Apple Cobblers, much like other apples desserts, provide a warm sense of comfort, especially on those dreary cold winter days.  The unique thing about cobblers though they satisfy the need for a strong crunch, the consistency of cobblers with their crispy crust makes for a great satisfying dessert for those who want to deviate slightly from the classic pies and tarts.

Time:

1 hour and 15 minutes

Serves:

8

Good for:

• A slight variation on classic apple tarts and pies
• Satisfyingly crunchy
• Great with tea or coffee

Ingredients:

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• ¼ cup sugar
• 2 tspn baking powder
• ½  tspn baking soda
• ½  tspn salt
• ½  cup (1 stick or 4 ounces) unsalted butter, cut into small cubes
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 1 tbsp finely chopped crystallized ginger
• 1 tspn lemon zest or orange zest

For the Filling:

• 3 lbs of a variety of good cooking apples such as Granny Smith, Pippin, Fuji, Golden Delicious, Gravenstein
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
• 4 tbsp unsalted butter
• ½  cup sugar
• 1 tbsp flour
• ½  tspn cinnamon
• ¼  tspn ground nutmeg
• 1 tspn vanilla extract

 Kitchen things you’ll need:

• Large bowl
• Large pan
• 10 inch pie dish, 9 inch deep dish or 9 x 9 inch baking dish
• Medium bowl
• Whisk

Making it:

• Peel, quarter, and core the apples. Cut them into ¼  to ½  inch chunks.
• As you prep the apples, add them to a bowl and toss with lemon juice to keep them from oxidizing (turning brown).
• Melt the butter in a large pan over medium heat.
• Add the chopped apples (and the lemon juice from the bowl), sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Toss to coat with everything so that the spices and sugar are well distributed throughout the apples.
• Partially cover the pot and cook until the apples are just tender, about 10 minutes.
• Stir in the vanilla, and toss to coat with a tablespoon of flour.
• Transfer the apple cobbler filling (including any juices from the apples) to a 10-inch pie dish, a 9-inch deep-dish pie dish, or a 9×9-inch baking dish.
• Preheat the oven to 425°F.
• In a medium bowl whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
• Add the cubed butter and toss to coat with the flour mixture. Use your fingertips or a pastry blender to cut the butter into the flour mixture until the largest piece of butter is no bigger than a pea.
• Stir in the candied ginger and zest.
• Make a well in the middle of the flour mixture and pour in the buttermilk. Use a fork to stir the flour and buttermilk together until the flour is all moistened. Do not overwork the dough!
• Crumble the cobbler dough over the top of the apples in the baking dish. (If you want extra pizzas you can sprinkle the top with a little brown sugar.)
• Place a rimmed baking sheet on the lowest rack in the oven (to catch any drippings), and place the cobbler on the next lowest rack.
• Bake for 10 minutes at 425°F/220°C until the top is beginning to brown, about 10 to 15 minutes.
• Then lower the temperature to 350°F/180°C and bake for 30 more minutes until the topping is cooked through and the filling is bubbly.

Tips/notes:

• Serve warm with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.