Blackberry Cobbler Recipe

Name: Blackberry Cobbler
Prep time: 25 min
Cook time: 35 min
Total time: 60 min
Ingredients: ½ cup granulated sugar; 2 tablespoons cornstarch; 1 teaspoon lemon zest; ¼ teaspoon cinnamon; ⅛ teaspoon kosher salt; 6 cups blackberries (30 ounces, washed and dried); 2 teaspoons lemon juice; ½ teaspoon vanilla; 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour; ⅓ cup granulated sugar (plus 1 tablespoon for topping); 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder; ½ teaspoon kosher salt; ¼ teaspoon baking soda; 5 tablespoons cold unsalted butter (cold, cut into cubes); ¾ cup buttermilk; ¼ teaspoon cinnamon; ⅛ teaspoon ground ginger; ⅛ teaspoon nutmeg

This blackberry cobbler is packed with juicy, jammy berries baked under a golden, tender biscuit crust with just the right touch of sweetness. It’s a simple yet irresistible summer dessert that pairs perfectly with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

Blackberry cobbler in a white baking dish.

Recipe Science

Cornstarch thickens the blackberry filling by gelatinizing the fruit juices around 203°F (95°C), creating a glossy, scoopable sauce.
Pea-sized pieces of cold butter in the biscuit dough create steam pockets during baking, resulting in a tender, flaky topping.
Buttermilk’s acidity activates baking soda, helping the cobbler topping rise and stay light and airy.

Why It Works

When baking a blackberry cobbler, the natural juices in the berries combine with sugar, lemon juice, and cornstarch to form a thick, glossy filling that bubbles up around the edges. This cobbler is perfect for making during the summer when blackberries are plump and sweet, but it also works well with frozen berries, allowing you to enjoy it year-round.

The biscuit-style topping is made with cold butter, which is cut into the flour to create small pockets of fat that melt during baking, resulting in biscuits with a soft, layered texture. Buttermilk not only adds tangy flavor, but its acidity reacts with baking soda to produce carbon dioxide bubbles, helping the dough rise. The topping is dropped in rustic mounds, allowing the filling to bubble up between each bite and ensuring a contrast of textures in every spoonful.

Ingredients You’ll Need

Ingredients needed to make this blackberry cobbler recipe at home.

Blackberries: For the sweetest taste, select fresh blackberries between July and August, which marks the peak season in the United States. However, the season can extend from spring to late summer, depending on the region. You’ll need 6 cups, or 30 ounces. Discard any damaged berries and rinse well.
Cornstarch: Is key—it activates as the mixture heats, binding the juices into a luscious sauce that retains its shape as it cools.
Flavoring: The lemon zest and juice brighten the flavor of the filling, while granulated sugar enhances the sweetness of the fruit, and cinnamon and vanilla add warmth and depth.
Cobbler Topping: It’s a drop biscuit-style dough with flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, pieces of cold butter, and buttermilk. A blend of cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg sprinkled on top adds a spiced aroma, making your house smell amazing as the dessert bakes!

See the recipe card below for all ingredients and measurements (US and metric).

Ingredient Substitutions

This blackberry cobbler recipe is easy to customize! Try these tasty ideas:

Using Frozen Blackberries: Do not defrost the fruit! You want the fruit juices to help create a jammy sauce. You may need to add a few extra minutes of baking time to fully heat the fruit and thicken the sauce.
Other Fruit Options: Make a mixed berry cobbler by substituting a portion of the blackberries with fresh fruit like blueberries, raspberries, or strawberries.
Switch Up the Flavoring: Try adding cardamom, lavender, almond extract, rum extract, freshly grated ginger, orange juice, or pomegranate juice.
Sweetener Swap: Try adding brown sugar to the filling for a molasses flavor, or use maple syrup or honey. Use coarse sugar on the topping for crunch.
Cornstarch Substitute: Double the amount of all-purpose flour to thicken the filling, but it won’t gel as much or set as well. Use 3 tablespoons of arrowroot powder for 2 tablespoons of cornstarch.
Buttermilk Swap: Whole milk can be used, but the biscuits will not be as tall. You can make buttermilk substitutes by diluting plain yogurt with milk or adding kefir.

How to Make Blackberry Cobbler

Step 1: Heat the Oven

Preheating the oven to 400°F ensures the high heat is ready to immediately activate the baking soda and melt the butter, creating steam that helps the dough rise to achieve a tender texture. It also promotes surface browning and moisture evaporation, which gives the biscuit topping a golden, crisp crust.

Step 2: Grease the Baking Dish

Greasing the baking dish creates a thin layer of fat that prevents the sticky fruit filling from clinging to the sides, making cleanup easier and helping each serving release cleanly.

Blackberries in a bowl being mixed with sugar and cornstarch.

Step 3: Prepare the Filling

Whisking the dry ingredients ensures that the cornstarch disperses evenly, preventing clumps and allowing it to activate smoothly as the filling heats. Coating the blackberries thoroughly with sugar, lemon juice, and starch balances sweetness, brightens flavor, and allows the juices to thicken into a glossy sauce during baking. Pour the blackberry mixture into the greased dish.

Mixing bowl with flour, butter, and buttermilk.

Step 4: Prepare the Topping

Cutting cold butter into the flour mixture leaves small fat pockets that melt during baking, releasing steam to create a tender, flaky texture. Adding buttermilk hydrates the dough while its acidity reacts with the baking soda, boosting leavening for a light, airy biscuit topping.

Experimentation Encouraged: I break the butter into pea-sized pieces to create steam pockets that help the biscuit topping rise taller. For a thinner, more evenly spread layer, cut the butter into smaller pieces so it blends more smoothly into the dough.

Biscuit dough clumps laid onto blackberries inside a square baking dish.

Step 5: Assemble the Cobbler

Dropping the biscuit dough in evenly spaced mounds allows steam from the bubbling fruit to circulate between the gaps, helping the topping cook through without becoming soggy.

Tips for Perfect Execution: Sprinkling the spiced sugar mixture over the surface enhances browning through caramelization and adds a flavorful crunch that contrasts with the tender interior of the biscuit topping.

Step 6: Bake the Cobbler

Baking until the filling bubbles around the edges ensures that the cornstarch has fully activated and thickened the juices, resulting in a jammy texture. A golden brown topping signals a crisp, tender crust that balances the soft, juicy filling beneath.

Ingredient Chemistry: I target the center of the fruit filling to be between 200 and 205ºF (93 and 96ºC) to know that the cornstarch has fully thickened.

Serving of blackberry cobbler and a scoop of vanilla ice cream in a bowl.

Step 7: To Serve

Allowing the cobbler to cool for about 20 to 30 minutes gives the cornstarch time to set completely, resulting in a filling that thickens into a cohesive, spoonable consistency rather than running out into the dish. This warm cobbler pairs perfectly with a cool scoop of no-churn vanilla ice cream or whipped cream!

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between blackberry cobbler and crumble?

A blackberry cobbler has a biscuit-like topping that’s dropped in mounds over the fruit, so it bakes up golden, fluffy, and slightly crisp. A crumble, on the other hand, has a streusel-like topping made with butter, flour, and sugar that’s more crumbly and crisp, with no leavening—so it stays flat and crunchy.

Why is my blackberry cobbler watery?

If your blackberry cobbler is watery, it’s likely because the filling didn’t reach a high enough temperature to fully activate the cornstarch, which needs to simmer to properly thicken the juices. Be sure to bake until the filling is bubbling around the edges, reaching around 203ºF. Let it cool for at least 20 minutes, allowing the starch to set and firm up. Using too little cornstarch can also lead to a loose filling, especially if the berries are particularly juicy. I use about 2 teaspoons of cornstarch per cup of blackberries.

Can you use frozen blackberries in a cobbler?

You can absolutely use frozen blackberries in a cobbler! Just add them straight from the freezer—don’t defrost them first, or you’ll lose too much juice and risk a dry filling. You may need to extend the baking time slightly to ensure the filling gets hot enough to fully gelatinize the starch and thicken properly.