AN INTOXICATING BOURBON PEACH COBBLER FROM TYLER

Before the week gets away from me, as it did last week, I'm offering up a fresh fruit cobbler that's destined to become our signature summer indulgence. Tyler sure racked up the points with this incredible dessert. If you're not familiar with Tyler Florence Fridays, please be sure to visit the weekly round up done by Deb (Kahaki Kitchen), Natasha (Living in the Kitchen with Puppies), and Megan (My Baking Adventures) at the TFF site to see what all the Tyler devotees have been up to that week. Each week, one of the entries is selected to be featured on Tyler's own blog .

Being third generation Italian on the maternal branch of the family tree and second generation Italian on the paternal branch, I grew up with certain food preferences that were almost surely inbred. I swoon when I smell pizza and have yet to meet a salami I didn't like. There's no denying the influence of my Napolitan heritage. I've been known to eat fresh cherries until I have a stomach ache and can honestly say that the fresh fruits and veggies that hit the farmers' markets this time of year are one of the top 3 things I like best about summer. That and being stubborn mark me as half Calabrese. A trip to the farmers' market this Sunday yielded some beautiful, fresh peaches. Left to soften for 2 days, they were crying out to be used in something memorable. Enter Tyler's bourbon peach cobbler.

I've been afraid to buy a cast iron skillet for the past 20 years, as long as I've had a ceramic top stove. They may be easy to clean, but my fervent wish is to have a gas stove and an electric oven in my next--and probably last--house. However, since I use my LeCreuset Dutch oven all the time, I decided I was reliable enough to be careful and so bought the 10 inch cast iron skillet that Tyler calls for in this recipe.

The cobbler is a cinch to make, but one taste will assure you that no one will care about anything but gobbling it up so they can have seconds. It was hard to eat dinner; both Larry and I wanted to cut to dessert, but reason prevailed. Rest assured that I will be making this with blueberries, apples, pears...you get the picture.

If you don't love Tyler already, you will after one spoonful of this dessert. It's that good!

Recipe from http://www.foodnetwork.com/

6 - 8 servings

8 peaches, peeled and sliced (6-8 cups)

1/4 cup bourbon

3/4 cup sugar, plus more for dusting

2 tbs corn starch

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp Kosher salt

16 tbs (2 sticks) cold, unsalted butter

3/4 cup heavy cream, plus more for brushing

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

In a large bowl, add the peaches, bourbon, 1/4 cup sugar, cornstarch, and cinnamon and mix well to coat the peaches evenly. Set aside.

Prepare the dumplings: into a bowl, sift the flour, 1/2 cup of sugar, baking powder, and salt. Cut 12 tbs of the butter into smaller pieces. Add the butter to the flour mixture with a pastry blender or your hands and work it until it resembles coarse bread crumbs. Pour in the cream and mix just until the dough comes together. Don't overwork the dough; it should be sticky, but manageable.

In a 10 inch cast iron skillet over medium-low heat, melt the remaining 4 tbs butter. Add the peaches and cook gently about 5 minutes. Drop the dough by tablespoonfuls over the warm peaches. There can be gaps; the dough will puff up and spread out as it bakes. Brush the top of the dumplings with some heavy cream and sprinkle sugar over that. Put it into the oven on a baking sheet to catch any spills. Bake for 40-45 minutes until the top is browned and the fruit is bubbling.

*****

Try not to burn your mouth sneaking a taste! Vanilla ice cream will put it over the top.