Peach Pecan Brioche Cobbler with Brown Butter and Custard

Imagine a skillet of golden brioche, sweet ripe peaches and toasted pecans, all soaked in a silky egg custard. This peach pecan brioche cobbler brings together a warm bake and a finish of vanilla ice cream and caramel. Every spoonful has soft custard, crisp edges and bright fruit, and it is ready in under two hours.

This dessert is a true cobbler in the sense that the layers are built directly in the pan, but the brioche makes it closer to a bread pudding.

Cubes of rich brioche are layered with fresh peach slices and chopped pecans, then the whole skillet is bathed in a custard of eggs, milk and sugar. As the bread soaks up the custard, it bakes into something tender in the center and golden at the edges.

Grated cold butter scattered over each layer melts through the bread and adds a deep, nutty richness. The result is a warm dessert with contrasting textures: custard-soaked bread, juicy peaches and crunchy pecans on top. It works as a special weekend dessert or a relaxed dinner-party finish, and it needs only one pan and a few bowls.

Ingredients

Why this recipe works

Soaking the brioche in custard before baking gives the bread time to absorb the eggs, milk and sugar. Because brioche is enriched with butter and eggs, it holds the custard well and turns custardy rather than soggy.

Resting the layers before they go into the oven ensures every cube takes its share of liquid, so the finished cobbler is evenly moist from the bottom of the skillet to the top.

Grating the butter into fine curls instead of cutting it into cubes spreads the fat through the layers more evenly. As the butter melts in the oven, it coats the brioche and the peaches, giving the top a golden, slightly toasted crust. Pecans scattered both in the middle and on top toast in the same heat, adding crunch that contrasts with the soft custard and the juicy peach slices.

Notes and substitutions

Brioche is the foundation of this dish, and it is worth choosing a good loaf with a high butter content. A soft, slightly sweet brioche sandwich loaf works well, and a slightly stale loaf soaks up custard better than a very fresh one. If you cannot find brioche, a thick-sliced challah or a rich egg bread will give a similar result, though the flavor will be a little less buttery.

A 10-inch cast iron skillet is ideal because it holds heat evenly and goes straight from the stovetop to the oven, but any oven-safe skillet or a 9-inch round baking dish will do. Use ripe but firm peaches so the slices keep their shape.

Frozen peach slices work well too, as long as they are thawed and drained before layering. Keep the butter cold until you grate it, and serve the cobbler with vanilla ice cream and warm caramel sauce for a complete dessert.

• unsalted butter: salted butter, reducing any added salt in the custard
• whole milk: half-and-half for a richer custard
• fresh peaches: frozen peach slices, thawed and well drained
• caramel sauce: store-bought butterscotch sauce

Equipment

• 10-inch cast iron skillet
• box grater
• cutting board
• whisk
• mixing bowl
• small pitcher