I’ve slogged through a bunch of edible but still wildly unsuccessful attempts at cobbler over the past couple years. My beacon for success has always remained a steady glow, imprinted upon me in the years before I went gluten-free. I was sitting across from my fellow grantwriting co-worker at our lunch getaway of choice, Ruby’s BBQ in Austin. We’d traded the stack of words and unwieldy sentences piling up on our desks for hot bowls of peach cobbler topped with slowly melting vanilla ice cream.

This iteration of the recipe brought me right back to Ruby’s.

Peach Cobbler excursions with Anne Marie

modified from Joy of Cooking and previous attempts

[Updated again May 2012, to improve batter browning and make it less viscous and easier to dollop over peaches]

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

I recently picked up a $6 oven thermometer and discovered that my oven has a mind of its own. It’s not even consistently inconsistent. I’ll set it for just over the desired temperature because I discovered what I thought to be a solid 10 degree lag. I’ll swing the oven dial millimeters to the right in hopes of bringing it to temp, and then it will surpass the desired temperature by 20 degrees, at which point I give up on precision.

No wonder following recipes can be such a harrowing experience!

1. Pit and slice up 2lbs of peaches (about 6 medium peaches) so their widest edge is no larger than 1/2” and line them along the bottom of a 9 x 13” ungreased glass pan. You could do it in two pie plates or whatever combination of vessels you please.

2. Sprinkle somewhere between 1/4 and 1/8 cup of sugar over the peaches in the pan and set aside. I opted for just a hint of sugar to allow the vanilla ice cream or whipped cream topping to add the perfect hint of sweet and not overwhelm the dish.

3. Make the batter by combining the following dry ingredients in a medium-sized mixing bowl:

4 Tbs white rice flour

3 Tbs potato starch

2 Tbs corn starch

1 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

1/8 tsp xanthan gum

Whisk to combine all of the above well and then add

1/3 cup light brown sugar

4. Melt 1/2 stick butter and set aside.

5. In a separate bowl, whisk together:

1 large egg

1/3 cup milk

and then add wet to dry ingredients, mixing to combine until the batter is smooth.

6. Drop spoonfuls of the batter over the top of the peaches. Try to keep a 1/4” border around the edge of the pan as room for expansion. Pour your melted butter over the top.

7. Bake for 15 min and then assess. Rotate pan and cook for another 10-15 min or until the top of the cobbler is slightly browned and the peaches are tender when forked. Let cool for at least 15 min before serving.

Store covered on the counter for a day or in the fridge for up to 3 days.