Fresh Peaches "Dump Cake" Cobbler

Last night I made a peach "dump cake" cobbler.  I went out on the internet, like I do many recipes and scanned several recipes and read the reviews. Most of them were pretty much the same thing. So here is what I did.

I had fresh peaches instead of canned peaches.  I put sugar on the cut peaches and let them sit for a couple hours to let them macerate.  They got good and juicy.  I put them in the bottom of a baking dish.  Then I poured a box of cake mix on top.  The dry cake mix.  I used Spice Cake mix because 1. that is what I had and 2. I thought it would be good with peaches. (spiced peachy right??)  Then I cut butter into bits and put it all over the top of the cake mix.  I baked at 350 degrees for 45 minutes.  It looked done and I pulled it out and let it sit for about 30 minutes to cool slightly before busting into this.

The top was crusty and the peaches were soft and juicy underneath.  I topped it with some vanilla ice cream, sat down and dug in.  Peaches, yummy and tangy, not too sweet at all (note to self - put a bit more sugar in it next time).  The cake part was crusty like you would think peach cobbler would be.  I couldn't really taste the spice part. It was more like just the crusty crumbs of a topping. The taste I tasted though was strongly tainted with baking powder.  I was a bit disappointed.  I was expecting some sugary, buttery, crunchy taste or even a spicy(cinnamon and nutmeg perhaps).  I just got a strong baking powder taste. Hmm....

How to cut a fresh pineapple

Many people are afraid to buy a fresh pineapple because they don't know how to properly cut it. It is quite simple if you follow these steps.

1. Cut the bottom off about 1/2 inch from the bottom, then cut the top off. Now you are left with the spiny outside and a very flat bottom so it doesn't roll around.

2. Next start cutting off the spiny outside from top to bottom about 1/4 inch in. This way you get most of the seeds out too. Just go around the outside cutting in small strips the outer skin and spines.

3. Then, look at it from the top and you will see the round core in the middle. For chunks begin by cutting large strips one the sides from top to bottom cutting away from the core. You will cut 1/4 of it first then turn it 1/4 turn and cut again straight down, then turn and cut and turn and cut the last bit. This will leave you with a square core if you did it right.

4. Take the large chunks that you just cut and slice them as small as you like. Trim off any outer spines that you didn't get when you "deskined" it.

5. If you want circles then cut the pineapple sideways and then use a small knife to core out the inner core. If you have a small round cookie cutter that will work too but they are very hard to find.

Apple Season

Apple season is upon us. We, the whole family, will be heading up the hills to go apple picking. We love Carter Mountain Orchard, located literally just above Monticello (home of Thomas Jefferson). We will be heading up on Sunday and will be picking Golden and Red Delicious apples. Now I know they say that the apples aren't good for cooking but I use them and they are just fine. Be looking for an apple sauce recipe, apple pie recipe, and other great apple recipes in the coming week.