Customers may flock to Cheryl’s, a restaurant in Whitwell, Tenn., for meat-and-veggie specials, but one of their favorite foods comes last: peach cobbler.
“She makes the best around,” said Ed Hooper, a regular at Cheryl’s, open since 1989 at 450 Hudson St.
A self-taught cook, Ms. Cunningham makes peach cobbler year-round, but summer means she can use fresh peaches.
“The really soft ones are the best for cobbler,” she said.
For extra sweetness, she tops the dessert with whipped cream or a big scoop of vanilla ice cream.
“My customers love it,” she said. “It’s a thing of the South, and you just have to do what your customers want.”
Southern Restaurant, with two locations in the Chattanooga area (3224 Dayton Blvd. and 7714 Hixson Pike), has been making peach cobbler from scratch for the past 40 years. Though it’s often on the menu, it’s a customer favorite this time of year, said owner Jack Wood.
“It’s a big seller that we serve three to four days a week,” he said.
Fast factWhat’s the difference between a cobbler and a pie? A cobbler has a single pastry crust, on top, and uses fresh fruit that is baked in a deep dish.– ehow.comFRESH PEACHESChattanooga Market will have its second annual Peach Festival on Sunday. Two market vendors will have peaches fresh from their farms, and other vendors will offer peach ice cream, milkshakes, pies, jellies, barbecue sauce, salsas and teas. The market is open 11 a.m.-4 p.m. at First Tennessee Pavilion, 1826 Carter St.
The peach crop’s looking really good this year, said grower Tom Crawley, adding that his Sale Creek orchard will be full of peaches picked fresh from the trees through August.
So now’s the time to get your peaches and dig into a cobbler. Or stop by Cheryl’s and grab a bite.
Old-Fashioned Peach Cobbler
8 or 9 peaches, peeled and sliced
1/2 cup water
2 tablespoons self-rising flour
Pinch of salt
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 cup butter, melted
Pastry:
1 cup self-rising flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup shortening
4 tablespoons sweet milk, or enough to make a stiff dough
Cook peaches in water until tender. Mix flour, salt and sugar. Add to peaches. Mix. Add melted butter.
For pastry: Blend flour, salt, and shortening to coarse meal texture. Add milk. Roll on floured surface.
Pour half of peaches in 9- by 13-inch pan. Cut some dumplings and push dumplings down into the peach juice. Pour remaining peaches in and top with lattice strips. Bake in a 350 F oven 35 to 40 minutes, or until top is golden brown. May sprinkle a little sugar on top before baking. This should be a juicy cobbler, not dry.
— www.cooks.com
Peach Clafouti
A simple pudding-style cobbler.
4 cups peeled, sliced peaches
2 cups sugar, divided
1/2 cup water
8 tablespoons butter
1 1/2 cups self-rising flour
1 1/2 cups milk
Ground cinnamon, optional
Heat oven to 350 F. Combine the peaches, 1 cup sugar and water in a saucepan and mix well. Bring to a boil and simmer for 10 minutes. Remove from the heat. Put the butter in a 3-quart baking dish and place in oven to melt.
Mix remaining 1 cup sugar, flour and milk slowly to prevent clumping. Pour mixture over melted butter. Do not stir. Spoon fruit on top, gently pouring in syrup. Sprinkle top with ground cinnamon, if using. Batter will rise to top during baking. Bake for 30 to 45 minutes. Serve in a bowl with a big scoop of vanilla ice cream.