Brown Sugar Blueberry-Peach Cobbler {gluten-free option}
This sweet summer cobbler is filled with juicy blueberries and fresh peaches, and sweetened with rich brown sugar. It's topped with buttery, flaky pie crust stars, making it perfect for a patriotic occasion like July 4th, Memorial Day, or Labor Day. This cobbler can also easily be made gluten free!
- Prep Time: 40 minutes
- Chill Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes (up to 35)
- Total Time: 2 hours 40 minutes (up to 45)
- Yield: one 9" cobbler 1x
- Category: crisps, crumbles, and cobblers
- Method: baking
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Gluten Free
Ingredients
Crust
- 10 tablespoons (2 5/8 ounces) flour*
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar, preferably light or golden
- generous 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 4 tablespoons (2 ounces) unsalted butter, cold
- 3 - 3 1/2 tablespoons ice water
Blueberry-Peach Filling
- 2 cups (10 ounces) fresh blueberries
- 3 3/4 cup (1 lb 2 3/4 ounces) sliced white or yellow peaches
- 2/3 cup, packed (5 ounces) brown sugar, preferably light or golden
- 6 tablespoons (1 3/4 ounces) corn starch
- 1 1/2 teaspoons freshly-squeezed lemon juice
Glaze**
- 1 egg white
- 1 tablespoon water
- demerara sugar, for sprinkling
Instructions
Crust
- Combine dry ingredients with grated butter: In a large bowl, whisk together your flour(s) of choice with brown sugar and salt. Use the large-hole side of a flat or box grater to grate in the butter. Gently toss in by hand until coated in flour and dispersed.
- Add ice water: Add 3 tablespoons ice water (or 2 1/2, if using only regular all-purpose flour) and fold in with a spatula until a dough begins to form. Finish working dough together by hand, adding up to another 1/2 tablespoon ice water as needed to form a single ball of dough. It should be soft and neither dry nor sticky; be careful not to overwork. Wrap dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour.
- Roll and cut: Line a baking tray with parchment paper. Lay out a separate, large sheet of parchment paper on a rolling surface and dust generously with flour. Lightly flour top surface of dough and roll out to 1/4" thick. Use a small star cookie cutter (about 2" wide) to cut into individual star shapes.***
- Repeat and chill. Transfer the cut stars to the prepared baking sheet. Gently knead together leftover scraps, and repeat step three to roll and cut into more stars, continuing as needed until all dough has been used up. Chill cut dough in freezer for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, make the fruit filling.
Blueberry-Peach Filling
- Toss together all ingredients: Combine peaches, blueberries, brown sugar, corn starch, and lemon juice in a medium mixing bowl, and toss together until evenly combined, making sure the brown sugar and corn starch are fully incorporated.
Assemble and Bake
- Preheat oven and prep pie dish: Preheat oven to 350ºF, with oven racks in the middle and bottom-third positions. Place a baking tray on the lower rack to catch any juice that might drip from the cobbler while baking. Butter a 9" pie dish.
- Glaze crust: Whisk together egg white and water for glaze. Brush egg wash on chilled stars.
- Assemble: Transfer the fruit filling to the prepared pie dish in an even layer. Carefully arrange pie crust stars on top, leaving small gaps between each star.**** Sprinkle cobbler generously with demerara sugar.
- Bake: Bake in preheated oven for 30-35 minutes, until filling is bubbling and crust is golden. Serve warm or at room temperature, with vanilla bean ice cream or freshly whipped cream.
Notes
*Non gluten-free option: use half all-purpose flour and half whole wheat pastry flour. Or, use exclusively all-purpose flour, and cut back on the water in the crust if needed. Start with 2 1/2 tablespoons, and add more if necessary.
For gluten-free option: Use a gluten-free all-purpose flour blend that contains xanthan gum, such as Bob's Red Mill 1 to 1 Baking Flour.
If measuring flour by volume, be sure to measure it correctly using the spoon-and-level method.
**Cream or milk can also be used in place of the egg wash for glazing the pie crust.
***If the dough starts to stick to your rolling surface or fall apart at any point, place it back in the refrigerator to chill for 10 minutes (but no longer!), and then try again.
****Extra dough stars can be sprinkled with demerara sugar and baked on a parchment-lined baking sheet at 400ºF for 25-30 minutes, until golden.
Make ahead: Certain parts of this recipe can be prepped ahead of time. Make the pie crust as instructed and cut it into stars, and then freeze the stars on a parchment-lined baking street until you're ready to bake the cobbler. Move them to the refrigerator to chill slightly while preheating your oven.
You can also slice the peaches up to a day in advance, and toss them with the lemon juice used in the filling to prevent them from browning. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator until you're ready to prep the filling.
Storing and Reheating: Cobbler is best served fresh, but leftovers can be covered in plastic wrap and refrigerated for up to 5 days. Reheat individual servings in the microwave for about 60 seconds before serving.
