How To Make a Fruit Cobbler by Heart (2024)

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Meghan Splawn

Meghan Splawn

Meghan was the Food Editor for Kitchn's Skills content. She's a master of everyday baking, family cooking, and harnessing good light. Meghan approaches food with an eye towards budgeting — both time and money — and having fun. Meghan has a baking and pastry degree, and spent the first 10 years of her career as part of Alton Brown's culinary team. She co-hosts a weekly podcast about food and family called Didn't I Just Feed You.

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updated Jun 14, 2023

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How To Make a Fruit Cobbler by Heart (1)

A step-by-step recipe for making cobbler with any kind of fruit. This particular cobbler topping might just be the easiest I've ever made.

Serves6

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How To Make a Fruit Cobbler by Heart (2)

Folks spend a great deal of time waxing poetically about the virtues of pie, but I’m going to make a strong declaration: Fruit cobbler beats the pants off of fruit pie. For starters, there’s no messing around with cold butter and pie dough in a hot kitchen in the middle of summer. Cobbler doesn’t have a bottom crust destined for sogginess, and if the juices of a cobbler run a little thin, it actually makes the dessert better. Cobbler delivers a crisp and tender top crust with jammy fruit filling underneath, it begs for a scoop of ice cream, and can go from craving to warm on the table in about an hour.

As much as I have strong opinions about cobbler versus pie, I also have very high standards for what makes a good cobbler topping. Regional variations abound. For instance, there’s a Southern-style recipe with a sugar cookie / pie dough-like topping, and others closer to a dumpling than a pastry, but the very best topping for cobbler is an easy sweet cream biscuit. A cream biscuit topping bakes up with crisp crust that breaks under the pressure of your fork, yielding to a tender, cake-like biscuit that greedily soaks up rich fruit juices.

Ready for the best cobbler of your life — one that you can memorize and bake anywhere, anytime? Here’s how to do it.

What Is Fruit Cobbler?

Cobblers, crisps, and crumbles are often grouped together into a family of recipes I like to call casual fruit desserts. They share a similar philosophy and can also have the exact same fruit filling, but their toppings are distinctly different. Cobbler topping should be a thick, dense pastry — usually a sweet cream biscuit — with a lightly sweetened fruit filling below.

Here are the four steps that every cobbler requires.

  • Make a fruit filling — from any fruit.
  • Make a sweet cream biscuit cobbler topping.
  • Bake the fruit cobbler until bubbly.
  • Serve the cobbler to joy and delight.

Making the Fruit Filling

Cobbler can be made from any fruit, fresh or frozen, and any combination of fruit. As a general rule you’ll want about 6 cups of chopped fruit, roughly 1 1/2 pounds for most baking dishes. Make sure frozen fruit is thawed completely before baking. You can bake a cobbler with just fruit as the filling, but a little sugar and cornstarch tossed with the fruit before baking will work together to create a lush sauce from the fruit’s juices. This is the thing that turns a good cobbler into a knock-out dessert.

How to Make Cobbler Topping

How To Make Cream Biscuits

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A cream biscuit is the easiest and fastest path from craving to cobbler satisfaction. These easy-to-make biscuits bake up crisp on top and light and fluffy underneath — an ideal contrast to the soft, luscious fruit filling.

Cream biscuits are a quick bread made tender with full-fat cream, rather than butter and buttermilk. They only require flour, a little sugar, baking powder, and heavy cream.

Baking and Serving Cobbler

Cobbler always takes a bit longer to bake than most people think. It’s important that the fruit filling comes to a full boil in the oven to ensure that the sauce is properly thickened. If you’re fearful of undercooked biscuits, go ahead and take a temperature of the biscuits in the middle of the dish — like all breads they should reach 200°F when fully baked.

Cobblers always bake up a little looser and more juicy than pie, so spoon that valuable liquid over the biscuit topping or a scoop of ice cream and keep in mind the juices will thicken as the cobbler cools. Serving warm cobbler with ice cream is a given, but it’s just as enjoyable when served cool the next day with a dollop of plain yogurt. It’s just the sort of breakfast that will make you a hero of any lazy summer morning.

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Preheat the oven to 375°F. Place a rack in the middle of the oven. Butter the baking dish. (Image credit: Christine Han)

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How To Make a Fruit Cobbler by Heart

A step-by-step recipe for making cobbler with any kind of fruit. This particular cobbler topping might just be the easiest I've ever made.

Serves 6

Nutritional Info

Ingredients

For the fruit filling:

  • 4 to 7 cups

    sliced fruit

  • 1/2 to 1 cup

    granulated sugar or packed brown sugar (optional)

  • 1 tablespoon

    freshly squeezed lemon juice (optional)

  • 2 tablespoons

    cornstarch (optional)

  • 1 to 2 teaspoons

    ground spice, such as cinnamon (optional)

For the cobbler topping:

  • 1 1/2 cups

    all-purpose flour

  • 3 tablespoons

    granulated sugar

  • 1 1/2 teaspoons

    baking powder

  • 3/4 teaspoon

    kosher salt

  • 1 1/2 cups

    heavy cream

For topping: (optional)

  • 1 tablespoon

    heavy cream

  • 1 teaspoon

    demerara sugar

Equipment

  • 8x8-inch baking pan, 9x9-inch baking pan, or 9-inch pie plate

  • Mixing bowls

  • Measuring spoons and cups

  • Baking sheet or aluminum foil, to catch drips

Instructions

  1. Heat the oven to 375°F. Arrange a rack in the middle of the oven and heat to 375°F. Coat a 8 or 9-inch square baking dish, or 9-inch pie plate, with butter; set aside.

  2. Prepare the fruit. Prepare the fruit as necessary — wash, peel, stem, seed, slice, and so on. Give it a taste and mix in some sugar or lemon juice as needed. If your fruit is juicy or you'd like a more firmly set cobbler, mix in some cornstarch. Mix in spice, if desired.

  3. Transfer the fruit to the baking dish. Transfer the fruit mixture to the baking dish —it should fill the dish halfway to three-quarters full, leaving a good inch or so of extra space for the cobbler topping.

  4. Mix the dry ingredients for the cobbler topping. Mix the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt together in a large bowl.

  5. Add the cream to the dry ingredients. Pour in the 1 1/2 cups cream. Stir until just combined; the dough will be quite wet.

  6. Scoop the cobbler mixture onto the fruit mixture. Using either a small ice cream scoop or a tablespoon, scoop 2-tablespoon portions of the cobbler dough onto the fruit.

  7. Bake for 45 to 55 minutes. Brush the cobbler dough with the 1 tablespoon cream and sprinkle with the demerara sugar. Place the cobbler on a rimmed baking sheet to catch drips, or place aluminum foil beneath it in the oven. Bake until the topping is turning golden brown around the edges and the fruit filling is bubbling, 45 to 55 minutes.

  8. Cool the cobbler and serve. Let the cobbler cool for at least a few minutes so it doesn't burn your mouth! The cobbler can also be served room temperature or the next day.

Recipe Notes

Storage: Leftover cobbler can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.

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Dessert

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How To Make a Fruit Cobbler by Heart (2024)

FAQs

What is the difference between a fruit cobbler and a fruit crisp? ›

Exterior: Cobblers are denser due to the biscuit dough topping and base, while crisps use oats and a streusel topping, making them lighter. Cobbler toppings are also likely not a full layer like a crisp or pie. Instead, the biscuit dough dollops often sit on top as individual biscuits.

What's the difference between a fruit pie and a fruit cobbler? ›

Cobbler is sometimes described as a kind of fruit pie, but strictly speaking, the two are different. Pies are made from pastry, rather than biscuit batter, and they are fully encased, with a crust at the top and the bottom, while cobblers typically only have a topping.

How do you thicken fruit filling for cobbler? ›

Try this: Add one to two tablespoons of cornstarch to the filling. Partnered with a little sugar and lemon juice, this will make a lush sauce for the fruit. When baking, be sure the filling is bubbling-hot to ensure the cornstarch is cooked enough to thicken.

What is fruit cobbler made of? ›

Cobbler is a dessert consisting of a fruit (or less commonly savory) filling poured into a large baking dish and covered with a batter, biscuit, or dumpling (in the United Kingdom) before being baked.

Are frozen or canned peaches better for cobbler? ›

If using frozen peaches, thaw, chop, and blot them dry before using. Readers have raved about this dessert using frozen, thawed peaches. Canned peaches are not ideal because they're already too soft and mushy.

What is cobbler topping made of? ›

The method for the topping goes like this: Combine equal parts flour and sugar, and add enough melted butter to make a dough. This makes a very sweet cobbler with a topping somewhere between a sugar cookie and pie crust. Let me repeat that: a topping that is equal parts cookie and pie crust.

How do you know when a cobbler is done? ›

Use your probe thermometer! According to Kitchn, when the center of your cobbler reaches 200 degrees F, it's done. Since you have a tool that ensures your cobbler is cooked through, there's one more tip that will make your cobbler experience even better. Let your cobbler rest for a bit before serving.

What makes a cobbler a cobbler? ›

Cobbler is usually topped with batter or biscuits in lieu of crust. Cobbler's name comes from its sometimes cobbled texture, which is a result of spooning or dropping the topping over the fruit rather than distributing it equally. This way, the filling can peek through.

Is cobbler filling the same as pie filling? ›

What makes a cobbler different from a pie? The biggest difference between a cobbler and a pie is the placement of the dough. Pies have, at a minimum, a bottom crust with the fruit placed on top, while a cobbler has the fruit on the bottom and a dolloped dough on top instead.

Why did my cobbler turn out like cake? ›

If you use enough batter to completely cover the fruit, you'll end up with a cobbler that's far too bready, more like an upside-down cake.

Is cornstarch or flour better for fruit pies? ›

The three most common starches used to thicken the fruit juices of a pie are flour, tapioca, and cornstarch. I prefer cornstarch because I find that it actually enhances the flavor of the fruit.

Why do you put cornstarch in a cobbler? ›

Making the Fruit Filling

You can bake a cobbler with just fruit as the filling, but a little sugar and cornstarch tossed with the fruit before baking will work together to create a lush sauce from the fruit's juices. This is the thing that turns a good cobbler into a knock-out dessert.

Do you serve cobbler hot or cold? ›

not really sure what a cobbler is (and too lazy to google) but I *think* it's some sort of fruit pie or crumble type thing.... both of which can be eaten hot, cold, room temp, so I'd say yes it can be and tell your co-workers who want it warm to go stuff themselves and eat it room temp.

Is apple crisp and apple cobbler the same thing? ›

Cobbler: A fruit dessert made with a top crust of pie dough or biscuit dough but no bottom crust. Crisp/crumble: In Alberta, the terms are mostly interchangeable. Both refer to fruit desserts similar to cobbler but made with a brown sugar streusel topping sometimes containing old-fashioned rolled oats.

Will cobbler thicken as it cools? ›

We know, it's hard to resist slicing into your peach creation the minute it comes out of the oven. Again, patience. You need to let the cobbler cool and let the syrup thicken. It'll be worth the wait.

Is apple crisp and cobbler the same thing? ›

Cobbler: A fruit dessert made with a top crust of pie dough or biscuit dough but no bottom crust. Crisp/crumble: In Alberta, the terms are mostly interchangeable. Both refer to fruit desserts similar to cobbler but made with a brown sugar streusel topping sometimes containing old-fashioned rolled oats.

What is the difference between a peach cobbler and a peach crisp? ›

Peach crisp and peach cobbler both showcase peaches, but they have different toppings. Peach crisp includes a buttery streusel-like oat crumb topping, while peach cobbler typically has a thicker, more substantial biscuit topping. Both are easier than pie!

What is fruit crisp made of? ›

Canned apple or peach pie filling, crumbly cinnamon oat topping, crunchy pecans and tangy dried cranberries combine to create a mouthwatering Fruit Crisp that's perfect for potlucks, family gatherings and more!

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