Grilled Stone Fruit Cobbler

BY BLAIRE FLORY OF THE COMPLIANT COOK

Everything about this recipe feels like summertime to me. Any stone fruit works wonderfully, but peaches always come first to mind. Summer vacations as a child, visiting my grandparents in Georgia— peaches on everything and in everything. Morning breakfast cereal with sliced peaches. Midmorning snack of a perfectly ripe peach, the variety where a stream of juice races to your elbow. Peach and Burrata salad with basil and toasted pine nuts for lunch, and a post-lunch peach ice cream at the amazing roadside spot down the street. Last but not least, dinner and a peach cobbler (with a big scoop of vanilla bean ice cream). It was always one of the things that I anticipated most from summer as a child; my first tactile understanding of what a profound difference eating seasonally makes. 

Luckily for us, we don’t have to have access to Georgian peaches to make this recipe shine. A peach on a grill (or the cast iron) makes every single one seem to have the robust flavor pf a tree-ripened fresh Georgia peach, even if we’re thousands of miles away from one.

Recipe serves 4 people.

Note: At home, if we’re grilling out, I’ll grill my peaches, but finish the cobbler in the oven. If we’re not grilling, I’ll make it on the stovetop and finish in the oven. The grilling is only a fun alternative that yields a slightly different result, and written with summer camping trips in mind.

Ingredients for Grilled Stone Fruit Cobbler

• 4 ripe peaches (other stone fruit, such as plums, pluots, nectarines, apricots, work as well)
• 1 cup Lakanto Pancake & All-Purpose Baking Mix
• 1 tsp salt
• 4 Tbsp coconut oil (ghee, butter, or dairy-free butter are fine) + more for greasing the pan & peaches 
• One lemon
• 1/2 cup unsweetened alternative yogurt (I used unsweetened almond yogurt— regular yogurt is fine, just make sure it isn’t a tangy brand or Greek)
• 2 tbsp unsweetened almond milk (or other alternative unsweetened milk)
• Coconut whipped cream or vanilla bean alternative ice cream, optional, for serving 

Tools needed for grilled cobbler:

• 9 to 12-inch cast-iron skillet
• mixing bowl
• aluminum foil (if finishing on the grill)

Instructions for making Grilled Stone Fruit Cobbler 

1. Slice the peaches (or other stone fruit) in half vertically. It’s okay if some of the peaches don’t cleanly pull apart so you can remove the pit. For the stubborn ones, use a small knife to slide down as close as you can around the pit (stone), vertically slicing it. Slice the remaining smaller sides off as well and set aside. 
   
   

2. Brush a little coconut oil on the section of grill that you’ll put the peaches on (if using butter, skip this step). Once the grill is hot, place the peach halves (cut-side down) directly on the grates (leaving the smaller peach bits aside if you have some). Do not move the peaches, which will allow them to sear and begin caramelizing. (If using the stovetop method, heat your cast iron over medium-high heat, making sure the cast iron is well-seasoned with oil, adding a bit of coconut oil if necessary. When hot, add the peach halves cut-side down, making sure not to move them around once placed, allowing them to sear and begin to caramelize (leaving the smaller peach slices aside if you have some). 
   
   

3. Depending on how hot the surface is, check the underside of one peach-half after about three minutes. You’re looking for nice, blackened grill marks on the peaches. If done, pull off the grill and place cut-side up on the cast iron. If on stovetop, once you have an even, blackened sear, remove the cast-iron pan from the burner and flip the peaches to cut-side up while remaining in the pan. Tip: If you have some peaches that are slightly underripe or noticeably harder than the others, simply leave them to cook longer than the ripe ones, flipping them in the pan or grill as you remove the ripe, charred ones.

4. Preheat the oven to 400F.

5. In a medium-size mixing bowl, mix together the Lakanto Pancake & Baking mix and the salt. 

6. Add the 4 tbsp coconut oil directly to the dry ingredients. Combine the oil into the mix, using your hands to break up any large clumps and to work the mixture to the point it seems like the texture of barely wet sand. 

7. Add the yogurt and mix gently with a spoon. 

8. Once the yogurt is well incorporated, add the almond milk and a squeeze of lemon juice and mix gently. The dough should be sticky, but not too sticky to handle. 

9. Using your hands, gently place the cobbler topping on the peaches and all around the cast iron. I loosely scatter mine broken up, but you can alternatively shape the dough like more traditional cobbler disks (formed gently between your palms) and place over the peaches.

10. Place in the oven for 30 minutes, keeping an eye on it after around minute 27. It should be light golden and slightly darker in a few spots. Remove and allow to cool on the stovetop for at least 15 minutes. Serve with a generous scoop of coconut whipped cream or vanilla bean ice cream. 

Grilled Dessert—How to Make Cobbler on the Grill

You can make cobbler entirely on the grill. It's a delicious idea for camping or spending a night in your outdoor kitchen. The cobbler will be slightly different in structure, but the unique experience (and the flavor) is what people will remember most.

• Add three tablespoons of water to the bottom of the cast iron (trying to avoid wetting the cobbler topping) and cover the top of the cast iron tightly with foil.
• Place on the area of the grill with the lowest heat, checking every 10-15 minutes to make sure you don’t need more water. You want the juices to bubble and caramelize, but not burn. Add no more than three tablespoons at a time and rotating the pan if it seems to be cooking faster on one side than another.
• After about 30 minutes, remove the foil and continue to cook with the lid of the grill closed, adding more water if needed. The top won’t brown like it’s in the oven and will be a slightly looser topping, as it has essentially steam baked on the grill.