This super simple mixed berry cobbler is made with frozen berries and has a sweet biscuit like topping. Top with vanilla ice cream for a classic, southern summer dessert!
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Crisp vs Crumble vs Cobbler vs Buckle
So what exactly is a cobbler??
Crisps, crumbles, cobblers, and buckles are all very similar but do technically have a few differences. They're all a variation of baked fruit with some kind of topping.
- Crisp - a light topping made with oats that gets super crisp during baking (hence the name).
- Crumble - typically has a streusel topping that gets more cakey during baking.
- Cobbler - usually has a sweet biscuit topping but can also have a cake like batter poured over top. You can also use pie dough for the topping.
- Buckle - a buckle is more like a type of cake. It has a cake-like batter with a lot of fruit mixed in so it gives a "buckled" appearance.
This is a mixed berry cobbler with a sweet cream biscuit topping, but if you prefer a crisp you could swap out the topping with the one from my cherry crisp recipe!
Ingredient Notes
You just need a handful of simple ingredients to make this frozen berry cobbler!
Berries - If you happen to have an abundance of fresh berries, you can definitely use those! However, I like using frozen mixed berries for this cobbler because they're much cheaper and still taste amazing! Any combination of strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, and raspberries would be delicious.
Lemon Juice - Adding a little lemon juice helps balance the sweetness of the berries, but you can leave it out. If you have fresh lemon, you should also add a few teaspoons of lemon zest!
Fresh Mint - This is optional, but I love adding a little fresh mint to compliment the berries.
Cornstarch - I use cornstarch to help thicken the filling, but you can also substitute flour or clear jel. This is a great guide for making those substitutions!
Heavy Cream - You can't have a cream biscuit topping without the heavy cream! Cream helps keep the biscuits rich and tender!
Sparkling Sugar - If desired, sprinkle some sparkling sugar on top before baking!
The complete list of ingredients and amounts is located in the recipe card below.
How to Make Berry Cobbler
The secret to perfect berry cobbler is pre-cooking the filling before baking. I've found that in some pies and cobblers, you end up with a soupy filling because the filling wasn't able to cook properly first. This is also helpful if you want to prep the cobbler ahead of time! Just cook the filling in advance and refrigerate until you're ready to bake. Then just whip up the biscuit topping right before baking!
Add the frozen berries to a large nonstick pot over medium heat. Add in the sugar, lemon juice, cornstarch, salt, and fresh mint and stir to combine.
Once the fruit begins to break down, reduce the heat to medium-low and cook gently for 10-15 minutes stirring frequently. Once the berries begin to break down and the filling starts to thicken, remove from the heat.
Preheat the oven to 375°F.
In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt.
Cut the cold butter into the dry ingredients by flattening the cubes into disks. You want the butter to remain in relatively large chunks (about quarter sized).
Slowly drizzle the cream over top, combining with a fork as you go. Using a spatula or bowl scraper, fold the dough over onto itself a few times in the bowl until it comes together into a sticky dough.
Pour the mixed berry filling into a baking dish. Then dot the topping all over the berries until they're mostly covered.
Before baking, lightly brush the top of the biscuits with cream and sprinkle with sparkling sugar if desired.
Bake at 375°F for 30-40 minutes until the filling is bubbly and the top is golden brown.
Serve the mixed berry cobbler warm with vanilla ice cream or homemade whipped cream!
Tips for the Best Baked Goods
Use room temperature ingredients! Always make sure ingredients like butter, eggs, milk, yogurt, etc. are at room temperature before baking (unless the recipe indicates otherwise)! This ensures they'll incorporate into the batter more easily and leads to overall better texture. Remove all ingredients from the fridge 30 minutes to an hour before baking for best results.
Measure your flour correctly! It's most accurate to use a kitchen scale, but if you're measuring by volume you want to spoon and level! Fluff up the flour a bit with a spoon, and then spoon flour into the measuring cup. Once it's overflowing, use the back of a knife to level it off. Don't ever pack flour into the measuring cup or you'll end up with way too much! Improperly measured flour can lead to dry, dense baked goods. [Measure cocoa powder the same way!]
Use an oven thermometer! Just because your oven says it's 350, doesn't mean it is! If you oven hasn't been calibrated recently, it can be as much as 30 degrees off, which will negatively affect all baked goods from cakes to macarons! An oven thermometer is the easiest/cheapest way to ensure your oven is always at the proper temperature.
Make sure you baking powder is fresh! Baking powder is important for helping baked goods rise properly, but it has a relatively short shelf life once opened, so it's one of the few items I never buy in bulk! To test if your baking powder is still fresh, add a small amount to boiling water. If it bubbles it's still good to use, but if not it's time to toss it!
Cobbler Serving Tips
I usually use a medium sized ceramic baking dish to serve this mixed berry cobbler, but you could also use a pie dish, cast iron pan, or oven-safe skillet!
If you want to make a bunch of cobbler, double the recipe and use a 9x13 inch baking dish!
Recipe FAQ's
This mixed berry cobbler is best served warm with either vanilla ice cream or homemade whipped cream!
This mixed berry cobbler is best eaten the same day but will keep covered in the fridge for up to 3 days. You can reheat in the microwave or oven if desired.
Yes! In fact, I prefer frozen berries because they're so much cheaper but just as delicious in this cobbler.
Tips for Success!
For best results I always recommend using weight measurements (especially when baking) because it's the most accurate. Kitchen scales are super affordable and also reduce the number of dishes you have to do! However, all my recipes also include US customary measurements for convince. Use this chart to convert measurements for common ingredients!
Substitutions: In all my recipes, I've included substitutions that I know will work, but I cannot guarantee results if you substitute ingredients that I have not recommended. [For example, granulated sugar and honey are indeed both sweeteners but they have very different properties so they can not always be swapped 1:1. Using honey in a cookie recipe that calls for granulated sugar will yield a giant mess.] In the recipe card you'll find links to the specific ingredients/brands that I use.
A note on salt: I almost exclusively use Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt because it's the best all-purpose salt for cooking and baking. If you're not using kosher salt, consult this handy guide for a conversion chart! When in doubt, if you're using table salt just reduce the amount by half for baked goods. When cooking, I prefer to under-salt because you can always add more! If you've over-salted, adding a little bit of acid (like lemon juice) can help.
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Recipe Card
Mixed Berry Cobbler
Special Equipment
Ingredients
Filling
- 16 ounces frozen mixed berries, can substitute fresh berries
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 teaspoons fresh mint, optional
Topping
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ cup unsalted butter
- ¾ cup heavy cream
Top With
- sparkling sugar, optional
- vanilla ice cream
Instructions
Filling
- Add the frozen berries to a large nonstick pot over medium heat. Add in the sugar, lemon juice, cornstarch, salt, and fresh mint and stir to combine.
- Once the fruit begins to break down, reduce the heat to medium-low and cook gently for 10-15 minutes stirring frequently. Once the berries begin to break down and the filling starts to thicken, remove from the heat.
Topping
- Preheat the oven to 375°F.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt.
- Cut the cold butter into the dry ingredients by flattening the cubes into disks. You want the butter to remain in relatively large chunks (about quarter sized).
- Slowly drizzle the cream over top, combining with a fork as you go. Using a spatula or bowl scraper, fold the dough over onto itself a few times in the bowl until it comes together into a sticky dough.
- Pour the mixed berry filling into a baking dish. Then dot the topping all over the berries until they're mostly covered.
- Before baking, lightly brush the top of the biscuits with cream and sprinkle with sparkling sugar if desired.
- Bake at 375°F for 30-40 minutes until the filling is bubbly and the top is golden brown.
- Serve the mixed berry cobbler warm with vanilla ice cream or homemade whipped cream!
Notes
Nutrition
The nutritional information on this website is only an estimate and is provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Jill says
What size baking dish?
Kyleigh Sage says
As written, the recipe works best with a medium sized baking dish (so a 10x7, a deep pie pan, a 9x9 square pan, etc). But if you want to use a large 9x13 dish, I would double the recipe!
Sandy Murray says
If you double the recipe do you double the topping also
Kyleigh Sage says
Yes I typically double the topping as well! If you want a thinner layer you can do 1.5 x's the topping instead of fully doubling it.