Cherry Cobbler with Cream Cheese Biscuits

It's the middle of June and, shockingly, these were the first cherries of the season that I bought. Normally I scoop them up the second I see them but somehow I didn't get to it the past couple of weeks. But, they're here now!

The only problem with cherries, of course, is the pits. If you're just eating them as a fruit snack then you can, obviously, eat around the pits. But if you have a cobbler in mind, they need to be dealt with.

There's no perfect solution but I do strongly recommend getting yourself a small cherry pitter. This little one from OXO does a really good job. But you still need to check that the pit is out. Nothing is worse than biting into a hunk of cherry pie and breaking a tooth on an errant pit.

If you don't have a cherry pitter, you can always just use a paring knife to slice each cherry in half and yank out the pit. I've done it both ways and, although neither way is super fast, the pitter is significantly faster. If you have kids around, this is a great chore to divide up between them. Or, if like me you are taking on the task alone, I suggest rewarding yourself for the job by making sure some of those sweet cherries end up in your mouth while you're working.

Not all cobblers have a biscuit top but I love biscuits a lot so that's usually the style I choose. This particular batch got some cream cheese added to the dough. It gives it a tender crumb and, also, cream cheese is delicious. I sprinkle some coarse sugar on top of them to add a sweet crunch and love using them to scoop up the soft, warm cherry filling. Enjoy!

Yield: 8 Servings

Author: Anita Schecter

Cherry Cobbler with Cream Cheese Biscuits

Prep time: 25 MinCook time: 45 MinTotal time: 1 H & 10 M

Recipe for a cherry cobbler, baked with a cream cheese biscuit top.

Ingredients

For the Biscuits:

• 2 Cups all-purpose flour
• 1/3 Cup granulated sugar
• 2 Teaspoons baking powder
• 1 Teaspoon salt
• 1 Stick (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter, chilled and cut into 1" pieces
• 2 oz. Cream cheese, chilled and cut into 1" pieces
• 2/3 Cup buttermilk, cold
• 2 Tablespoons cream, for topping
• 2 Tablespoons coarse sugar, for topping

For the Cherry Filling:

• 2 lbs. Cherries, pitted
• 1/2 Cup granulated sugar
• 1 Tablespoon lemon juice
• 1 Tablespoon all-purpose flour
• 1/4 Teaspoon salt

Instructions

1. Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees F.
2. In a large bowl, combine the pitted cherries, granulated sugar, lemon juice, flour and salt in a large bowl. Pour the mixture into a 12" cast iron pan or a baking dish.
3. To make the biscuits, add the all-purpose flour, granulated sugar, baking powder, salt, chilled butter and chilled cream cheese to a food processor. Pulse a few times until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. With the machine running, pour the buttermilk in through the feed tube and mix just until combined. The dough will be shaggy.
4. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and roll to about a 1” thickness. You can use a biscuit or cookie cutter to cut out rounds or just use a knife to cut out squares. They don't need to be perfect.
5. Place the biscuits on top of the cherry filling, brush with the cream and sprinkle with the coarse sugar. Bake for approximately 45 minutes or until the biscuits are golden brown. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream.

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