Peach And Raspberry Cobbler With Buttermilk Biscuit Crust

To make the filling: Peel the peaches by cutting a cross in the
blossom end of each and lowering them a few at a time into a pan of
boiling water. Leave the peaches in the water for 20 to 30 seconds,
then lift them out with a slotted spoon or skimmer and put them in a
bowl of ice water. If the peaches are ripe, the skin will slip off
easily. If it does not, remove skin with a sharp stainless steel
paring knife. (If you have to use a knife to peel the peaches add an
extra peach to make up for what is peeled away). Hold a peeled peach
gently in your left hand over a mixing bowl. With a stainless steel
paring knife, make a cut from stem to blossom end. The blade of the
knife should touch the pit. Make another cut about 3/4 inch ahead of
the first one along the circumference of the peach. Angle the knife
blade so it meets the first cut at the pit. Twist the blade upward
slightly and a wedge will fall off the peach into the bowl. Continue
around the outside of the peach, cutting it into 8 or 10 wedges.
Discard the pit and repeat with remaining peaches. Add the
raspberries to the bowl. Combine the sugar and flour and gently fold
them into the peaches and raspberries. Scrape the filling into the
baking dish and dot the surface of the filling with butter. Set aside
while preparing dough. Set a rack at the middle level of the oven and
preheat to 450 degrees. In a bowl, combine the flours, salt, baking
powder and baking soda and stir well to mix. Cut the butter into 8 or
10 pieces and rub into the dry ingredients until the mixture
resembles coarse meal (or pulse in a food processor fitted with the
metal blade). Make a well in the center and add the buttermilk. Stir
gently with a fork to mix in the buttermilk, being careful not to
overwork the dough. Let the dough stand in the bowl for a minute or
two to let the flours absorb the liquid. Flour the work surface and
turn the dough out onto it. Fold the dough over on itself 2 or 3
times, until it is smooth and less sticky. Lightly re-flour the work
surface and the dough and roll the dough to a little less than
1/4-inch thick and the approximate size of the baking dish. Transfer
the dough to the top of the filling (use a large, floured cookie
sheet, sliding it under the dough, then easing it off onto the
filling, for best results) and trim away any excess dough around the
rim of the dish. Flute the edge of the dough at the rim of the dish.
Slash 4 or 5 vent holes, each about an inch long, in the center of
the dough; paint with buttermilk and sprinkle with sugar. Bake the
cobbler for about 20 minutes, or until the crust is deep golden brown
and the filling is bubbling gently. (To avoid dirtying the oven from
spills, center a large baking pan covered with a sheet of foil on the
bottom rack of the oven, directly under the cobbler. This will catch
any juices that boil out of the cobbler.) Cool on a rack. Serve the
cobbler warm or at room temperature. Use a large spoon to cut and
place a portion of the top crust on a plate, then spoon some of the
filling next to the crust.

BLUEBERRY LEMON COBBLER: Substitute 2 pints blueberries, rinsed,
drained and picked over for the peaches. Add 1 teaspoon finely grated
lemon zest, 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon and 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg to the
sugar and flour.

Double the crust for a lattice top.

To make a lattice crust: Lightly flour the work surface and dough and
shape the dough into a square, by pressing the sides against the work
surface. Roll the dough to a 9 by 12-inch rectangle. Cut the dough
the short way into 24 strips, each 1/2-inch wide and 9 inches long.
Arrange 12 of the strips, 1/4 inch apart, on a floured cookie sheet
or the floured back of a jelly-roll pan. Position the pan so that the
strips are facing vertically to you. Beginning with the first strip
of dough on your left, fold every other strip in half, back toward
you. Place one of the reserved 12 strips of dough horizontally across
the unfolded strips, just above the fold of the other strips, as in
the illustration. Unfold the strips away from you, back to their
original position, over the horizontal strip. Now begin with the
second vertical strip from your left and fold back every other strip
again. Insert another horizontal strip and unfold the vertical
strips. Repeat steps 5 through 9 twice more until you have inserted 6
horizontal strips to the top of the pan. Turn the pan 180 degrees and
repeat the process, beginning with the first vertical strip, and
inserting 6 more horizontal strips of dough, that is steps 5 through
9, three more times. Gently press the top of the lattice to make the
strips stick together slightly, and refrigerate the lattice until
firm, which will make it easier to slide onto the pie.

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