A delicious mix of fresh berries with a sugar-crusted biscuity topping. Serve mixed berry cobbler warm from the oven with a scoop of ice cream or a good amount of heavy cream poured over. If there are any leftovers, mixed berry cobbler tastes great for breakfast the next day!
Why you'll love this recipe
This is an easy dessert to make, and if you stick with raspberries, blackberries, and blueberries, there’s no chopping, which saves time. Mixed berry cobbler is a delicious dessert and welcome addition to family gatherings, potlucks, and picnics. It’s also simple enough for a weekend night dessert. Or even a weeknight if you have the time.
Mixed berry cobbler tastes great year-round since berries are readily available either fresh or frozen. That said, there’s nothing quite like cobbler made with a bounty of fresh berries. If you’re interested in learning more about the journey of berries at an organic U-pick farm, Anna’s blog post is worth the read.
Ingredients and substitutions
Mixed berries: Use a mixture of fresh raspberries, blackberries, and blueberries.
Frozen berries vs. fresh berries: frozen berries work just as well and are as nutritious as fresh berries. Frozen berries are picked at the peak of ripeness and then quickly frozen in plants that are typically on farms or very close by. So, frozen mixed berries will have just as much flavor, if not more, than fresh berries.
Lemon juice and zest: Wash your lemon before you zest it.
Baking powder: Check the expiration date on your baking powder. If it’s expired, text a neighbor to ask if you can use theirs, or buy a new can before you make the cobbler. If the baking powder is expired, your cobbler topping might not rise as much as expected, which can leave you with a dense topping.
How to make
Step 1. Cut the unsalted butter into ½ inch pieces and set aside.
Step 2. Rinse the berries under cool water, and place them in an 11-inch oval baking dish or about a 6-inch x 10-inch baking dish. Mix the berries with the ⅓ cup granulated sugar, lemon zest, and lemon juice.
Step 3. Whisk the dry ingredients together in a medium bowl and add the cold butter pieces. Using 2 forks, or a pastry blender, or your hands, gently work the cold butter and flour mixture together until it resembles very coarse cornmeal.
Step 4. Whisk together the egg and milk and add the mixture to the butter, and flour mixture. Using a fork, gently stir until the ingredients begin to come together.
Step 5. Turn the mixture onto a clean, lightly floured countertop and knead about 10 times to bring it all together. You know when to stop kneading when the ingredients have come together, and the dough feels smooth.
Step 6. Pull off small pieces of dough, place them on top of the berries, and sprinkle the cobbler topping with the granulated sugar.
Step 7. Place the baking dish on a rimmed baking sheet to catch any berry juice that might bubble out during baking. Place in a preheated 400 F oven.
Serving suggestions
Serve warm or at room temperature with a generous scoop of vanilla ice cream. Or serve with a pitcher of heavy cream so everyone can pour as much or as little heavy cream as they want over their serving.
Expert Tips
Tip #1 Mixed berry cobbler offers an easy opportunity for kids to help in the kitchen: rinsing berries, mixing them with sugar, lemon juice, and zest; mixing the cobbler topping, and adding the cobbler on top of the berries. Kids can also sprinkle sugar on top of the cobbler topping.
Tip #2 If your kids don’t like berries, this recipe is a great way to expose your picky eater to them. It’s easy to eat just the biscuit topping and ice cream if they’re not ready to try berries.
Recipe FAQ
Definitely! (Though you’re not likely to have much leftover!) Once the cobbler is completely cooled, place it in a freezer-safe container. It can be stored frozen for up to 3 months. Thaw it in the refrigerator overnight. You can also thaw cobbler in your microwave by following the manufacturer’s instructions.
To reheat the cobbler, place it in an oven-safe dish and cover it loosely with foil. Place it in a 350F preheated oven for 15-20 minutes or until it’s heated. You can also use a toaster oven or microwave. Follow the manufacturer's instructions for reheating foods.
Yes, you can! Thaw the berries and drain off some of the liquid. Then follow the recipe as you would for fresh berries.
Mixed Berry Cobbler
Ingredients
- 1 pint blueberries
- 1 pint blackberries
- 1 pint raspberries
- ⅓ cup granulated sugar
- Zest of half a lemon
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
Cobbler Topping
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- Pinch of table salt
- ½ cup cold, unsalted butter cut into small cubes
- ⅓ cup milk
- 1 egg
- Plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar for sprinkling on the cobbler topping before it goes in the oven
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 F.
- Cut the unsalted butter into ½ inch pieces and set aside.
- Rinse the berries. Place them in an 11-inch oval baking dish and mix with the ⅓ cup granulated sugar, lemon zest and lemon juice.
- In a medium mixing bowl gently whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.
- Add the butter and using a pastry blender, 2 forks, or your hands and gently work the butter and flour mixture together until it resembles very coarse cornmeal.
- Lightly whisk the egg into the milk and add to the flour-butter mixture. Using a fork, stir until the ingredients begin to come together. The mixture doesn't need to completely come together because you knead it in the next step.
- Turn the topping mixture onto a clean, lightly floured surface and knead about 10 times until it's all come togehter and feels smooth.
- Pull off small pieces of dough and place them on top of the berries. The pieces of dough will be touching each other and you won’t really be able to see the berries if you’re using the smaller size baking dish. Sprinkle with about 2 tablespoons of sugar.
- Sprinkle the cobbler topping with 2 tablespoons of sugar.
- Place the baking dish on a sheet pan and place in the oven. Bake for 30 minutes or until the berry mixture is bubbling around the edges and the cobbler topping has begun to turn golden brown.
- Remove from the oven and let cool for about 10 minutes before serving.
- Top with vanilla ice cream or some heavy cream and enjoy.
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