugar to sprinkle evenly over the top of the crust.

Return to the oven and bake 15 to 20 minutes, until the crust is golden. Allow to cool at least 30 minutes before eating, fruit juices will be extremely hot fresh from the oven. Serve with whipped cream or a scoop of ice cream. Enjoy!

*If you happen to have a lemon laying around the house (which I did not) It would perk this up a bit to add the juice and zest of half a lemon in with the fruit, but It is yummy without it as well.

Friday Food Craft: Strawberry Lemonade Tart

So, I got a couple of new tart pans the other day and decided to break them in right off the bat. I had been planning on making some kind of lemon bars soon, so I decided to have the best of both worlds and make a lemony tart. Frozen strawberries were on hand, so viola! Strawberry Lemonade Tart. The crust is basically a shortbread (buttery and delicious!) so if you want a flakier pastry crust, feel free to use your favorite recipe instead. Also, any other berries would be fantastic, I am sure. I have plans for a Cherry Limeade tart soon. I think it's going to be an awesome tart filled Summer!

You will need:

For The Crust:
9 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/4 cup superfine sugar
1 cup of unbleached all-purpose flour
pinch salt

For the filling:
1 1/2 cups superfine sugar
3 egg whites
1 egg
2/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (about 3 lemons worth)
2 tablespoons lemon zest (about 2 lemons worth)
2/3 cup unbleached, all-purpose flour
pinch of salt
1-2 cups of frozen Strawberries, defrosted
1 tablespoon confectioner’s sugar


Preheat oven to 350ºF.

Cream butter, 1/4 cup sugar, and a pinch of salt with an electric mixer. Mix in 1 cup flour until just incorporated. Flour hands and press dough into a 9″ tart pan. Make sure to press the dough up the sides so your tart won’t stick to the pan when baking. (I like to use an extra tall tart pan, or split this into two smaller 7″ tarts in 1″ tall pans.)

Bake crust for 20-25 minutes, or until slightly golden brown. While it cools, prepare the filling.

Whisk remaining 1 1/2 cups sugar, egg whites, egg, lemon juice and zest, remaining 2/3 cup flour, and a pinch of salt in a large bowl. Pour strawberries into a sieve and press through to extract all the pulp and juices. Whisk into the lemon mixture and pour into the crust. Bake for 30-35 minutes until filling is completely set. Let cool completely. (I help mine along in the freezer for about an hour.)

Sprinkle with confectioner’s sugar before serving.

I find that sometimes frozen strawberries lack the bright red color I want, so I have been known to add a couple of drops of red food coloring if necessary.

Also, if you do not have or cannot find superfine sugar, you may use regular granulated sugar, or process granulated sugar in a food processor for a few pulses.