Peach Cobbler - a recipe from my biffle

Hello everybody!

If you know me in real life, you already know that I am going on a trip to PERU for 2 whole months!! This is simultaneously super exciting and kind of scary. Y'see, I've always been someone who doesn't like change. I make a decision and stick to it. I don't like uprooting myself, and I'm scared of ruining things by changing my mind. I was stuck in a rut, and four months back I finally decided to snap myself out of it.

 I applied for a Summer volunteer abroad program, since I've always been terrified of studying abroad. This way, I get to live in a foreign country, but don't have to worry about classes or studying. Then... I did something else that astonished myself: I cut my hair. I'd always been overly attached to it, and was convinced that all of my looks came from having long, straight, nearly waist-length hair. I donated 14 inches of hair to Locks of Love and haven't looked back!

Although some change is wonderful, there are some things I hope never change. This is gonna sound super duper cheesy, but I am truly blessed to have incredible friends. One of those friends is Tori, aka my biffle (who is a different individual from my home-skillet biscuit). Tori is planning on going to GERMANY for an entire year, and I found out that she'll most likely leave before I return from Peru. Because of this, we are trying to cram in as much bestie-time as possible. This involved us going shopping together, dyeing our hair together, having a sleepover, decorating matching BFF tank tops (with fabric paint and glitter), and making homemade peach cobbler!

This is one of Tori's favorite desserts, and since she is a true Southern girl at heart, I think it's safe to believe her when she says this is the best peach cobbler recipe ever! It's got just the right amount of sweetness, a bit of crunch from the biscuit/cobbler topping, and tastes like love and home in a perfect spoonful! Top it with some vanilla ice cream and you are all set :)

Tori's Favorite Peach Cobbler

(Serves 6 - or alternatively, 4 people who really like cobbler! Recipe adapted from All Recipes)

Peach filling:
3 C peach slices (if canned, drain the excess liquid first. If using fresh, peel the peaches and cut into wedges)
1/4 C white sugar
1/4 C brown sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
2 tsp corn starch

Cobbler*:
1 C all-purpose flour
1/4 C white sugar
1/4 C brown sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
6 tbsp unsalted butter, cold and cut into cubes
1/4 C boiling water
* Tori says that she enjoys a higher cobbler to fruit ratio, so she likes to double all of these ingredients to make a very thick cobbler for the top of the fruit

Topping:
3 tbsp brown sugar
1 tsp cinnamon

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees

2. Pour the peach slices in a 2 qt baking dish (we used a 9x13" baking dish), and add in the rest of the peach filling ingredients. Gently stir until all of the peaches are evenly coated with the mixture. It should look like this:

3. In a large bowl, combine flour, white sugar, brown sugar, baking powder, and salt. Blend in cold butter using either a pastry blender or your finger tips until the mixture resembles a coarse meal. Gradually pour in boiling water, and use a large spoon or small spatula to fold the water into the dough and combine it. Do not overmix. Pour the cobbler dough over the top of the peaches.
4. Combine the brown sugar and cinnamon for the topping, and sprinkle it evenly on top of the cobbler. The finished product before it goes into the oven will look like the picture below:

5. Place cobbler in oven and bake for about 30 minutes. If you choose to double the cobbler topping, it may take up to 45 minutes.
6. Let cool for about 15 minutes, and serve immediately! If you choose, add a scoop of vanilla ice cream.(The cobbler looks very brown because we used brown sugar, which caramelizes to a darker shade.)

Tori and I made this cobbler together (with her directing me haha), and it is absolutely delicious! Make this recipe for someone you love. I'll end this post with a super-cute picture of us.

Apple Cutie Pies

Something that never ceases to amaze me is... human behavior. This probably explains why I'm a Psych major. But honestly, humans are strange. We're all strange. Our behavior ranges from extreme jerkiness to extreme weirdness to extreme kindness. I feel that when you're living in the dorm, sharing a small space with everyone else, this becomes super-duper clear. Because you're around these people ALL THE TIME, you get to see sides of them that you would never otherwise be exposed to.

Jerkiness:

- People who puke in the communal dorm sink and just leave it there for 2 days. 

- People who clog the toilet, and don't unplug it even though there is a toilet plunger sitting 5 feet away. TRUE STORIES OF DORM LIFE, EVERYONE.

Weirdness:

- When people flip every single poster in the hallway upside-down. It's FINALS WEEK. Are you truly so bored of studying that you think this is fun? Or are you taking easy classes and have a lot of time on your hands? I don't understand...

- When people steal toilet paper from the custodial closet. Why?! There's toilet paper in the bathrooms. Why exactly do you need your own stash?

Kindness:

- When everyone in the dorm chips in to buy the custodian a present to thank her for all of her hard work.

- When people get together to do volunteer projects in the community

- When people say, "Thank you" to the staff members who work around the dorm community.

- LOTS more examples, but it would take too long to talk about each and every kind act :)

All in all, I've definitely met some real sweetie pies and cutie pies throughout my years at UCSC. And I'd like to honor those people with literal CUTIE PIES! These are miniature pies baked in muffin tins. My friends who tried them said they were some of the best apple pies they'd ever tasted. I know that you'll love them too! I adapted this recipe from Dani Cone's Cutie Pies Cookbook, which my homeskillet biscuit (aka best friend forevah) gave me for my birthday.

Apple Cutie Pies
Make Approximately 18 cutie pies

Pie Crust:

2 Cups whole-wheat flour*

3/4 Cup salted butter, room temperature

1/4+1/8 Cup white sugar

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

Place the butter in a medium bowl. Using a hand mixer, beat until it is softened. Add the sugar to the butter, and continue beating until it is light and fluffy. Gradually add the beaten eggs to the mixture, and beat it until it is just incorporated. Dump in all the flour at once, and beat it until it just starts to form a dough. Using your hand, pat the dough into one large round. Break the round in half, and wrap each half in plastic/saran wrap. Place the dough in the fridge for at least 15-30 minutes so it will be easier to work with.

*Note: I really like the nutty, earthy taste you get from using whole-wheat flour in the crust. If you're not a fan, feel free to use all-purpose instead.

Apple filling:

5 medium Granny Smith apples

1/4+1/8 Cup brown sugar

1 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp nutmeg

3/4 tbsp corn starch

Peel your apples and cut into half inch cubes. In a medium sized bowl, toss the apple filling ingredients together until the apple pieces are completely and evenly coated.

Crumb Topping:
1/4 Cup salted butter
1/3 Cup brown sugar
1/3 Cup flour
1/4 Cup oatmeal
1/4 tsp cinnamon

In a small/medium-sized bowl, mix all ingredients together except for butter. Cut the butter into small cubes or pieces, either with a knife or a pastry blender until the mixture resembles coarse bread crumbs

Constructing the Apple Cutie Pies:

1. Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.
2. Line a muffin tin with paper cups.

2. On a flat, well-floured surface, roll out your dough to 1/8 inch thickness. (It helps to work with one half at a time so that the dough will stay cold and won't be too difficult and sticky to work with.
3. Using a 2 1/2 inch cookie cutter, cut out rounds of dough. Using your fingers, carefully press the rounds into the paper muffin cups and crimp until the dough reaches about 3/4 of the way up the cups.
4. Fill each of the crusts all of the way full with the apple filling.
5. Spread the crumb topping over the apple filling of each cutie pie.
6. Put pies in the oven and bake for approximately 22-25 minutes, until the crust looks golden brown. Depending on your oven, you may need more or less time, so check periodically. Let pies cool completely, then enjoy!

The picture above shows how the pies will look before they go in the oven.

To all my cutie pies out there, give these a go! :) I hope you have a fantastic day!