Peach Cobbler With Crumble Topping (Buttery Streusel)

What Makes This Recipe Work

Cold butter cut into flour, brown sugar, and cinnamon melts into crisp shards as it bakes, so the top stays crunchy while the peaches below cook into a thick, glossy layer. Leaving the streusel in uneven clumps creates the craggy texture that makes a crumb topping so satisfying.

Ingredients for Peach Cobbler With Crumble Topping (Buttery Streusel)

• 2 1/2 lb (1.1 kg) fresh peaches, peeled and sliced (about 6 cups), or 2 lb (900 g) frozen sliced peaches
• 1/2 cup (100 g) granulated sugar
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 1 tbsp cornstarch, or 2 tbsp if using frozen peaches
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
• 1/4 tsp fine salt
• 1 cup (120 g) all-purpose flour, for the topping
• 3/4 cup (150 g) packed light brown sugar
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon, for the topping
• 1/2 cup (113 g) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
• 1/2 cup (50 g) chopped pecans or old-fashioned rolled oats, optional

How to Make Peach Cobbler With Crumble Topping (Buttery Streusel)

1. Heat the oven to 375°F and butter a 9-inch square baking dish or a 2-quart baking dish.
2. In a large bowl, toss the peaches with the granulated sugar, lemon juice, cornstarch, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt until evenly coated, then spread them in the prepared dish.
3. For the topping, whisk the flour, brown sugar, 1/2 tsp cinnamon, and a pinch of salt in a bowl.
4. Add the cold butter cubes and work them in with your fingertips or a pastry cutter until clumps form, ranging from pea size to walnut size, with some sandy bits left over. Stir in the pecans or oats if using.
5. Scatter the streusel evenly over the peaches, pressing it down lightly so it adheres in places but stays rough on top.
6. Set the dish on a rimmed sheet pan and bake 40 to 45 minutes, until the topping is deep golden and the peach juices bubble thickly around the edges. Tent foil over the top if the crumbs brown faster than the filling bubbles.
7. Cool the cobbler 15 to 20 minutes so the juices thicken, then serve warm with vanilla ice cream or cold cream.

Tips for the Best Peach Cobbler With Crumble Topping (Buttery Streusel)

• Keep the butter cold until it hits the flour; warm butter blends into paste instead of forming crisp clumps.
• Stop mixing the streusel as soon as the clumps form; overworking makes it dense.
• Judge doneness by the bubbling fruit as much as the color of the crumbs.

Variations and Substitutions

• For the traditional biscuit lid, make the classic Peach Cobbler recipe instead of a crumb topping.
• Use drained canned fruit with the Peach Cobbler With Canned Peaches recipe if peaches are out of season.
• For a shortcut topping, try the Peach Cobbler With Cake Mix recipe, a three-ingredient dump cake.
• Swap in fresh fruit with the Fresh Peach Cobbler recipe, which peels and macerates the peaches first.

How to Store and Reheat

• Cover and refrigerate leftover cobbler up to 4 days. Re-warm in a 350°F oven for 12 to 15 minutes to crisp the topping again.
• Freeze baked cobbler up to 2 months, or assemble it unbaked with the topping and freeze; bake from frozen, adding 10 to 15 minutes.

Peach Cobbler With Crumble Topping (Buttery Streusel) FAQ