Greater Midwest Foodways Alliance

FAMILY HEIRLOOM RECIPES

Picnics and Family Reunions

Illinois State Fair
August 10, 2018

 

 

Contestant, 2018

Grandma’s Cobbler
Kitsy Amrhein, Springfield, Illinois

 

When I was a kid, my parents and 5 siblings went to my grandmother’s house for dinner every Sunday. Grandma lived on a lake, which is a kid’s paradise. We got to swim, fish, go boating and climb trees. She would often let us spend the night at her house. Spending the night also meant playing board games like Chinese checkers, Pollyanna or Mill. Or maybe card games like Go Fish, FanTan or Gin Rummy. It also meant cooking lessons. Grandma was a fantastic cook. Making cut out sugar cookies was always fun. In the summer, in addition to her teaching us to make cookies, she also let us “help” her bake pies and my favorite, cobbler. She had over an acre of land. On that land was a small backyard orchard. She had cherries, apples, pears, walnuts, mulberries and peaches. We would go out, climb the trees and pick whichever fruit was in season. Grandma would then make a pie or cobbler with our harvest. With only a handful of ingredients, this was a simple recipe to teach a kid. Grandma would measure everything out and if cutting up fruit with a sharp knife was involved, she took care of that. She would hand us the measuring cup with the ingredients measured out and we would add it to the mixing bowl. We got to stir and pour the mix into the baking dish. Of course we would lick the spoon when we were done. As the house filled with the aroma of the cobbler, we would wait with anticipation for it to be done so we could sink our teeth into our creation.

 

My grandma had committed many of her recipes to memory and unfortunately, she never wrote them down so many were lost when we lost her. This is one that survived and is cherished because we all learned to make it on a summer sleepover in paradise. It’s as unforgettable as she is. Everytime I make a cobbler, my mind drifts back to those cherished days of climbing trees, licking spoons and playing games with a fantastic lady that just happened to be MY grandmother. I was a lucky kid!

 

Peaches are in season right now, so I made the cobbler with peaches. The same recipe can be used to make any other fruit cobbler as well. Sitting down to play cards with a plate of warm cobbler and ice cream is one of my fondest memories as a kid.

 

Contestant, 2018

 

Grandma’s Cobbler
Kitsy Amrhein, Springfield, Illinois

 

1 stick of butter
1 cup sugar
1 cup milk
1 teaspoon baking powder
Pinch of salt
1 quart of fruit (peaches)

 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Peal and remove pits from peaches. Melt butter. Pour in to an 8×10 baking pan.

 

Mix the sugar, milk, baking powder and salt in a medium size mixing bowl. Pour into the baking pan over the butter. Lightly swirl the mix into the butter. Add the peaches. Bake 1 hour. Serve warm with whip cream or ice cream on top.

 

If making ahead, this can be warmed in the microwave for a few seconds before serving.