Berry Cobbler

BERRY COBBLER! This is absolutely one of my FAVORITE "comfort foods" in the world. This is a very old family recipe that our family has made for generations. I love it! Every time my brothers and I get together...this is a recipe that we make! My parents always grew an abundance of berries (blackberries, red raspberries, gooseberries, and strawberries) when we were kids. Their yard had fruit trees, berry vines and grape vines so we ALWAYS had plenty of fruit. Cobbler was something that was frequently on our table year around. (My parents froze berries and fruit so we always had them available in the winter too!) It is easier than making a pie and tastes delicious warm or cold.

I always raid my mom's freezer when I visit and whip out a cobbler or two during my visit. I just can't resist! (I always try to reserve a piece so I have it for breakfast the next day but don't tell my brothers or they will know my secret! I get up early, start the coffee and privately enjoy that LAST piece of cobbler...alone before anyone else gets up! ;) Today, I was craving something red, white & blue to celebrate the July 4th holiday...so I whipped up a mixed berry cobbler using a bag of frozen mixed berries. You can use any type of berries or fruit in this recipe. It is easy to change it up. You can even use canned pie filling in a pinch or canned fruit. Of course I normally double (or triple) the recipe for our family but today it is just us so I made the regular 8x8 pan size although I baked it in a round casserole dish.

Berry Cobbler Recipe: (8x8 pan size, double recipe for 9x13 pan)

• 16 oz. bag of frozen berries (any type, I usually use blackberries but today I used mixed berries)
• 1 1/2 tbs. corn starch or tapioca starch
• 1 cup flour (I used gluten free flour blend. If you don't have a gluten allergy then you can use regular flour. If you are using a gluten free flour blend, you will need to add 1/2 tsp. xanthan gum or guar gum if your flour mix doesn't contain it)
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup butter (or substitute Crisco or margarine that contains at least 65% fat)
• 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/8 tsp. salt
• 1/3 cup + 2 tbs. milk (you can substitute coconut milk, soy milk or almond milk)

I just used a bag of frozen mixed berries today

Berries before I add the cobbler dough

My geeky baking corner in my kitchen! GEEK ALERT!

This is what the dough should look like. I mix it with a fork.

Before baking

 Gently mix 1/4 cup of the sugar with corn starch (or tapioca starch) and berries. Pour into a 8x8 pan and place in a pre-heated 375 degree oven. Bake until fruit is slightly thick, about 15-20 minutes. Meanwhile, mix the flour, remaining sugar, butter, baking powder and salt alternately with milk to get a consistency similar to brownie batter. Will be thick but thinner than biscuit dough. Spoon over warm berries, leaving some blotchy spaces for fruit to bubble. Cover with a oven-proof lid or foil & bake approximately 25-30 minutes. I remove the covering the last 5 minutes of baking. (NOTE: baking this with gluten free flour will not brown on top as quickly as regular flour. Don't over bake or it will become crumbly!) This recipe is delicious served plain or with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.  Note: I prefer either making my own gluten free flour mix (recipe below) or I use one that doesn't contain sorghum in it for my baked goods. I personally think sorghum flour gives sweets a funny aftertaste so I avoid using it for my baked goods. I have used Betty Crocker Gluten Free Flour Blend, King Arthur Gluten Free Flour Blend, Cup4Cup Gluten Free Flour Blend & Trader Joe's Gluten Free Flour Blend with good results. 

My Homemade Gluten Free Flour Blend Recipe:

• 1 1/2 cups brown rice flour
• 1 cup white rice flour (I used sweet rice flour for this batch)
• 1/2 cup glutinous rice flour (made from sticky rice, it's gluten free)
• 1 cup potato starch (not flour)
• 1/2 cup nonfat dry milk, make sure it is very fine in texture
• 1 cup corn starch or tapioca starch (I used tapioca starch for this batch)
• 3 tbs. xanthan gum

Combine all ingredients together well. You can put it in the blender for an extra smooth texture if desired. I store mine in a glass container and use it in place of regular flour in all my recipes. This particular blend I really like for baked sweet goods. (A friend of mine that has a dairy problem used non-dairy creamer powder in place of the powdered milk and said it worked just fine!)

Just out of the oven

Up close view of the cobbler

Ready to eat with my coffee! Now I just need some geek bowls too!

See how moist and soft the cobbler is? It is not a cake or a biscuit...it's in between!

Can't you just taste this? I wish you could smell it. Heavenly!

No other words except...YUM!

Not too tart...not too sweet...it is just right!

The berries are tender and add so much flavor to the cobbler

I am digging in for a bite! I just can't resist! 

I hope you enjoy one of our family's favorite recipes as much as we do. It is a simple and very casual recipe. That's the way I roll...CASUAL. My house may not always be in perfect order and more than likely you will catch me in a geek T-shirt baking in my kitchen. That's just who I am. I like good food. It doesn't have to be expensive or fancy...just delicious. I won't put a gluten free recipe on here that I wouldn't eat myself. I would rather go without a dessert than have one that tastes like cardboard! If you don't have a gluten allergy, you can still make all of my scrumptious recipes without using the gluten free flour.






Happy July 4th!
Tanja
Gluten Free Casually