Birthday cobbler even better gift since berries, peaches all from garden

"You fixed that last year,” Hubby instructed as I informed him that his birthday dessert for this year would be a Peach-Blackberry Cobbler.

He wasn't complaining; he just wanted to be sure I didn’t repeat a blog post in the process. He knew that would irk me.

I was happy to (cheerfully) prove him mistaken. He had been thinking of last year ’s Peach-BLUEberry Cobbler, which I didn’t even bake until well after his birthday. While a wonderful dish, it wouldn’t begin to compare with what I had planned for today—the anniversary of his birth. After all, every morsel of fresh peach and every plump fresh BLACKberry would spring from our trees and our vines in our own garden. What a gift!

Peaches are an annual thing for us (some years more than others), but this year's vines absolutely covered in blackberries are wonders of the world! The berries are almost two-inches long and so chubby, you can hardly get one in your mouth. I’ve never seen any growing thing so beautiful. Their juicy taste is beyond delicious. The green of the vines is almost obliterated by the purple of the berries, they are so profuse.

Stirring two cups of them up with chunks of peaches fresh from our trees (in our first peach dish of the season) was nothing short of heaven. An online recipe from foodnetwork.com helped me out with this mixture. A rolled topping that included brown sugar, ginger, cinnamon, and nutmeg spread out on top of everything, and I was in business. The Birthday Boy would be lucky indeed!

Peach-Blackberry Cobbler

8 to 12 peaches, peeled, pitted, and cut into 1-inch chunks

2 tablespoons cornstarch or flour

5 tablespoons light brown sugar

1 teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice

pinch salt (or salt substitute)

2 cups blackberries

topping (recipe follows)

Topping:

2 cups flour

1/2 teaspoon salt (or salt substitute)

1/4 cup light brown sugar, packed

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon dried ginger

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

2 pinches mace or nutmeg

6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) cold, unsalted butter, cut into pieces

3/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon milk

1 tablespoon sugar (or sugar substitute)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a bowl combine the peaches, cornstarch or flour, brown sugar, lemon juice, and salt. Toss gently. Carefully fold in the blackberries; transfer the mixture to a greased 8-cup baking dish. Set aside. For topping, mix the flour, salt, brown sugar, baking powder, ginger, cinnamon, and mace or nutmeg. Add the butter; mix until coarse and crumbly. Add 3/4 cup milk; mix just until combined. Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface; knead a few times to smooth it out. Form into a ball; roll out into the shape and size of the baking dish—about 1/2-inch thick. Place the dough on top of the prepared fruit. Brush the top of the dough with the remaining tablespoon of milk; sprinkle with the granulated sugar. Place the cobbler on a sheet-pan to catch any juices that might boil over. Bake until the top is golden brown and juices are bubbling, 25 to 30 minutes. Let cool slightly before serving. Makes 8 to 10 servings. (Source: www.footnetwork.com)