Healthier Fruit Cobbler

This fruit cobbler may be healthier. But the flavor of lush and juicy summer fruit, nestled in a tender topping, will have everyone moaning over how decadent it tastes.

Before we start… yes, that is a stem of thyme in the photo. No, it’s not in the recipe. I was cutting some up for another dish, and that piece flew off of my scissors and landed on top of this.

It left some flavor behind, and it was actually pretty good. I might try some in the next cobbler.

Savory Tomato Cobbler with Herb-Cheese Biscuits

As you can tell by that blurb above, I’m on a mission to make cobblers. ha They are healthier cobblers though, so there’s that. (Note: this is a helpful post on Vegan Dairy & Egg Substitutes)

My grandma made this type of cobbler when I was little, so I decided to bring back a slice of childhood. This time around it’s veganized and healthy, well much healthier.

Funny, but it actually tastes better when you cut out the ton of butter and sugar that’s in the usual recipe. The varied flavors of the fruit shines better, and the cake part is still as yummy. Win-win!

This isn’t just one recipe though. I’ve included notes for different types of fruit. Peaches and stone fruit can all be made the same way, but berries are handled a little differently. Still easy- just a different step.

For peaches, the batter goes on the bottom, and the fruit on top. The batter rises through them to end up on top. I thought that was so magical when I was little. (Yeah, there wasn’t Harry Potter when I was growing up.)

For berries, the fruit go on the bottom. It’s so they won’t stain the batter, which actually would be great if it ended up purple or red. Nope. It turns the batter grayish instead. eeek.

For the fruit cobbler above, I added blueberries and plums. I used the instructions for berries. I pretty much piled on the fruit… 4 cups of blueberries, and 3 small plums, and it was so delicious! I was kind of freaking that it would overflow, but YAH it didn’t.

Sorry there aren’t photos of before baking and after. I was trying something new with photo transfers, and let’s just say I will never, ever do that again. Ugh.

Thankfully I had already transferred some other pictures (only a couple though). I guess I just need to make more cobbler for more shoots. What a hardship.

This recipe really is simple. Don’t be intimidated by, what looks like, a long recipe. It just looks that way, because there is a recipe for the stone fruit and also the berries in there.

Before I go, here’s a handy list of different types of fruit you can use in a cobbler. Enjoy!

Vegan Fruit Cobbler

Print Recipe

Serves: 8 servings Cooking Time: 70 minutes including prep

Ingredients

1/2 cup organic granulated sugar*
1 teaspoon lemon zest (for blueberries)
1 to 3 tablespoons cornstarch or flour*
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon (for peaches)
1/2 tablespoon butter (for peaches)
4 cups ripe peaches cut into 1/2" slices or ripe blueberries*
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract (for peaches)
Batter:
1 tablespoon non-dairy butter
1 1/4 cups all purpose flour or 1 to 1 gluten free flour
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons organic granulated sugar**
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup creamy non-dairy milk

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Fruit Layer:

Blueberries: add the sugar to a small bowl, and then rub the lemon zest into the sugar with your fingers. Whisk in the cornstarch, and then gently fold the mixture into the blueberries; set aside.

Peaches: In a small bowl, whisk sugar, cornstarch, and cinnamon; set aside.

Melt the1/2 tablespoon of butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the peaches and sugar mixture and gently stir to combine. Simmer for about 5-10 minutes, or until peaches are soft; remove from heat and stir in vanilla.

Batter: In a medium bowl, whisk flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Stir milk into the flour mixture just until combined: set aside while preparing the pan.

Add the 1 tablespoon of butter to an 11 cup or 9 x 13 inch baking dish. Place in the oven. Once melted, remove pan from oven. Use spatula to coat bottom, and a little way up the sides; set aside.

Blueberries: add blueberries to the pan, and scoop the batter over top. You can leave some open spaces if you like. The batter will expand, but there will be more fruit and juices that bubble up in those areas.

Peaches: Add batter to the pan, and spread it out evenly with a spatula. Spoon the peach mixture evenly over it.

Both Fruit: Bake for 50-55 minutes, or until the cobbler top is golden brown, and the juices are bubbling.

Remove dish to a cooling rack for 20 minutes before serving. Store at room temperature for up to 2 days or in the refrigerator for a week.

Notes

*Notes:
- Sugar amount depends on how the fruit, and your sweetness preference. You may need 3/4 to 1 cup if your fruit is very tart. .

- 1 tablespoon cornstarch for blueberries or 2 to 3 for peaches (depends on how juicy)

- About 7-8 medium to large peaches or 2 pints of blueberries.

**If using fine sugar, then you can omit the 2 tablespoons if you like.