Southern Fresh Peach Skillet Pie

When peach season hits, this is the pie to make.

Forget the fussy rolling pin and pie plate. This skillet pie starts with a soft biscuit dough patted right into a heavy iron skillet, then gets loaded with sliced fresh peaches, sprinkled with cinnamon sugar, and dotted with butter.

The dough hangs over the edges and folds in toward the center, leaving a gap where the peaches peek through and caramelize in the heat.

Twenty-five minutes later you’ve got bubbling fruit, a golden crust, and an aroma that’ll pull everyone into the kitchen.

A scoop of vanilla ice cream melting over the top is not optional. It’s required.

Chef Tips

• Use a heavy cast iron skillet. It holds heat evenly and gives the bottom crust a gorgeous golden-brown sear.
• Pat the dough thin, about a quarter inch. Too thick and it won’t cook through in the center before the peaches start to burn.
• Use ripe, juicy peaches at peak season. Out-of-season peaches are mealy and won’t release enough juice to create that bubbling sauce.
• Cut the shortening into the flour with a pastry blender until it looks like coarse cornmeal. This gives you flaky layers instead of a dense, tough crust.