This Easy Cherry Cobbler recipe is delicious, but simple enough for beginners to prepare. Add a scoop of ice cream on the side or serve it warm with whipped cream for a beautiful, shareable dessert.

Although where you grew up may alter your fruit preference when it comes to this classic dessert, cobbler is a popular dessert in all regions of America. This recipe provides the step-by-step instructions needed to make the best cobbler, even if you’re a beginner baker.

What is Cherry Cobbler?

Cherry cobbler is a dessert similar to a crumble, but with a cake-like biscuit topping that fluffs up when baking resulting in a “cobbled” appearance. Some cobbler recipes have you drop spoonfuls of batter onto the prepared fruit, but this recipe has you pour the fruit into the cobbler batter.

You can use fresh, canned, or Frozen cherries to create this popular dessert. As cobblers cook, the sweet fruit juices bubble up and combine deliciously with the cobbler topping, perfect for scooping up with a bite of ice cream! Cobbler is surprisingly easy to make, and once you get the hang of it, you can make cobbler with just about any fruit in season.

Why you will love this recipe:

Flavor: The sweet flavor of the cherries combines beautifully with the vanilla and almond flavor in the buttery cobbler batter.

Ease: Cobbler makes an easy dessert for any occasion, and this recipe uses canned pie filling, which makes the easiest cobbler of all.

Crowd-Friendly: You can make this cherry cobbler recipe with almost any fruit filling and it multiples easily for a large crowd. With a larger pan, you can easily double or triple the recipe as needed for bigger family gatherings.

Ingredients for Easy Cherry Cobbler

To make this easy cherry cobbler recipe, you will need to gather a few ingredients, including the following:

1 can cherry pie filling (21-ounces) *The quality of prepared pie fillings varies greatly. We recommend Lucky Lane Organic pie filling.
1 teaspoon baking powder
¼ cup butter, melted
1 cup milk
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup cake flour (or all-purpose flour)
¼ teaspoon almond extract

Step-by-Step Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

2. Pour the melted butter or margarine into the bottom of a 9 x 13 inch baking dish and set aside. Alternatively, as the oven preheats, place the butter in the baking dish in the oven to melt for a few minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and tilt it to spread the butter around the entire base of the dish.

3. In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together the sugar, flour, and baking powder. Then stir in the milk, whisking until fully combined. Then, pour the flour mixture over the butter in your baking dish without stirring.

4. Next, add the cherry pie filling evenly on top of the batter. Do not stir.

5. Place the baking dish into the oven once preheated to 350-degrees and bake for around 45-50 minutes or until the crust becomes a golden-brown color. .

The best part about this dessert is that you don’t need to wait for it to cool. Simply take it out from the oven when your kitchen timer signals and spoon out a serving immediately. Serve the cobbler warm from the oven and add a scoop of vanilla ice cream or a dollop of whipped cream. Just make sure to allow it to stand for around 5 minutes to avoid burning your mouth.

Expect around 6 to 8 servings from this recipe, but don’t expect leftovers!

How to make cobbler with fresh cherries:

What Type of Cherries to Use:

While this recipe calls for prepared cherry pie filling, cobbler tastes amazing with any fresh cherry variety, especially during cherry season! If you choose to make your own filling for this cobbler, see the recipe below.

The sweeter the cherry you select, the sweeter you can expect your cobbler to taste without adding extra sugar. Dark red Bing cherries are much sweeter than some of the other varieties you may find, but the type you choose may come down to what’s available in your local supermarket or favorite produce store.

Some people enjoy tart cherries, but remember that if using a sour variety, you may need to add more sugar to balance out the tartness.

Pitting Fresh Cherries

Fresh cherries will require you to pit the fruit, and I highly recommend you use a cherry pitter to save yourself some time. I do not like most single-purpose kitchen gadgets, but I’m always grateful to have my garlic press and cherry pitter when the time comes! This Oxo cherry pitter works really well, pits multiple cherries at once, cleans up easily, and is compact for storage. It also doubles as an olive pitter:) I recommend wearing an apron during the pitting process to protect your clothes.

If you don’t have a cherry pitter, have no fear; you can use a small paring knife. Simply cut the cherries in half and draw a circle around the pit using your knife, as if the cherry were a larger fruit like a peach. Twist slightly, and the cherry will separate from the pit on one side, allowing you to use your knife or thumb to pop the pit from the other half.

Without a cherry pitter, the process will take longer but it’s not difficult. Expect to spend around 15-20 minutes prepping the cherries if you use a knife and a bit less if you have a cherry pitter. Using canned pie filling is the quickest and easiest way, however, because all you need to do is open the can. However,

Homemade Cherry Cobbler Filling:

For the cleanest flavor, make your own cobbler filling at home. It can be used in cherry cobbler, cherry pie, cherry slump, or for spooning over chocolate or vanilla ice cream. You’ll need a few minutes and some additional ingredients beyond the cherries, but it tastes amazing!

2/3 cup Sugar (use more for tart cherries)
4 Tablespoons Cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1 teaspoon Lemon juice (maintains cherry color)
1 teaspoon Vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon Almond extract
4 cups of of pitted Bing or Rainier cherries

The sugar and cornstarch thicken up the juice and keep your cobbler turning from being too runny, while the almond and vanilla extracts provide a boost of flavor that compliments the cherry flavor beautifully.

To make your own pie filling;

Begin by combining the above ingredients in a medium saucepan on the stovetop over medium heat.
Stir occasionally until the mixture bubbles and thickens.
Pour directly into cobbler batter, being sure to get all the thickened sauce.

Other Substitutes

pie — image source: unsplash.com via Jennifer Pallian

Because this cherry cobbler recipe is so easy, you can alter it to suit your taste. If you don’t like cherries, you can use any type of fruit filling. Other popular fruits to substitute include:

Peaches
Strawberries
Apples
Blueberries
Blackberries

According to dessert expert Betty Crocker, before we had refrigerated transportation readily available to help us ship produce across the nation, the fruit offered in desserts like cobblers were a reflection of what produce was locally grown. In the North, for example, people enjoyed apple or blueberry whereas peach cobbler is popular in the South. Cherries, however, are a reflection of the Midwest and remains a popular fan-favorite in the region.

You also have the opportunity to use fresh fruit rather than using cherry pie filling. Two cups of fresh fruit are about equal to a normal-sized (21-ounce) can of pie filling. For a full cobbler, expect to use around 6 cups of tart red cherries, and make sure they are pitted for the best results.

You’ll notice the recipe calls for cake mix but says you can alter all-purpose flour as well. A cake mix tends to create a more powdery topping that will melt down to mix flavors with the pie filling while providing a crusty layer on top. Some people also opt for a more biscuit layer provided by a product like Bisque. You can spread the cake batter onto the bottom of the pan like a crust or drop the batter gently on top of the fruit. Whichever you choose, just go with what feels best for you.

A Simple Dessert Anyone Can Prepare

No matter what alterations you choose to make to the recipe, the resulting cobbler is simple for beginners to make and doesn’t require a lot of ingredients in order to taste wonderful. Give it a try today!