Gluten free peach cobbler is one of summer's simple pleasures. Packed with lightly spiced fresh fruit and topped with an easy gluten free pastry dough, no one can say no to this family favorite!
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What makes this gluten free peach cobbler recipe special
The freshest peaches of the year are fragrant, crisp-tender, and juicy. They're so sweet, they taste like dessert right off the tree. But since not all peaches are perfect, and sometimes they're not even available, this gluten free peach cobbler recipe will bring you the best tastes of summer any time at all.
Making a peach cobbler isn't much more work than splitting a summer peach, brushing with butter, and grilling to perfection. The simple filling is designed to let your peaches shine, and get to that perfect fork-tender texture without burning the topping. If your peaches are really fresh, you can even use a bit less granulated sugar than the recipe calls for.
The biscuit topping can easily be prepared ahead of time and stored in the refrigerator for at least 5 days (in the freezer for longer). Using a single layer of biscuit dough topping simplifies the whole recipe, eliminating the need to cut out biscuit rounds, and ensures that the filling and the topping are baked and ready to enjoy at the same time.
Celebrating warm weather with fresh peaches
Stone fruits are one of summer's best offerings, coming as they do but one season a year. You may be able to get serviceable grapes and bananas year round, but for stone fruits… we must wait. And I think we can all agree, they're worth it.
But if you're craving gf peach cobbler any time of year, you can still make this recipe delicious with frozen fruit—just scroll down for details!
Key gluten free peach cobbler ingredients
The sweet and perfectly spiced peach filling
- Fresh or frozen peaches – Whether you like yellow or white peaches, bring them all to this recipe, without peeling them for ease, and flavor. When peaches aren't in season, make use of frozen peach slices, and don't defrost them first!
- Sugar – The sugar in the filling recipe sweetens the peaches, of course, but also cooks long enough to thicken the filling as it bubbles away; if your peaches are extra sweet, you can use less sugar.
- Superfine sweet white rice flour – Also called “glutinous rice flour,” this single ingredient gluten free flour is ideal for thickening heated sauces and gravies; you can use cornstarch in its place, but that tends to leak liquid as the filling cools.
- Salt – To enhance and balance all that summer sweetness, and draw flavor out of those beautiful peaches.
- Cinnamon and nutmeg – These warm, woodsy spices complement the bright, deep summer flavor of peaches; if you use nutmeg, be sure it's freshly grated on a microplane grater or just leave it out without worry.
- Almond or vanilla extract – Vanilla extract will enhance the peach and cinnamon flavors; almond extract will add that sweet almond flavor.
- Maple butter – A touch of butter, melted and mixed with a bit of maple syrup caramelizes on top of the biscuit dough, giving it extra sweetness, flavor, and beautiful color.
The fluffy and buttery peach cobbler topping
- Gluten free flour – Choose your gf flour blend wisely, according to our all purpose gluten free flour blend guide, as they're not all created equal! Try using Nicole's Best multipurpose gluten free flour for the ideal results. I like Better Batter's classic blend always works, too, and Cup4Cup works great in pastry, too.
- Cornstarch – Cornstarch added to Better Batter lightens it just enough to make the flakiest pastry; if you're using Cup4Cup or Nicole's Best, replace the cornstarch (by weight) with more Cup4Cup or Nicole's Best (whichever you're using), as each has cornstarch as a significant ingredient.
- Baking powder and baking soda – A blend of baking powder and baking soda give your biscuit dough plenty of lift.
- Salt – To brighten and enhance the flavors
- Sugar – Since this is a sweet application, and plain pastry has very simple flavors, a touch of sugar helps marry the pastry taste with the sweet filling
- Butter – Cold butter is distributed throughout the pastry dough, and it puffs up and out in the oven for light, flaky pastry
- Buttermilk – For the most tender biscuit dough, the flavor and acidity of buttermilk are wonderful. If you don't have buttermilk but you can have dairy, use half plain whole milk yogurt and half whole milk, by volume, in its place. Plain kefir also works really well as a buttermilk substitute!
Tips for making the best gluten free peach cobbler
Accurately measuring the right gluten free flour blends
If a gluten free recipe doesn't turn out as expected, my first question is always about which gluten free flour blend you chose, since blends like King Arthur Flour and Bob's Red Mill are unbalanced, and often have gritty rice flour in them. You must use one of my recommended gf blends, measured by weight, not volume, for my recipes to turn out, no matter how much we all wish that weren't true!
Choose ripe, juicy peaches
If you're using fresh peaches, try to pick ones that are ripe, but still firm enough to cut with a sharp knife. If they're under ripe, they'll be overly firm, not fragrant, and not as sweet (even sometimes tart). If they're over ripe, they'll be too mushy for the oven. If your peaches are a bit bruised, just cut out the mushy, brown parts and use the rest.
Don't peel your fresh peaches!
Not only is there no need to peel your fresh peaches, I'd even argue against it entirely. Leaving the thin, tender skins on your fruit before baking means that no one will ever mistake your cobbler filling for anything other than freshly made.
Leaving the skins on also doesn't negatively affect the taste or texture at all. Plus, it makes the simple task of preparing the filling that much easier.
Soften the peaches in the filling in the oven alone, first
Cooking the peaches in the pan alone a bit before putting the topping in place and completing the baking ensures that the fruit is entirely soft, tender and deliciously fragrant and flavorful in plenty of time for the topping to turn just golden brown. No need to overbake at all.
Serving your gluten free cobbler
My favorite way to serve cobbler of all sorts is with a big scoop of a favorite vanilla ice cream (for me, that's marshmallow ice cream). Of course, you can always add a dollop or a spray of lightly sweetened whipped cream.
Allow your cobbler to cool at least a bit before serving, but this gf peach cobbler is best served the same day, as the topping may get soggy if it sits for too long on top of the filling.
Storing leftover gf peach cobbler
This cobbler is best served soon after it's baked, but that doesn't mean you should get rid of any leftovers if you're lucky enough to have them! Cover and store completely cooled leftover cobbler in the refrigerator, and refresh in a 300°F oven or toaster oven until the filling is bubbling, and the topping is refreshed.
Gluten free peach cobbler ingredients & substitution suggestions
Gluten free, dairy free peach cobbler
To make this recipe dairy free, you'll need to replace the buttermilk and butter in the topping recipe, and the butter mixed with maple syrup and brushed on top. To replace the butter everywhere I recommend using Melt or Miyoko's Kitchen brand vegan butter.
To replace buttermilk with a nondairy substitute, try using half (by volume, 3 fluid ounces) of your favorite unsweetened nondairy milk and half (by volume, 3 ounces) plain nondairy yogurt. It will mimic the texture and taste of buttermilk perfectly!
Vegan, gluten free peach cobbler
To make a vegan version of this recipe, you'll need to use the dairy free substitutes above, and be sure you're using a vegan granulated sugar, that's not made using bone char. Granulated sucanat should work well here.
Gluten free, sugar free peach cobbler
If you'd like to eliminate the sugars entirely in this recipe, try using Lankato brand monkfruit granulated sugar alternative in place of the granulated sugar. You can simply eliminate the maple syrup from the brushed maple butter mixture on the topping.
Cornstarch substitute
To lighten your all purpose gluten free flour blend and avoid corn, you can replace the cornstarch in the biscuit topping with arrowroot.
Superfine sweet white rice flour substitute
Instead of the glutinous rice flour in the filling, you can use tapioca starch/flour or our gum-free gluten free flour blend as a thickener. I don't recommend using cornstarch, as it leaks liquid as it cools, but it will work as long as the filling stays warm.
Fresh peaches vs. frozen peaches vs. canned peaches
To use frozen peaches, don't defrost them first, or they'll be limp and overcooked once the topping is ready! Just toss them with the filling ingredients, and drain off some liquid halfway through baking, and you'll have the perfect texture at the end! I wouldn't recommend using canned peaches at all, since they're fully cooked and will be mushy after baking.
FAQs
A cobbler has a pastry topping (sometimes a bumpy topping, like a cobblestone street), and a crisp (like our gluten free peach crisp!) has a smaller, crumbly topping, often with oats, that gets super crispy as the filling bakes.
Yes! Peaches, like all fresh, unspoiled fruits, are safely gluten free. They're only unsafe on a gluten free diet if they've had gluten ingredients added to them.
Yes! Don't defrost your frozen peaches, but do drain off about half the liquid from the filling in the middle of baking for a filling with the perfect texture.
No, I don't recommend using canned peaches and baking them with the cobbler topping, as they're likely to turn to mush. You want peaches that are fork tender right out of the oven!
No, you can't make the biscuit topping with almond flour in place of all purpose gluten free flour. Almond flour only works in recipes developed to be made with it.
The biscuit topping can easily be prepared ahead of time and stored in the refrigerator for at least 5 days (and in the freezer for longer). Place it on top of the prepared filling and bake as directed, adding a few minutes to the baking time as necessary to brown the crust.
Bake until the peaches are fork-tender, the filling is bubbling and thickened, and the topping is fully browned on top, all over. If you're unsure if you should keep baking, try lowering the oven temperature to 350°F or 325°F, and bake for another 10 minutes. You're unlikely to overbake this peach cobbler.
A pie has a bottom crust, but a cobbler only has the top one!
Did you use frozen peaches, and not drain off the liquid? Was your biscuit topping not cold enough, so the butter leaked out during baking? Or maybe you didn't add superfine sweet white rice flour to your filling? Altering or eliminating ingredients will ruin the recipe.
I don't refrigerate prepared gf peach cobbler unless I'm going to be storing leftovers for more than a few hours. I find that this dish stays fresh at cool room temperature for at least 4 hours.
How to make gluten free peach cobbler with frozen fruit
Frozen fruit is picked at the peak of freshness, so it's often the best fruit for baking—especially when you're cooking the fruit until it's tender. When you use frozen peaches, be sure they're in big pieces, which usually means peach slices. Chunks are great, too, but only if they're large chunks.
Skip the step that calls for baking the filling separately, before adding the pastry topping, since frozen peaches have already been softened by blanching. You'll need to bake your peach cobbler for longer, though, and drain the liquid about halfway through baking since frozen fruit has a lot of moisture.
How to make gluten free peach cobbler, with fresh or frozen fruit
Gluten Free Peach Cobbler
Ingredients
For the pastry topping
- 1 ⅓ cups (187 g) all purpose gluten free flour blend (I used Better Batter; click thru for details on appropriate blends), plus more for sprinkling
- ½ teaspoon xanthan gum omit if your blend already contains it
- 3 tablespoons (27 g) cornstarch
- 2 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- ⅛ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ cup (50 g) granulated sugar
- 6 tablespoons (84 g) unsalted butter chilled and grated on a box grater
- ¾ cup (6 fluid ounces) buttermilk chilled
For the peaches
- 8 (2 pounds) pitted ripe fresh peaches cut into 3/4-inch cubes (See Recipe Notes for using frozen fruit)
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons (18 g) superfine sweet white rice flour also called glutinous rice flour
- ⅛ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ⅛ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg optional
- 1 teaspoon pure almond extract or 1 1/2 teapsoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon (14 g) unsalted butter melted
- 1 tablespoon (21 g) pure maple syrup
- Coarse sugar, for sprinkling optional
For serving
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 375°F. Grease an 8-inch square baking dish lightly and set it aside. This is one of the very few instances where a glass baking dish works quite well, but you can use any square baking dish you like.
Make the biscuit dough.
- In a large bowl, place the flour, xanthan gum, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, salt and sugar, and whisk to combine well. Add the grated butter, and toss to combine, breaking up any clumps of butter.
- Create a well in the center of the dry ingredients, add the buttermilk and mix until just combined. The mixture should be relatively soft for biscuit dough.
- Turn the dough out onto a large piece of plastic wrap, press together and wrap tightly. Refrigerate the biscuit dough for at least 10 minutes and up to 5 days.
- Once the dough has chilled, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface, sprinkle lightly with more flour and roll out into an approximately 8-inch rectangle.
- Cut out a 1/2-inch square or other shape in the very center of the dough (to allow steam to escape during baking), place it on a flat surface and then in the freezer to chill while you prepare the filling.
Prepare the peach filling.
- In a large bowl, place the peaches, sugar, rice flour, salt, cinnamon, optional nutmeg and almond (or vanilla) extract, and toss to combine completely.
- Transfer the peaches to the prepared baking dish and spread into an even layer.
- Place the baking dish on a piece of foil, then on a rimmed baking sheet and place the baking sheet in the oven.
- Bake for 15 minutes to begin to soften the peaches. (If using frozen fruit, you'll skip this step; see Recipe Notes for details.)
Top the peaches and bake.
- Remove the baking dish from the oven and place on a heatproof surface.
- Remove the pastry topping from the freezer and place it on top of the peaches in the baking dish. Gather inside the pan any edges that extend over the sides.
- In a small bowl, mix the tablespoon of melted butter and tablespoon of maple syrup together, and brush the top evenly with the melted maple syrup and butter mixture. Sprinkle with the optional coarse sugar.
- Return the dish to the oven and bake until the fruit is fork tender, the filling bubbling, and the topping golden brown and fragrant (about 30 minutes).
- The dish is done when the filling is bubbling and the top is golden brown all over. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 15 minutes before serving with vanilla ice cream (of course).
Notes
Nutrition
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Hi, I’m Nicole. I create gluten free recipes that really work and taste as good as you remember. No more making separate meals when someone is GF, or buying packaged foods that aren’t good enough to justify the price. At Gluten Free on a Shoestring, “good, for gluten free” just isn’t good enough! Come visit my bio!
Ali Reaves says
One of the best peach cobblers I’ve had! The pastry is buttery and the peach filling is scrumptious. It’s also easy to make as you can do the pastry up to 5-days in advance and assemble the rest the day you bake it.
Nicole Hunn says
So glad you loved it, Ali! Making it in stages does make it so easy. Thank you for sharing your experience.
Christine says
I want to try this Peach Cobbler recipe but couldn’t find the dairy free options. I use Vitalite instead of butter but what can I use instead of buttermilk please?
Nicole Hunn says
Please see the text of the post under the heading “luten free peach cobbler substitutions” and the subheading “Gluten free, dairy free peach cobbler”
Terry Osborn says
Turned out exceptionally well
Delicious
Liz says
Interesting – in Australia, what we call fruit cobbler is made with cake batter dolloped over (usually stewed or canned) fruit and baked until set. :-) Yours looks yummy, too!
Tracy Bosnian says
Could you use frozen cherries?
Nicole Hunn says
You might be able to use frozen cherries in place of peaches here, Tracy, but you’ll have to experiment since I haven’t tried that myself. Be sure to follow the alternative instructions for baking with frozen peaches, whatever frozen fruit you decide to use.
Bev Power says
I love your GF recipes. I would love to make my own flour and wonder if you have a book out that has your recipes but also have the different GF flour blend recipes and not just the % amounts, not real good at figuring the %’s out.
Nicole Hunn says
Yes, I have 5 traditionally-published cookbooks, Bev. You can find them wherever books are sold. For the flour blends, I explain on the all purpose gluten free flour blends page how to use the percentages, and do the math for 1 cup (140 grams) of mock Better Batter.
Stephanie says
I made your recipe just as written with the exception that instead of freezing the biscuit topper, I rolled the chilled dough out on the plastic it had been wrapped in, cut out the center hole and then just used the plastic wrap to flip it onto the peach filling. It worked really well. Thanks fir another really tasty recipe!
Nicole Hunn says
So glad you had a good experience, Stephanie. And cheers to finding your own way to get the dough in place, chilled. ;)
Joanne says
I have an intolerance to tapioca starch and tapioca flour. Most recipes require gluten free all purpose flour blend. Any recipes for a great all purpose flour I can create on my own, sans the tapioca? Thanks.
Nicole Hunn says
I’m afraid tapioca starch is a truly unique gluten free flour that has no equivalent replacement, Joanne. A tapioca intolerance is really hard! Sometimes, you can use superfine sweet white rice flour in its place, but I don’t think that would work in large quantities in an all purpose blend. I wish I had a better answer.
Joanne says
Thanks for your response. I love your recipes, but I’m having issues not being able to include tapioca. So I’m struggling to find an answer for texture and taste. Will keep trying!
Nancy says
Is there a way to use frozen peaches?
Angela Horn says
I do absolutely love peach cobbler!!
Margaret says
Yum! Peach cobbler is a comfort food. I have never thought about making it with the skins. But I can see how it would be so tasty! Thank you for suggesting it! This recipe will definitely be on my menu for July 4th!
Nicole Hunn says
Perfect for the 4th, Margaret!
Jaimie Hutman Chapman says
Hi!! Love your recipes-quick question. I know pastry flour can be tricky and I’m allergic to dairy. Could I use coconut or almond milk in place of buttermilk?
Nicole Hunn says
Hi, Jaimie, You can try replacing the butter with nonhydrogenated vegetable shortening (I use Spectrum brand), and try canned light coconut milk with about a teaspoon of vinegar in place of buttermilk. You’ll have to experiment, though!