Friday, August 7, 2009

LIMONCELLO-ALMOND PEACH COBBLER

Last year I made Williams Sonoma's Summer Fresh Peach Cobbler, and it was wonderful. This year, I tried to improve on it. With a rating of 10 out of 10, there wasn't much room to make it any better, but I wanted to try anyway. Since I love frangipane (peach, pear or any other kind), I thought I would work off the idea of using almond meal in the dough. And since I love Cook's Illustrated vodka pie crust, I thought I would sub Limoncello (a lemonny vodka liqueur) for the water in the dough. I also subbed some white whole wheat flour for part of the all-purpose, and used Smart Balance 50/50 butter blend in place of butter. And I put some Limoncello in the filling.

No disappointments here. Though the crust flavor was not like a frangipane, there definitely was a difference. It was light, flaky and tender and had lots of flavor thanks to the almonds and Limoncello.

Yes, I'll be making this again, for sure. Guy requested it.

Limoncello-Almond Peach Cobbler
Adapted from Williams Sonoma Summer Fresh Cobbler
Rating: 10 out of 10
INGREDIENTS: 1/4 cup almond meal ***see note below
1/3 cup white whole wheat flour
2/3 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp. sea salt
3 Tbsp. sugar for crust + 1/3 cup for filling + 1 tsp. for topping
8 Tbsp. Smart Balance 50/50 butter blend cut into small pieces, divided use
1 egg, divided use
3 Tbsp. Limoncello, divided use
4 cups sliced peaches (about 2 lbs)
1/3 cup brown sugar
1-1/2 Tbsp. cornstarch
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
In work bowl of food processor, combine almond meal, flours, 3 Tbsp. sugar and salt; pulse to combine. Add 7 Tbsp. SB and pulse till mixture resembles coarse cornmeal. SB pieces should be no larger than small peas. In small bowl, whisk together egg yolk and 2 Tbsp. Limoncello; pour over flour mixture and pulse in quick, short motions till dough pulls together. Do not overmix. Transfer dough to work surface; divide into two pieces. Pat each into a ball, then into discs. Refrigerate, wrapped in plastic wrap, at least 30 minutes. (Freeze for up to 3 months. )
Heat oven to 425F. Butter a 1-1/2 quart rectangular, square or round baking dish; set aside. In large bowl, stir together peaches, 1/3 cup sugar, brown sugar, cornstarch, Limoncello, and cinnamon. Transfer to baking dish; dot with remaining 1 Tbsp. butter. Roll out 1 disc of pastry dough on a lightly floured surface to about 1/4" thickness and sized to fit inside the top of your baking pan. Lay the pastry dough over the peaches and trim edges as desired. Whisk the egg white in a small bowl; brush the top of the pastry dough with the egg white and sprinkle with the remaining tsp. of sugar. Bake 10 minutes at 425F, then reduce heat to 350 and bake an additional 55 minutes, or till juices bubble and crust is nicely browned. Transfer to wire rack to cool. Serve with ice cream or whipped cream. Yield: 5-6 servings

***If you don't have almond meal, not to worry -- you can make your own very easily.

14 comments:

Sam Hoffer / My Carolina Kitchen said...

Almonds and Limoncello are two of my favorites so I know I would love this. Thanks for the tip on making your own almond meal; it can be expensive to buy at the health food store.

I can see why this is came out a 10.
Sam

chow and chatter said...

this is amazing, great job, you can really bake

Barbara Bakes said...

Sounds like a great combination of flavors!

Valerie Gamine said...

Judy, I love the fact that you seem to share my obsession with anything citrus. :) This looks wonderful!

Donna-FFW said...

Gorgeous!! Love the limoncello in this and a 10 out of 10.. I know this is fabulous!

Debbie said...

What a great combo. It sounds so good and something different too!

Anonymous said...

How do you make almond meal?

Judy said...

Anonymous, Just click on the link --"make your own."

Unknown said...

Anything with limoncello just has to be terrific. Thanks for sharing. I hope to see you at Crock Pot Wednesdays this week.

Coleens Recipes said...

I have no experience with limoncello, guess I'll have to do some research.

Marge said...

This sounds wonderful! I love using Smart balance in recipes too!

Palidor said...

What an interesting medley of flavours. Bet it was delicious!

Linda said...

Sounds absolutely yummy!

Roz | La Bella Vita Cucina said...

Judy,
I just made a good old fashioned southern cobbler, but now that I've read your recipe, I think I'll use up the rest of my LARGE amounts of fresh peaches to make this....wow!