Texas Peach Pecan Cobbler

When the good folks at Ozarka Water contacted me to see if I'd write a little bit about what I love about Texas, it took me about a nanosecond to say yes.


We love Texas. Neither Mr. E or I were born here, but I've lived most of my life in Texas...and we've spent 18 of our almost 20 years of married life here. (Wow. I can't believe I just typed that sentence.)


Mr. E's job took us out-of-state for a few years and while it was beautiful, it was not our beloved Texas. I would go to the grocery store and think...they don't have tortilla chips and crackers and hamburger patties shaped like their state? What does the state flag here look like anyway? (You can't go far in Texas without seeing a Texas flag.)

Here's a short list of what I love about Texas:

• Tex-Mex: this includes a long list of tacos, queso, salsa, and chips...my life (and my tummy) would be empty without it. 
• BBQ: this is NOT a backyard cookout. BBQ is beef (do you hear that, Carolina?) slow cooked over low heat and served with a spicy tomato-based sauce. And pickles. And a slice of white bread. 
• The Texas flag: When you're out-of-state and you see a Texas flag, it brings you right back home. 
• Bluebonnets: If you've never seen a field of Texas bluebonnets, well, check out social media in the springtime. It's in our contract at Texans that we must plop our children in a field of them and take pictures...even if it's on the side of the highway. 
• Willie Nelson and Lyle Lovett: Texas boys with a purely Texas sound.
• Boots and Beer: I don't care where you are in Texas...a wedding, a 5-star restaurant, the symphony, a quinceanera...it's never too fancy for boots and beer. 
• Whataburger, Blue Bell Ice Cream, Chuy's, Torchy's, Pappasitos: and a thousand other Texas food establishments and companies that know that it doesn't have to be fancy to be delicious. 
• The people. We've lived in Dallas and Houston, and a few months in Amarillo for me. Texas people are friendly people. 

Two other things I love? Texas peaches and pecans. Be still my heart. 

This Texas Peach and Pecan Cobbler is easily the best cobbler I've ever made. Pecans are not typically found in cobbler, but I think they should be...they add texture, crunch, and flavor. The cobbler batter, sweetened with brown sugar so it's rich and caramel-y, bakes up a bit like a cake. The Texas peaches are coated in a warm almond syrup before adding them to the batter. Divine.

Serve it warm, topped with vanilla ice cream, preferably Blue Bell Homemade Vanilla. 

I don't know about you, but I am constantly drinking water. Breakfast, lunch, dinner, dessert, and all the hours in between. It's always water for me. Ozarka® Brand Natural Spring Water comes from three Texas springs and has a uniquely Texan taste.


Can't find it? Check out Ozarka delivery.

As part of Ozarka's #FromHereForHere campaign, they sent me a box of Texas goodies:

Paqui tortilla chips, Snow's BBQ sauce, Yellowbird serrano sauce, The Jelly Queens BBQ sauce and rub, Taste Elevated mustard seeds, and Cookwell & Company queso.


Texas Peach and Pecan Cobbler

1 cup unbleached, all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup packed light brown sugar
2 TBSP salted butter, room temperature
2 eggs
3 TBSP milk
3/4 cup chopped Texas pecans
1/4 cup water
1/3 cup granulated sugar
juice of half lemon
1 teaspoon almond extract
3 cups peeled and chopped Texas peaches
vanilla ice cream

Grease an 8 x 8" pan. Preheat oven to 375.

Whisk the flour, baking powder, and salt together. Set aside.

Beat the brown sugar and butter together until combined, then beat in the eggs. Mix in the milk. On low speed, add the flour mixture just until incorporated. Stir in the pecans.

Pour batter into the prepared pan.

Heat the water and granulated sugar in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring until the sugar is dissolved. Once the mixture comes to a simmer, lower the heat and keep at a simmer for 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Stir in the lemon juice and almond extract. Turn off the heat and stir in the peaches.

Spoon the warm peaches and syrup over the batter.

Bake for 40-45 minutes, tenting with foil after 30 minutes.

Serve warm, topped with vanilla ice cream.

Do you live in Texas? Have you visited Texas? 

What do you love about it?

It's beginning to look a lot like TEXmas! Butter Pecan Cut-Out Cookies

As a cookie maker/decorator, I get asked to participate in a lot of cookie swaps. Well, let me clarify. I USED TO get asked to participate in a lot of cookie swaps. The swaps are typically between other cookie decorators or bakers, and I usually decline. Not because I don't want cookies, because I SO DO. My thought is, though, if I'm going to make cookies for someone, it's going to be for someone who isn't already make cookies all the time. Does that make sense?


Well, this is an exception. And with good reason. The Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap is a cookie exchange between food bloggers. Here's the catch: the swap is all to benefit Cookies 4 Kids Cancer. Each participant donates to be a part of the swap. This year, $7,000 was raised!!!

The Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap is put on by two of my favorite food bloggers, Lindsay from Love & Olive Oil and Julie from The Little Kitchen. These girls have such big hearts...and such talent...really, take a look at their blogs if you don't read them already.


So, for my cookie swap cookies, I made Merry TEXmas cookies! ;) The three bloggers I shipped cookies to don't live in Texas, but I figured I'd make them honorary residents of the Lone Star State.


The cookies themselves are a new cut-out cookie recipe. Butter (Texas) Pecan Cut-Outs. Of course, you can use pecans grown in other states, if you must. There's nothing like a Texas pecan, though.
(Read my pecan story here.)


If you're looking for an alternative to your basic cut-out cookies, try these! They are SO yummy...and you'll have to refrain from just eating the dough straight up. To make the the cookies, you'll make a pecan meal right in your food processor. The cookies also have brown sugar in the mix which adds tons of flavor as well as keeping the cookies soft.


You'll also use Butter Extract. DO NOT PANIC! Yes, it's yellow. No, it's not real butter. You'll only use 1 teaspoon per batch of cookies and it adds a LOT of butter flavor. Trust me on this one.


Butter (Texas) Pecan Cut-Outs

Texas pecans (about 3/4 cup halves)
2 1/2 cups unbleached, all-purpose flour
2 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup salted butter, cold and cut into chunks
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon butter extract
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper.

Place the pecans on a cookie sheet and toast in the oven for 5 minutes. Remove to a plate or bowl to cool. Place the pecans in a food processor and process until a fine crumb (but not pecan butter). Measure out 1/2 cup.

Combine the 1/2 cup pecan meal, flour and baking powder, set aside.

Cream the sugar and butter. Add the egg and extracts and mix. Gradually add the flour mixture and beat just until combined, scraping down the bowl, especially the bottom. The dough will be crumbly, so knead it together with your hands as you scoop it out of the bowl for rolling.

Roll on a floured surface to about 1/4" to 3/8" thick, and cut into shapes. Place on parchment lined baking sheets (I recommend freezing the cut out shapes on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before baking) and bake for 10-12 minutes. Let sit a few minutes on the sheet, then transfer to a cooling rack.

Decorate with royal icing. I also used an airbrush for the holly background on the cookies.

To see more of the Food Blogger Cookie Swap cookies, check out the #fbcookieswap hashtag on Instagram. For more info on the swap, see the Food Blogger Cookie Swap website. Learn more about Cookies 4 Kids Cancer here.

Yay, cookies!