My apple cobbler recipe is sweet, gooey, buttery, and crunchy at the same time. Hands down, this apple cobbler recipe is one of the yummiest apple desserts recipes. It's a perfect showcase for those fresh apples on your counter. It's delicious on its own or with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
Apple Cobbler Recipe - How to Make Apple Cobbler
Seriously, who can resist a helping of an old-fashioned apple cobbler dessert? It's gooey and full of crunchy goodness - truly old but gold! It is definitely one of my favorite fresh apple recipes.
What is Apple Cobbler?
What makes something a cobbler? Well, my apple cobbler recipe is like my grandma used to make - a "biscuit" pastry topping on the cooked apples. The pastry is cut into small rounds which are placed onto the fruit in a pretty circle.
Traditional Apple Cobbler Recipe Ingredients
Apple Cobbler Filling
- 8 apples - First thing first, you'll need fresh apples for this old-fashioned apple cobbler recipe. No canned apples; grandma won't approve.
- 2 tablespoon brown sugar - You should know by now that I'm so in love with brown sugar. But in my defense, brown sugar just works so well with the tartness of apples. It gives more flavor depth and a rustic vibe ever so slightly. Sure, if you want to use other types of sugar, such as regular white sugar, honey, or even maple syrup, go ahead!
- ½ tsp cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
Apple Cobbler Topping
What is cobbler crust made of? Read on!
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 ½ tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp salt - and a good pinch of salt to enhance the flavor and balance out the sweetness.
- ¼ cup butter - butter makes everything better, yeah? It'll make your apple cobbler recipe richer and absolutely delicious. You can also opt for any vegetable oil of your choice.
- 2 tablespoon baker's sugar - It's sugar time again. I mean, apple cobbler is a treat, isn't it? You'll want your topping dough to be sweet, but not crazy sweet. I use just 2 tablespoons of baker's (caster) sugar. This results in a cobbler topping with just the perfect amount of sweetness.
- ⅔ cup milk - plain ol' regular whole milk for the dough mixture. But feel free to use any dairy-free types of milk of your choice. Almond or cashew milk can work really well with this recipe.
- Extra milk to glaze - I also reserve a little milk to glaze my apple cobbler dough and to give a nice shine, yum!
Easy Apple Cobbler Recipe Instructions
Follow these step-by-step instructions for my quick apple cobbler with fresh apples:
- Prepare the filling - Peel, core, and slice the apples. In a saucepan, combine the sliced apples, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and ½ cup of water. Lightly stir, and try not to break the apples too much. Cook over medium heat for 10 minutes or until the apples have softened. Remove from heat and set aside.
- Make the dough - Sift flour, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Add the butter, then with your fingertips, rub the butter into the flour until it resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add the sugar, and stir. Make a well in the center and pour in the milk. Using a spoon or spatula, stir the mixture until just combined into a soft dough.
- Cut out the dough - Place the dough onto a lightly floured board. Roll out the dough to ½-inch thick, and cut out 1½-inch rounds.
- Assemble and bake - Place the apple filling in a baking dish or pan and spread evenly. Arrange the dough rounds on top of the filling. Lightly brush the dough with milk. Bake for 30 minutes or until golden brown in a 350°F | 175°C preheated oven.
Apple Cobbler Recipe Easy Add-Ins
- Lemon-scented - Add zing and freshness to your homemade apple cobbler. Mix in the zest of 1 lemon (how to zest a lemon) to the sliced apples while they are cooking on the stove-top.
- Rhubarb - Apple combined with rhubarb is a match made in heaven and is one of my all-time favorites! Chop the edible parts of the rhubarb into 2-inch long pieces and add them to the sliced apples to soften in the brown sugar and spices on the stove-top.
- Walnut and cinnamon apple cobbler– The warmth of the apples, combined with the crunch of the walnuts… they're just so perfect for this delicious apple cinnamon cobbler dessert. Simply add an extra ½ teaspoon of ground cinnamon and ½ cup of chopped walnuts (or any of your favorite types of nuts) to the cooked apples and juices.
- Raisin apple cobbler - I love raisin with baked apples. They give a delicious flavor profile that matches perfectly with the apples and brown sugar. Simply add ½ cup of raisins to the cooked apple mixture.
- Berries - For some extra sweetness and freshness in your recipe apple cobbler, try adding 1 cup of fresh or frozen berries such as raspberries or strawberries to the cooked apples.
- Seeds - Toasted seeds sprinkled on top of the cobbler pastry before baking adds great crunch, texture, and taste. There are many types of seeds, but pumpkin and chia seeds are my favorite go-to's for this recipe.
Apple Cobbler Variations
Apple Crisp Vs Apple Cobbler
Well, an old fashioned apple crisp recipe(sometimes known as apple cobbler crisp) is still within the same family as the apple cobbler recipe. Both are desserts made with fresh apples and pastry. The main difference lies in the pastry dough's texture, or the batter as it is sometimes called. The apple crisp topping usually consists of flour, butter, and sugar like the cobbler, but it also has additional oats for texture.
Apple Crisp Topping Recipe
To make apple crisp, use all-purpose flour, cut the amount by half, and replace it with oats. Mix the flour, oats, butter, milk, sugar, and salt until the mixture resembles coarse sand. Sprinkle on top of the apples, then bake for 40-45 minutes (temperature for apple crisp 350°F | 175°C). Serve warm with vanilla ice cream and a drizzle of caramel sauce. Yum!
Apple Crumble Vs Apple Cobbler
And then there's old fashioned apple crumble. I'd say apple crumble is the twin of apple crisp. Traditionally, apple crumble did not include any oats in the topping. Nowadays, crumble usually contains oats, too, and the names crumble and crisp are used interchangeably.
How to Make Cobbler Crumble
So, to make the best apple crumble, you'll need all-purpose flour, butter, milk, sugar, and salt. Mix until they're crumbly (don't overmix), then sprinkle the crumbles over the top of the apples. Bake at 350°F | 175°C for 40-45 minutes, or until golden brown.
Apple Pie vs Apple Cobbler
Apple pie is actually the ancestor of apple cobbler. So there's not much difference in terms of flavor profile and ingredients. The differences are that you make an apple pie with pie dough and that in each apple pie, the apple filling is fully encased in the dough.
Apple Pie
To make apple pie, lay your pie dough in a lightly greased oven-safe dish. Pour your apple filling, then cover with another layer of pie dough. Poke a couple of holes with your knife so the steam can escape. Bake at a 350°F | 175°C for 45 minutes, or until golden brown.
Southern Apple Cobbler Recipe
Ah, southern apple cobbler. Warm, with just a little bit of spiciness from the cinnamon, it's truly one of my favorites!
Add an extra ½ teaspoon of ground cinnamon to your apple filling mixture. Also, just before baking, sprinkle 2 tablespoons of cinnamon sugar (2 parts baker's sugar and 1 part ground cinnamon) over the top. You can also replace the toppings with an old fashioned apple cobbler with pie crust to make it more authentic. You can either use store-bought pie crust or make your own if you feel like making it from scratch.
Apple Cobbler Recipe Substitutes
Vegan Apple Cobbler Easy
Since the star of the dish is the apple itself, it's pretty easy to tweak this fresh apple cobbler recipe into vegan. Simply replace the butter with vegan butter or any vegetable oil you prefer. I personally like the taste of coconut oil in my apple cobbler, but olive oil or any neutral flavor oil will work just fine. Also, replace the milk with any non-dairy types of milk of your choice. Almond milk and cashew milk are the best substitutes for me, personally. I love the taste of them. But feel free to use soy, oat, or rice milk.
Baked Apple Cobbler Gluten Free
To make a gluten-free apple cobbler recipe is as easy as swapping the all-purpose flour with gluten-free flour at an equal ratio. Just don't forget to use gluten-free flour with a "cup for cup" label, so you don't have to change anything from my original apple cobbler recipe.
Easy Apple Cobbler with Canned Apples
I know that feeling… You're craving apple cobbler, but apples are just not in season yet. Or perhaps you're living in a place where fresh apples are not common? Or simply, you don't want the extra fuss of peeling and cutting up your apples? That's right, it's possible to make apple cobbler using canned apples!
You definitely can make a delicious and easy apple cobbler recipe with canned apples. One thing to be noted, though, canned apples often contain added sugar, so you might want to adjust the amount of sugar you're putting into your filling.
Can I Substitute Peaches in the Apple Cobbler?
Peaches by themselves or even peaches combined with apples also taste great. To make an apple and peach cobbler recipe chop the fresh peaches into pieces and cook them with the same method as the apples in this apple cobbler recipe.
If it isn't the right season for fresh peaches, you can make a peach cobbler recipe with canned peaches.
Can I Use Self-Raising Flour Rather Than All-Purpose Flour?
Self-raising flour is flour with baking powder added to it, which helps to make baked items rise. In this apple dessert recipe, you can substitute the two cups of all-purpose flour and the baking powder with self-raising flour. You can also replace the all-purpose flour with an equal amount of whole wheat flour, spelt flour, or even almond flour.
Best Apple Cobbler Recipe FAQs
Best Apples for Apple Cobbler
My favorite type of apple for this cobbler recipe is a tart apple such as a granny smith apple. Granny smith apples are crisp and refreshing, and the flavor works well for most apple dessert recipes. They also hold their shape during the cooking process. You can also use lots of other apples such as Jonathon, Braeburn, Honeycrisp, Cortland, and Gala.
How to Store Apple Cobbler?
After baking your apple cobbler recipe, let it cool to room temperature. Transfer the cobbler to an air-tight container and place it in the fridge for up to three days. Reheat the cobbler in the oven, or heat it in the microwave for a quick snack.
Can I Freeze Apple Cobbler Recipe?
Yes, definitely! You can freeze just the cooked apples in an air-tight container for up to three months so that they are on-hand and ready to use when you are in a baking mood! Alternatively, bake the whole cobbler and, once cooked and cooled down, transfer it to an air-tight container and freeze. When you are ready to use it, remove it from the freezer and let it defrost in the refrigerator overnight. Then reheat until it is crisp and buttery!
What to Serve with Apple Cobbler
- Custard - Custard tastes great with this apple cobbler recipe. Serve a classic vanilla custard, or experiment with chai-flavored custard, which celebrates the aromas of cinnamon, ginger, cardamom, and cloves.
- Vanilla Ice cream - Ice cream + Warm Apples = PERFECTION. A scoop of vanilla ice cream is a perfect combo to serve with this apple cobbler dessert.
- Cream - Try clotted, thickened, or whipped cream for a creamy contrast to the warm apples.
- Butterscotch sauce - The butterscotch sauce from my sticky date pudding recipe is a decadent accompaniment to this apple cobbler recipe.
Apple Cobbler Recipe
Equipment
- Saucepan 8-inches
- Baking Dish 8-inch x 8-inch
Ingredients
Apple Filling
- 8 apples peeled, cored and sliced
- 2 tablespoon brown sugar
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
Cobbler Topping
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup butter
- 2 tablespoon baker's (caster) sugar
- ⅔ cup milk
- extra milk to glaze
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F | 175°C.
- In a saucepan, combine the sliced apples, brown sugar, cinammon, nutmeg and ½ cup water. Lighly stir and cook over medium heat for 5 to 10 minutes, or until the apples are soft. Remove from heat and set aside.
- In a large bowl, sift in the flour, baking powder and salt.
- Add the butter to the flour mixture and rub it in with your fingertips until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add the sugar, mix.
- Make a well in the center, pour in the milk. Using a spoon or spatula, stir the mixture until a soft dough forms.
- Place the dough onto a lightly floured board. Roll out the dough to ½-inch thick, and cut out 1½-inch rounds.
- Put the apple filling into a baking dish and spread evenly.
- Arrange the dough rounds on top of the filling. Lightly brush the dough with milk.
- Bake for 30 minutes, or until golden brown. Serve warm.
Notes
- When using a spoon or spatula to stir in the milk, do not over-mix. Just stir the mixture until a soft dough forms.
- You can substitute the all-purpose flour and baking powder with two cups of self-raising flour.
Apple Cobbler Recipe - In Conclusion
This apple cobbler recipe is a delicious dessert with prepping time of about 20 minutes… That's exactly why apple cobbler is one of my favorite apple dessert ideas and a reliable Fall cobbler recipe.
gralion
Thank you for sharing!
Millychino
My pleasure! Enjoy baking it! Milly Chino.
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