The day before we left for Minneapolis, my mom brought me a bag of peaches from her tree. I wish I could say this peach cobbler with brown butter chestnut biscuits was made from her peaches, but I'd be lying. I thought about saying it anyway - how would you ever know? - but then I remembered something: I'm a terrible liar.
"Organic peaches," she said as I inspected the bag of bruised, roughed-up peaches, hoping the qualification would make-up for their ho-hum appearance. It did. A bag of home-grown peaches pleading with me to do something - anything - with them, and an empty suitcase waiting to be packed. So I asked my mom to chop them up and toss them in the freezer.
I came in a few minutes later to find her painstakingly peeling each (extra ripe and smushy) peach with a paring knife and heaps of determination. Turns out my mom hates peach fuzz - she says it feels like she's eating cotton balls. In fact, she'd rather eat the cotton balls. Now I've got a huge tupperware full of peeled, sliced peaches in my freezer to snack on like popsicles all summer long.
A tupperware that I accidentally defrosted last week for dinner when I meant to pull out my tomato sauce with stewed zucchini (made from my mom's tomatoes! This time it's not a lie.). We got take-out that night, but not before I snagged a few peaches. Note to self: organize freezer.
One of the only dishes I'll gladly break the "don't turn the oven on in the summer" rule for is this gluten-free peach cobbler. Unlike some fruit that turns jammy when cooked, stone fruit - and peaches in particular - get sweeter and more luscious with a little heat. If you're not so lucky to get cream of the crop peaches, a few minutes on the stove with a sprinkle of sugar can instantly rehabilitate dull-tasting peaches.
These brown butter chestnut biscuits are the real cat's meow of this recipe though. Since traditional buttermilk drop biscuits use cold butter cut into the flour to create flakiness, I kept that same method by chilling the browned butter until firm again. The brown butter adds depth and a seductive nuttiness to the biscuits that weds beautifully with the earthy chestnut flour. Contrasting the warm peaches with a cozy wintry layer like brown butter chestnut biscuits brings out the bright peach notes with a rustic flair.
Recipe
Ingredients
- 2½ lbs fresh peaches, sliced into eighths (4-5 peaches)
- 1 tablespoon Bob’s Red Mill tapioca flour
- 3 tablespoons light or dark brown sugar
- ¼ cup + 2 tablespoons chestnut flour
- ¼ cup + 2 tablespoons gluten-free oat flour
- 2 tablespoons sweet rice flour, different from "white rice flour" or "brown rice flour"
- 2 tablespoon Bob’s Red Mill tapioca flour
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 3½ tablespoons unsalted butter
- ¼ cup + 3 tablespoons cold buttermilk
INSTRUCTIONS
- First, brown the butter: In a small pan, heat the butter. After the butter melts and foams, it will begin to turn golden brown with a nutty aroma. Stir frequently, watching carefully until it just browns. Pour the browned butter with any crispy bits into a parchment-lined bowl and refrigerate until solid, at least an hour.
- Preheat the oven to 450°F.
- Toss the peaches with tapioca starch and brown sugar in a medium skillet. Heat on the stove, stirring until just warm and beginning to bubble, 3-5 minutes. If using a cast iron skillet, you can bake it right in the skillet, otherwise, transfer it to an 9-inch round or 9x9-inch square baking dish.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the chestnut flour, oat flour, sweet rice flour, tapioca starch, xanthan gum, sugar, baking powder, soda, and salt.
- When the butter is chilled, cut it into ¼-inch pieces, add it to the flour and, working quickly, use your hands or a pastry knife to combine until the largest pieces of butter are no bigger than a pea.
- Add the buttermilk and stir with a fork to completely combine.
- Divide the biscuit dough into six pieces. Slightly flatten them into round disks and plop them on top of warm peaches.
- Bake for 20-24 minutes, until the biscuits are golden brown on top, kissed with a few dark spots.
- Serve warm with vanilla ice cream.
Mohammed Ahmed -
Hi Sara,
I wanted to ask you that in my country xanthan gum isn't available can you mention any good gluten free substitute
Sarah Menanix -
I made this recipe first back in 2016, but I've since been making my biscuits without xanthan gum and they work just fine! Just leave it out and continue as normal :) In fact, I'm going to update the recipe to leave out the xanthan gum!
Bethany @ Athletic Avocado -
Peach cobbler is my all time favorite summer dessert! Your version looks like the bomb.com!
Sarah Menanix -
Aw thanks Bethany!
Jayme | holly & flora -
SARAH. I cannot get over these photos. And I have so many peaches on my counter top right now. I can only hope I don't just gobble them all up before being able to make this. So gorgeous, lady.
Sarah Menanix -
Oh my gosh - that is the biggest compliment coming from you! Thank you thank you thank you!
Joyce @ Sun Diego Eats -
I hate peach fuzz too!!!! But love the flavours in this cobbler! The brown butter and chestnut sound like they would be lovely with peaches (fuzzy or not)
Sarah Menanix -
Hahaha - You can make my like mom and totally peel the peaches for the cobbler then:) <3
Ellie | from scratch mostly -
Chestnut anything is soooo good, but I've never tried chestnut flour and this sounds like such an exciting recipe. Your mom really sounds like my mom~well, my mom, being korean and all, has to peel everything to begin with. (I don't know why they do that???) But she doesn't consume or let ME consume peach fuzz unless she's scrubbed it with something like sandpaper, haha. I guess it's much healthier that way but who really has the time to scrub them all? ;)
Sarah Menanix -
Hahaha - woah - I had no idea there were health reasons for it too (is that really a thing?!?! Oh our moms are so silly with their peeling! I definitely don't have time for that!
Marissa -
So funny about your mom and peach fuzz - my husband is the same. He can't deal with unpeeled apricots either.
I honestly can't get enough peaches this time of year and I'm happy to eat them plain, over the sink with juice dripping down my wrists, and just a smidge happier eating them grilled or in a gorgeous cobbler like this! Heat really does add that extra something to peaches. And the texture of the biscuits looks fabulous! I genuinely prefer baked goods with whole grain flours - white flour based goodies are often too sweet or texture boring. So these look just perfect and cooling the brown butter before adding it is just genius.
Happy weekend, Sarah!
Sarah Menanix -
Unpeeled apricots?! Woah. That's some dedication if he actually peels them! I wholeheartedly agree with you - alternative flours add so much more flavor to the baked goods! <3
Amanda @ Cookie Named Desire -
Oh man this looks so good! We are going peach picking next week, so I will need to save this recipe for then. I love chestnuts, but never even heard of chestnut flour before. Mind blown. Obviously I need to buy some asap!
Sarah Menanix -
Chestnut flour such a unique but smooth flour - and it replaces so nicely in traditional baked goods! You could even start by just swapping in 1/3 of your AP flour with chestnut flour for just a hint of it's sweet toastiness!
Alyssa Wiegand -
Mmmmm, can't wait to pick up some chestnut flour when I get back from my trip and make yummy things like this :)
Sarah Menanix -
It's one of my favorite alternative flours - I think you'll love it!
em -
YOU BROWNED IT AND THEN YOU CHILLED IT. (The buttah.) You are so much better at time management than me. Baking, too, but we already knew that. Looks amazing, lady.
Sarah Menanix -
Hahahaha - I mean, the first time I tested the recipe, I didn't brown the butter. Then once I knew the biscuits would work with normal butter, THEN I managed my time. It works both ways. Remember that time I made cobbler and then baked it like 75 degrees too low and the biscuits sunk into the fruit?
gerry @ foodness gracious -
Whoa whoa whoa....shut the front door!! That last pic is my spirit shot ;)
Sarah Menanix -
<3 Thanks Gerry!
Aysegul -
WOW! What a peach cobbler. Those peaches look breathtaking. I am so new to baking with alternative flours and am dying to get my hands on chestnut/coconut/brown rice, etc flours. So much learning to do, but thanks to your beautiful blog I have so many great recipes to experiment. <3
Sarah Menanix -
Thank you so much! It's hardly a match for your beautiful peach cobbler! The world of alternative flours is vast - there are still so many I've never used and am dying to try! They add so many flavors to baked goods!
Lauren @ Climbing Grier Mountain -
Um, this is a pleasant reminder that I really need to organize my freezer. sigh. I'm secretly hoping there are frozen peaches in there because this cobbler looks amazing!!
Sarah Menanix -
Hahaha - I just got a second freezer and am now refusing to deal with the TWO stuffed freezers I have. This might be part of my defrosting problem...
Abby @ Heart of a Baker -
I just picked up a bag of peaches last week with intentions of doing awesome things, but I forgot about them and now I have to use them STAT. This is happening ASAP! Also, your momma sounds lovely, peaches FTW.
Sarah Menanix -
Oooo - yes! Cobbler is the perfect use for almost too ripe peaches! I hope you loved it!
amanda paa -
ordering chestnut flour as soon as i get back from our trip this weekend. definitely worth turning the oven on for.
and i loved reading this story, everything from your mom peeling those peaches, to accidentally thinking this was the tomato white bean stew.
xo!
Sarah Menanix -
Yes! I hope you fall in love with chestnut flour just as much as I have!
Sherrie -
Hi. Love this. LOVE YOU! xx
Sarah Menanix -
<3 <3 <3
todd wagner -
Gahhhh, these photos are INSANE!! Can your mom bring some extra peaches next time so Audrey can bake this for me? Pretty please :)
Sarah Menanix -
Aww - thank you!! Sadly Mama's peaches are ALL GONE - that's terrible, right? Buuuuut - the peaches at the monterey market are off the hook right now, dude.
Karen @ The Food Charlatan -
hahahaha I love that you pulled out the wrong thing to defrost. I'm always scared I'm going to do that. PS Eric said he was going to make this for me!!! WIN
Sarah Menanix -
YESSSS!!! Did he make it yet? If not, ask him what's he's waiting for - you're PREGNANT, he needs to step on it.
Carla -
I'm totes with your momma. Bring on the paring knife! (And also the cobbler. Bring on the cobbler!)
Sarah Menanix -
Hahahaha - I forgot that you had this in common with my mom! You two were made to be besties.
Matt -
This with a big ol' scoop of vanilla ice cream? Heaven
Sarah Menanix -
You got that right:)
Veronica -
Sarah your a girl after my own heart! I love peach cobbler! This looks wonderful!
Sarah Menanix -
With a scoop of vanilla, nothing much compares!