Deep Dish Peach Pie

We used to call this peach cobbler in my house, but some people would argue with that name so I will call it a deep dish pie instead. The recipe is from my Betty Crocker Cookbook (mine is the 1996 edition). Betty calls it "Peach Pie":

Ingredients--

Pie crust for two-crust pie (I buy mine)

2/3 cup sugar

1/3 cup flour

1/4 tsp cinnamon (can be omitted)

6 cups sliced peaches (can use frozen)

1 tsp lemon juice

1 Tbsp stick butter

When peaches are fresh and cheap abundant, I buy a whole mess of them and make this favorite pie of mine. I used to ask for this instead of birthday cake as a kid!! It takes a little work to prep the peaches but here is the way I do it. Run your knife around the peach using the natural "crack" it has as a guide.

Then spin the two halves apart. This works best with ripe/very ripe peaches and freestone peaches are especially easy. When you are done you will have a very fragrant lovely mess that looks like this:

Now for the pits that are left on one side. I poke my thumb in the spot where the stem would have been and press in and lift the pit out.

Next up is peeling and I just use a paring knife and get a little messy. I am sure there are other methods but this is just they way I like to do it. It's one of those mindless tasks that are therapeutic I guess. Once the peels are removed, chop the peaches up into bite sized pieces and put them in a large bowl and add the lemon juice. In a smaller bowl, combine the sugar, flour and cinnamon.

Pour flour mixture over peaches and stir to combine. Try to resist eating this mix by itself!

Here's where the "Deep Dish" portion comes in. I don't bake this in a pie plate, I use a round casserole that is about 8 1/2 inches wide and 3 inches deep. Lay one pie crust inside (there will be folds of crust in a couple places and those slices are my favorite!) and pour in the peach filling. Dot with chunks of the butter.

Lay the other crust on top and trim to fit. I also push the edges down to meet the other crust to form a seal and poke a few holes in the top. I also like to use the excess crust to make a fun decoration on the top. My boys were coming home after 10 days away which made me happy; can you see the smiley face?

Bake at 425 degrees for 45 minutes or until crust is lightly browned. I like to let it cool and love it even more after a night in the fridge. If you are so inclined, serve it up warm with a scoop of ice cream. Enjoy!