History

Georgia produces some of the country's finest peaches; the state has been called the Peach State since the late 1800s. Pearson Farm in Crawford County and Lane Southern Orchards have run since the 19th century. Peach cobbler became the canonical Georgia dessert at Sunday tables and meat-and-three counters across the state. Mary Mac's Tea Room and Paschal's both serve a version year-round, though peak peaches arrive in July and August.

Common allergens: Gluten, Dairy

Make it at home

Yield Serves 8Hands-on 25 minTotal 1 hr 15 minDifficulty Easy

Ingredients

  • 1kg ripe Georgia peaches (about 8), sliced
  • 150g granulated sugar
  • 2 tbsp lemon juice
  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 30g cornstarch
  • For the cobbler topping: 200g all-purpose flour
  • 100g sugar
  • 1 tbsp baking powder
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 120g cold butter, cubed
  • 180ml buttermilk
  • 1 tbsp turbinado sugar to top

Method

  1. Heat oven to 190C (375F). Combine sliced peaches with sugar, lemon juice, cinnamon, vanilla and cornstarch in a 23cm baking dish.
  2. Make the topping: whisk flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Cut in cold butter with your fingers until pea-sized.
  3. Add buttermilk and stir until just combined. Do not overmix.
  4. Drop spoonfuls of topping over the peaches; do not spread to seal.
  5. Sprinkle with turbinado sugar.
  6. Bake 40 to 45 minutes until topping is golden and fruit bubbles around the edges.
  7. Cool 15 minutes before serving with vanilla ice cream.

Tip from the editors. Freestone peaches are the move; cling peaches fight the knife. Out of season, frozen Georgia peaches from Pearson Farm are the only acceptable substitute.

This is the TableJourney editorial recipe, modelled on the canonical bistro / counter version. The first place to try the dish in its city of origin is below.

Where to eat georgia peach cobbler

Georgia peach cobbler in Atlanta

Mary Mac's Tea Room ★ 4.6

Southern$$midtown

Mary Mac's Tea Room in Atlanta opened 1945 and runs Southern Sunday dinner classics in a four-dining-room compound on Ponce de Leon, with the same recipes through three ownership changes.

Signature: Fried chicken, Pot likker and cornbread, Peach cobbler

Order: Pot likker with a side of cornbread, then fried chicken with three sides.

Tip: Order the pot likker as a starter; it comes free with cornbread. No reservations Monday through Thursday lunch; OpenTable for dinner and weekends.

224 Ponce de Leon Ave NE, Atlanta, GA 30308 Book →

Paschal's ★ 4.7

Soul food$$downtown

Paschal's in Atlanta has served soul food since 1947, when brothers Robert and James Paschal opened on Hunter Street. The civil rights movement met here; SCLC was anchored at the bar.

Signature: Fried chicken, Collard greens, Peach cobbler

Order: Fried chicken plate with collard greens, mac and cheese, candied yams.

Tip: The current Castleberry Hill location since 2002 expanded with a banquet space; the original Hunter Street site is preserved at Clark Atlanta.

180 Northside Dr SW, Atlanta, GA 30313 Book →

Busy Bee Cafe ★ 4.7

Soul food$$downtown

Busy Bee Cafe in Atlanta opened 1947 on MLK Drive and won the James Beard America's Classics Award in 2022 for its decades of soul food service near the AUC campuses.

Signature: Fried chicken, Oxtails, Collard greens

Order: Fried chicken with two sides; the oxtails on lunch special when available.

Tip: Cash and card. Lunch and early dinner only Tuesday to Sunday; line forms before noon weekends.

810 Martin Luther King Jr Dr SW, Atlanta, GA 30314 Book →

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