We have Peach Cobbler as dessert in the South Arm Cooking Club for seniors.  Cobbler toppings take on many forms.  Some resemble sugar cookie dough while some are like pie crusts.  This topping is a tender oatmeal scone, which bakes up crisp, nubbly, and slightly sweet.

A scoop of vanilla ice-cream will make this dessert perfect.

This recipe is adapted from America’s Test Kitchen and Cooking Light and it serves 6.

Ingredients

• 2 pounds peaches
• 2 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch
• 1/3 cup brown sugar
• pinch of nutmeg and cloves
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Oat Scones Topping:

• 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 1/4 cups old-fashioned oatmeal
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon cream of tartar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted (1 stick)
• 1/3 cup milk
• 1 egg, beaten to blend

Christina and Chris made this dessert.

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375F degrees. Bring a large saucepan of water to a simmer.  Lower 2 or 3 peaches into the water at a time and simmer for 30 seconds.  Remove and rinse under cold water.  The skin should peel off easily.

Slice peaches into half, remove the seed, and cut peaches into medium slices.

In a 9×13-inch baking dish, combine peaches, cornstarch, sugar, spice, and vanilla.  Bake for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, prepare the Oat Scones topping as follow: Mix the flour, oatmeal, sugar, baking powder, cream of tartar and salt in a large bowl. Mix together melted butter, milk and egg in another bowl. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir until just moistened.

Drop spoonfuls of the Oat Scones evenly over the hot peach mixture.  Return to theoven and bake for another 30 minutes, or until golden brown.   Serve warm.

The Oat Scone recipe above can be baked off by itself with some addition of raisins (1/2 cup). Place the dough on a lightly floured work surface. Pat out to form 3/4-inch thick circle. Using a sharp knife, cut into 12 wedges. Transfer to a baking sheet and bake at a preheated 450F oven for about 12 minutes or until light brown. Cool slightly on a rack.

Scones freeze well. When the scones are completely cooled, simply pop them in a ziplock bag and store them in the freezer. Defrost on the counter or in the microwave, then place in the toaster oven for a minute or two. You’ll have ‘fresh’ scones on hand whenever the mood strikes.