Cherry Cobbler

Ok, friends, it may be a week and a day later than planned, but it’s finally time to kick off our Second Annual Sweets Week! Better late than never, right? My hand has healed enough that I’m back in the kitchen, and I’m thrilled to bring you some new sweets to share with the sweeties in your lives.

I think it’s only fitting to start things off with the recipe responsible for my second-degree burns, er, I mean the small delay in posting this recipe. And let me tell you, this cherry cobbler was almost worth the pain. Okay, not really, but it is crazy good.

In addition to being delicious, this cherry cobber recipe is very easy to make. You make a quick-cooking cherry filling and top it with small, fluffy, sugar-crusted, biscuits. When it comes out of the oven the cherries are bursting with (not too) sweet juice that soaks into the bottom of the biscuits, giving them lovely cherry-soaked bursts of flavor. Served warm with some vanilla ice cream on top, this might just become your new favorite dessert. It is definitely going to be making frequent appearances in our home – with a stack of oven mitts nearby.

One Year Ago: Asian Marinated Chicken with Kumquat Sauce

First Annual Sweets Week: Chocolate Peanut Butter Truffle Cupcakes, Sour Cream Loaf Cake, Soft Oatmeal Cookies, Cheesecake Brownies

Cherry Cobbler
Adapted from The Best Skillet Recipes

Ingredients:
For the Biscuits:

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
5 T. granulated sugar
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
3/4 cup buttermilk
4 T. unsalted butter, melted and cooled

For the Cherry Filling:
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3 T. corn starch
Pinch of salt
2 (24-oz.) jars Morello cherries, drained (about 4 cups cherries), with 2 cups juice reserved *
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 T. turbinado sugar (or granulated sugar)

* The original recipe recommends using Trader Joe’s brand Morello cherries, but other brands will work well too.

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, 5 tablespoons of sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

Stir in the buttermilk and melted butter until a dough forms. Cover the bowl and set aside until needed.

In a 12-inch ovenproof skillet, whisk together 3/4 cup of sugar, cornstarch, and salt. Whisk in the reserved cherry juice and vanilla.

Set the skillet over medium-high heat and cook, whisking frequently, until the mixture comes to a simmer and thickens slightly, about 5 minutes. Take the skillet off the heat and stir in the cherries.

Drop 1-inch scoops of dough over the cherries, placing them about a 1/2 inch apart. (I found a tablespoon works well for this.) Sprinkle the turbinado sugar over the biscuits.

Bake the cobbler for 25 to 30 minutes, or until the biscuits are golden brown and the filling is thick and glossy.

Remove the skillet from the oven – use a potholder or oven mitt! Let the cobbler cool in the skillet for at least 15 minutes before serving.  Serve warm with vanilla ice cream on top, if desired.

Serves 6.