Apple pecan cobbler with smoked caramel
” Save space at the end of your next BBQ feast for this cast iron cobbler dessert!”
During the colder months your local green grocer won’t have the widest selection of fruit. Fortunately there’s always apples, and you can use them to make this ultimate American comfort food in a cast iron skillet: apple cobbler with smoked caramel! The perfect combination of warm apples, caramel, and crispy toppings will make you loosen your belt a notch or two.
The ingredients:
(4 serves)
Smoked butter (250g / 9 oz):
- 9 oz (250g) butter
- 1½ oz (40 g) wood chips for smoking
Apples:
- 2 lbs (1kg) crisp and sweet apples (ex. Elstar)
- 4 tbsp calvados
- 3 tbsp flour
- pinch of salt
Caramel:
- 7 fl oz (200ml) cream
- 7 oz (200g) sugar
- 3 fl oz (90ml) water
- 4½ oz (100g) smoked butter
Crumble dough:
- 130g flour
- 80g sugar
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ tbsp baking powder
- 50g cold smoked butter
- 100ml buttermilk
- 100g pecan nuts
On the side:
- Vanilla ice cream
Gear:
- Cold smoke generator or egg carton
- BBQ with cover for indirect grilling
- 2 saucepans
- 1 large or 4 small cast iron skillet(s)
- mixing bowl
How to make:
Duration:
Prep: 45 minutes
Cooking: 25 minutes
Start by making the cold smoked butter.
Fill a cold smoke generator or egg carton with wood chips. Cut the butter in small cubes and divide over a plate. Burn the wood chips until they begin to smolder, and place them with the butter in a sealed container. Let the butter absorb smoke for 15 minutes. If necessary, give the butter a good stir and smoke for a few more minutes. The longer you smoke it, the more pronounced the flavours.
Preparing the apple and caramel filling
Now it’s time to prepare your BBQ for indirect grilling. Heat your grill or barbecue to 200 °C (392 °F).
While that’s heating up, peel and core the apples. Cut them into half inch cubes, mix with the calvados, and then set aside.
For the caramel, heat the cream in a saucepan but do not boil. In a different pan on medium heat, mix the sugar and the water and heat until the sugar has dissolved and the liquid begins to brown. Resist the temptation to begin stirring. Turn off the heat once the caramel has turned a beautiful golden brown, and carefully pour in the warm cream (watch the splashback, you don’t want to get hot caramel on exposed skin.) Add the smoked butter and stir until the mixture is smooth and homogenous. Cover the bottom of your skillet(s) with a thin layer of caramel and set the rest aside.
Mixing together in your cast iron skillet
Mix together the soaked apples, salt, and flour and spread the mixture over the caramel in your skillet(s). To make the crumble dough mix the flour, sugar, salt, and baking powder. Cut the cold butter into cubes and mix with the flour. Mix with your hands until the mixture looks and feels like sand. Be quick, you don’t want the heat of your hands to melt the butter. Pour in the buttermilk and stir until you have something in between dough and batter. Divide over the apples; this can be as clean or as messy as you like, exposed apples are fine here and there. Give the pecans a rough chop and divide over the mixture.
Place your cast iron skillet(s) on the BBQ grate, cover and bake for about 25 minutes, until the dough has turned a beautiful golden brown. Serve the hot cobbler with vanilla ice cream and pour over the rest of the caramel.
Looking for more winter bbq inspiration or other cast iron cooking recipes? Check out our Winter BBQ Book or join us for a Winter BBQ Workshop in Delft.
