Chronicle Books Blog

What summer fruits are you (and if you have some, your kids) enjoying the most right now? Leave a comment after this week’s recipe and subrecipes below, and you’ll be eligible to win a copy of Leslie Jonath and Ethel Brennan’s charming and child-approved At the Farmers’ Market with Kids cookbook (offer valid in the US and Canada only).

Mix-and-Match Deep-Dish Fruit Desserts

Cobblers, slumps or grunts, and pandowdies are all baked deep-dish fruit desserts with a topping. A cobbler is finished with biscuit dough; grunts and slumps, two names for the same dish, are crowned with a dumpling-type topping. They are traditionally cooked on the stovetop but can be baked, as here. A pandowdy sports a thick pastry topping. After it comes out of the oven, the topping is broken up and pushed into the dessert.

This recipe is fun for kids because they can choose one of three toppings: cottage pudding, an old-fashioned battercake for slumps and grunts; a drop-biscuit dough for cobblers; and a flaky pastry dough for pandowdies.

Serves 6 to 8

Kids can
Rinse and peel the fruit and cut into wedges
Measure and mix filling and topping ingredients
Help top the filling

For the filling
4 pounds peaches, nectarines, or plums
1 teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 tablespoons sugar
Cottage Pudding, Drop Biscuits, or Flaky Pastry Dough (recipes below)

1. Preheat the oven to 350ºF.

2. To make the filling: If using peaches, peel them. If using nectarines or plums, leave the skin on. Pit the fruits and cut into 1/2-inch-thick wedges. You should have about 4 cups. Put the wedges in a bowl. Add the lemon juice and sugar and stir and toss to mix well. Put the fruit in a 9-inch round or square baking dish deep enough to hold both the filling and the topping.

3. If using Cottage Pudding or Drop Biscuits, drop the batter by spoonfuls on to the filling, distributing the topping evenly. If using Flaky Pastry Dough, on a lightly floured work surface, roll out the dough 1/2 inch thick. It should be the shape of the dish—round, square, or rectangular—and just slightly larger than the dish. Drape the dough around the rolling pin and carefully lay it over the filling. Crimp the edges of the dough. Cut a few slits in the top to release steam during baking.

4. Bake until the crust is golden and the fruit is bubbling up around the edges, about 45 minutes. Let cool on a wire rack for 10 to 15 minutes before serving.

Cottage Pudding
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 egg, well beaten
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted

In a large bowl, sift together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. In a medium bowl, whisk together the egg, milk, and butter until well blended. Gradually add the egg mixture to the flour mixture, stirring gently until fully blended. Proceed as directed in the main recipe.

Drop Biscuits
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
2 teaspoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
1 cup milk

In a large bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder, sugar, cream of tartar, and salt. Stir in the butter and milk just until the flour mixture is moistened. Proceed as directed in the main recipe.

Flaky Pastry Dough
The key to making the flakiest crust is to work quickly so that the butter remains very cold. You can also use this dough for making turnovers (featured in the book), two single-crust pies or one double-crust pie, or tartlets (also featured in the book).

2 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup cold butter, cut into 1-inch pieces
1⁄3 cup ice-cold water

In a large bowl, stir together the flour and salt. Scatter the butter over the flour and cut it in with a pastry blender until the mixture resembles coarse sand. Sprinkle the water evenly over the mixture and, using a fork, toss to moisten evenly. Gently press the dough into a ball, then flatten into a disk. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for 2 hours (or keep in the freezer for up to 2 months).

Peter Perez
Associate Director, Marketing

Purchase: At the Farmers’ Market with Kids: Recipes and Projects for Little Hands.

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