It’s been a banner year for peaches in Massachusetts. That isn’t always the case — was it last year that the entire crop was lost due to a hard frost right as the blooms were coming out? While I went to the orchard for apple picking, in the store they had all these beautiful yellow peaches, so I decided to buy some and have a few things planned. First off these Bourbon Vanilla Peach Cobbler Bars. Simply delicious. I think the bourbon and vanilla pair nicely to give it a little bit extra too.
Ingredients
for the peach compote / jam
3-4 medium peaches, pitted and cut to 1 inch chunks
1 cup granulated sugar
2 tablespoons corn starch mixed with 3 tablespoons cold water
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon bourbon
1 cup plus 4 tablespoons (2 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted and cooled to just warm
1 cup granulated sugar
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
2 large egg yolks
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups peach compote / jam (from above)
Directions
Create a foil or parchment sling for your 9 x 11-inch baking pan and spray generously with baking spray.
In a medium bowl, mix together butter, sugar, salt, egg yolks and vanilla extract with a spoon until smooth. Add in the flour and spices, and mix until just combined. Remove 1/2 cup of the crust mixture (to be sprinkled on later) and press remainder into the lined pan. Set aside the remaining 1/2 cup, covered with plastic wrap, but do not put in the refrigerator. Place the pan in the freezer for 30-60 minutes or so (can also be left chilling for up to 24 hours); the chilling of the crust prevents it from expanding and rising too much during baking.
While your crust is chilling, make your peach compote. Combine peaches and sugar in a saucepan over medium heat and cook for 15-20 minutes. As the peaches cook, their skins will either disintegrate or slide off the fruit and you can pick them out. Chunks of peach might remain but mash the compote as much as you can with a spoon against the side of the pot. Once it has broken down and it’s become a jammy consistency, add the corn starch slurry and let come to a boil one more time. Remove from the heat and add the vanilla extract and bourbon. Let cool (though it does not need to be fully cooled to use in the next steps).
Preheat oven to 325F.
Remove the crust from the freezer and place it in the oven to bake for 30 minutes, or until the sides are lightly browned. Then remove from the oven and increase oven temperature to 350F. Spread the peach mixture on top on the crust, sprinkle on the left-over crust dough on top. Bake another 30-35 minutes, or until the crumble is lightly browned.
Allow the pan to cool completely before taking the bars out of the pan. Remove the bars by lifting them out with the sling and cut.
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