Perfect Peach Cobbler

We had 6 peaches sitting on our kitchen table. On Monday evening, they were just ripe, but on Tuesday morning they were quite soft. I generally prefer to eat fruit fresh—especially peaches—but I knew they wouldn’t get eaten otherwise. Pie crust is a hassle, especially on a humid summer day, so I decided to go with cobbler. It turned out wonderfully. It’s best if you serve it all at once, as the cobbles get soggy if you let it sit overnight.
The recipe is adapted from Cook’s Illustrated’s Fresh Peach Cobbler.

Fresh Peach Cobbler
1. Peaches
   • 6–7 ripe medium-sized peaches
   • ¼ cup granulated sugar
   • 1 teaspoon cornstarch
   • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
   Cobbles
   • 1 cup all-purpose flour
   • ¾ teaspoon baking powder
   • ¼ teaspoon baking soda
   • ¼ teaspoon salt
   • 5 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into ¼-inch cubes
   • 5 tablespoons whole milk
   • 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
2. 1. Adjust an oven rack to the lower-middle position and preheat the oven to 425°.
   2. Halve and pit each peach. Cut out any stringy flesh from the pit area. Cut each half into four wedges. Toss all the wedges with the ¼ cup of sugar and let them sit for 30 minutes, tossing them a few times. Drain them in a colander set over a bowl.
   3. Measure out ¼ cup of the drained juice and discard the rest. Whisk together the ¼ cup of peach juice, the teaspoon of cornstarch and the tablespoon of lemon juice. Toss the peach juice mixture with the peaches and transfer to a 8-inch square or 9-inch circular glass baking dish. Bake until the juices bubble around the edges of the dish, about 10 minutes.
   4. While peaches are baking (if you start sooner, the dough won’t rise properly in the oven), combine the cup of flour, the ¾ teaspoon of baking powder, the ¼ teaspoon of baking soda, and the ¼ teaspoon of salt. Scatter the butter over the top and use forks, a whisk, or a pastry blender to cut the butter into the flour mixture until it looks like coarse crumbs. Add the 5 tablespoons of whole milk and toss with a rubber spatula just until it forms a cohesive ball. (Don’t overmix it or the cobbles will be tough!) Split the dough into 6 mounds.
   5. Arrange the dough mounds over the peaches, spacing them about ½ inch apart. Sprinkle the 1 teaspoon sugar over the dough mounds.
   6. Bake until the cobbles are golden and the peaches are bubbling, 16 to 18 minutes. Cool on a wire rack until warm, about 20 minutes, before serving.