Kickin' at the Cobbler Stones

Ok, Halloween was awesome. My very good childhood friend threw a party, and we had cops, nurses, lumberjacks, ninjas, ladybugs, all sorts of cool characters. Everyone got along with each other, and there was just good vibes all around. Ever go somewhere and the energy is just so positive you feel it? That's how it was. Well, maybe a giant bonfire gave off some energy too :)

So anyways, it's back to the baking. With the holiday now being done, there are sad looking pumpkins everywhere. Houses are packing up their orange and black colors, and now pumpkins are being smashed, Billy Corgan style.

This is a special announcement. If you have any spare, unsheathed pumpkins around... do not smash them... EAT THEM :)

So that's how today's recipe got started. I sliced up, peeled, and boiled an entire pumpkin. As the house was littered with pumpkin guts and seeds, I noticed two things...

1. Cutting up pumpkin is hard work and requires Napoleon Dynamite type knife skills
2. Canned pumpkin is not actually pumpkin, but butternut squash... how crazy is that?

So I boiled and mashed an entire Jack O' Lantern, and ended up with like a huge pot of yellow puree mush. What to do? I do love pumpkin pie (my favorite Thanksgiving pie next to Apple) but I'm not feeling it. I thumbed through Dorie's book for inspiration, and came up with... Pumpkin Spice Apple Figtastic Cobbler. Nope, I'm not a mad scientist on Halloween or any other day, I'm just a little crazy off pumpkin fumes...

Step One - Filling

Pumpkin Spice Apple Fig Cobbler
Recipe by Adam
For the Filling:
-2 1/2 cups pumpkin puree (canned or fresh... if you want actual pumpkin)
-2 Apples, peeled and chopped into bite size pieces
-3/4 cup packed brown sugar
-1/2 cup dried chopped figs
-1/2 cup raisins
-1 tsp cinnamon
-1/2 tsp nutmeg
-1/4 tsp cloves
-Zest of one lemon

Cobbler Topping:
-1 1/2 cups AP flour (or 3/4 + 3/4 whole wheat and AP)
-1 tablespoon baking powder
-3 tablespoons packed, brown sugar
-1/2 tsp salt
-1/2 tsp allspice (or cinnamon)
-4 tablespoons of unsalted butter, cold as ice, and cut into pieces
-1/2 cup milk (nonfat or whatever you have)

Preheat your oven to 375*, and position a center rack in the oven. You can preheat it now, or in between the filling and cobbler making process.

To make the filling: In a large bowl, mix the pumpkin puree, and all the other ingredients together, folding and especially making sure the sugar and spices are evenly distributed. Feel free to taste it, and make spice and sweet adjustments as necessary.

Pour the filling into a buttered 8x8 pan, and smooth over the top with a spatula. Meanwhile, make the cobbler topping. In another bowl, measure out and add the flour(s), salt, spice, and baking powder. Mix evenly, and add the ice cold butter. I use my hands, and mix the butter and flour together until they form a disorganized mess of coarse sand and butter pieces. Add the milk, and mix with a spoon/spatula until the dough comes together and is kind of soft and sticky. Knead for a bit to make sure it's all together.

Tear off pieces of dough and roll into small balls with your hands, about the size of the golf ball. Place on the pumpkin mixture in the pan, you should end up with like 16-20 pieces of dough on the pan. Bake for about 35-45 minutes, or until the cobbler is bubbling, and the dough is golden brown. Take out, let cool for a bit, and serve it up baby.

Step Two... Cobble and Bake

Step 3... Slice and Scoop

And that about says it all...

Was this better than pumpkin pie? Umm... it's a different kind of good. My pumpkin pie doesn't have apples or raisins, so this was a nice, delicious change of pace. I think it tastes like Fall, and without all the twigs and leaves in your mouth. I've eaten leaves before (party related) and this is nothing like that :)

So that's it for today. If you're American, get out there and vote! I know it's the lesser of two evils... like it is every year... but at least we live in a country where we can voice our opinion. That's something to never take for granted, and I always think back to what our forefathers had to sacrifice some 200+ years ago. Stand up and be counted, good buddies :)
Cobbler