Easy as Pie

One year ago tomorrow, I posted my first blog with a recipe for a cool and creamy pie for the 4th of July.  In May, I posted an idea for an easy red, white and blue dessert.  If you want something more traditional and less colorful, nothing is more American than apple pie.  Or, in the case of the recipe I'm sharing today, apple cobbler.

A cobbler is a baked deep-dish fruit dessert topped with a batter which makes a crust when baked.  Cobblers are easy to make since they only have a filling and top crust.  Unlike a pie with fluted edges or a lattice top, a cobbler doesn't have to look perfect.

When you bake apples, choose all purpose or baking apples such as Empire, Golden Delicious, Granny Smith, McIntosh or Rome to name a few.  All purpose apples retain their shape and don't turn mushy during baking.

You can use one kind of apple, but it's better to use a variety for a contrast of taste and texture.  The last time I made this cobbler, I combined sweet Golden Delicious with tart Granny Smith apples.  You don't have to limit the apples to two varieties; combine three, four or more for a one of a kind culinary creation.

When you cut the apples, try to keep the slices the same thickness so they bake evenly.  I use an apple wedger which cores the apple and slices it into eight equal pieces.  If the apple won't sit flat, slice a thin piece off the bottom to make it level.

Once the apples have been wedged, I turn the pieces upside down on a cutting board and cut them into thinner slices.

The apples are combined with the remaining filling ingredients:  brown sugar to sweeten; flour to thicken; cinnamon to flavor; and lemon juice to keep the apples from turning brown.

Cobblers are a deep-dish dessert so they require a deep-dish baking pan. I use a deep-dish stoneware baking pan which is bigger than my other pie pans.  If you don't have a pan deep enough, use smaller pans and make two cobblers.

Left to Right:  Regular pie pan, deep-dish pie pan

deep-dish stoneware pan.

Once the apples are in the pan, it's time to add the topping ingredients. Cobbler batter is typically made of butter or margarine, sugar, flour, salt, baking powder, vanilla and milk.  You don't have to make the topping for the recipe I'm sharing today.  It uses a roll of refrigerated sugar cookie dough instead.  Slice the cookie dough into thin pieces approximately the same thickness.

Place the cookie dough over the filling, overlapping the dough, if necessary.  Sprinkle the dough with a combination of cinnamon and sugar before it goes in the oven.

   
The cobbler bakes in 35 to 45 minutes, depending on the thickness of the apples and cookie dough.  It's easy to tell when the cookie dough is done, but not so easy to tell about the apples. Carefully stick the tip of a sharp knife into the cobbler to test the apples for doneness.  When the apples are tender and the cookie dough baked, the cobbler is ready.

Remove the cobbler from the oven and let cool on a wire rack.  The cobbler can be served warm or at room temperature.  It's delicious served warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top.  Leftover servings can be reheated in the microwave, if desired.

If you think the cobbler is good in July, wait until you make one in the fall with apples that are in season.  It's even better!

Cookie Apple Cobbler

6 to 8 Servings

6 cups apples, peeled, cored and sliced

1 cup brown sugar

2 Tbsp. flour

1 tsp. cinnamon

2 Tbsp. lemon juice

1 (16.5 oz.) pkg. refrigerated sugar cookie dough

2 Tbsp. sugar

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

Peel, core and slice apples.  Combine apples with the brown sugar, flour, 1 teaspoon cinnamon and lemon juice; toss to coat apples well.  Spoon apples into an ungreased deep-dish pie pan.  Slice cookie dough and arrange on top of apples, overlapping if necessary.  Combine sugar and 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon; sprinkle evenly over cookie dough.  Bake at 350° for 35 to 45 minutes or until top is golden brown and apples are tender.

© Margaret's Morsels