Old-fashioned Southern blackberry cobbler starts with a simple buttery batter poured into the pan before the berries, then bakes into a golden crust that rises up around every juicy blackberry. It's the kind of dessert that's been stealing the spotlight at church suppers and family reunions for generations.
This family recipe was most often made with wild dewberries. Since they're hard to find nowadays I'm using blackberries, available almost everywhere.
Table of Contents
🥰 Is this blackberry cobbler recipe for you?
- You like an old-fashioned Southern blackberry cobbler with a buttery, golden crust instead of cake mix or biscuits.
- You want a recipe that's easy enough for a weeknight but worthy of a Sunday supper. Just pour the batter in and top with berries. The batter rises to the top to form the crust.
- You have fresh blackberries, frozen blackberries, or a bucket of wild dewberries that stained your fingers purple before breakfast.
🧾 Ingredients
This ingredient list is shorter than the line at the salad bar at a Texas steakhouse.
- All-purpose flour. The sturdy foundation that keeps this cobbler from becoming blackberry soup.
- Salt. Just enough to remind the sugar who's actually in charge. I use kosher salt, if you use regular table salt use ¼ teaspoon.
- Sugar. Sweetens the berries without trying to erase their sassy little tart streak.
- Baking powder. Gives the crust enough lift to strut into the oven like it owns the place.
- Butter. The reason the crust turns golden instead of disappointing.
- Milk. Brings the batter together into something that pours like a dream and bakes like a Southern legend. Whole milk works best here.
- Blackberries. Juicy, tart, gloriously messy, and fully prepared to stain your fingers as proof you made the right dessert.
📖 Recipe
Southern Blackberry Cobbler
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- 6 cups blackberries, about 2 pounds - fresh is best
- 1 ½ cups sugar, use up to ½ cup more if blackberries aren't completely ripe and sweet.
- ½ cup butter
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 ½ cups milk
Instructions
- Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.
- In a medium saucepan, combine the blackberries and 1 cup of sugar and mix well.
- Bring to a boil over medium heat.
- Lower the heat and simmer for about 10 minutes.
- Remove from the heat.
- Put butter in a 9 x 13 baking pan and place in the oven to melt.
- Push the butter around to coat the pan thoroughly.
- Mix the remaining 1 cup of sugar, flour, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl.
- Whisk the milk into the dry ingredients slowly until the batter is smooth.
- Pour the batter evenly over the melted butter in the baking dish. Don't stir. The batter rises around the berries as it bakes, creating that classic Southern cobbler crust.
- Spoon the cooked blackberries on top and carefully pour in the syrup that's left in the pan.
- The batter rises to the top during baking.
- Once the batter rises to the top I like to sprinkle it with a little sugar and continue baking.
- Bake until the cobbler is golden brown and firm to the touch, 35 to 40 minutes.
- Serve warm.
Notes
- If your berries are very sweet and ripe you'll want to cut back on the amount of sugar you add to them. Instead of 1 cup try ¾ cup.
- You can use 1 ½ cups of bisquick or self rising flour instead of flour, salt, and baking powder if you wish.
- Use frozen blackberries if you can't find fresh.
- I like my blackberry cobbler thick so I use a smaller baking dish (9x9-inch square or similar). For a thinner top crust use a 13x9-inch pan as directed in the recipe.
- Don't over mix the batter or it will be tough.
- If you have a lot of fresh blackberries you can double the amount for more berry-to-topping ratio. Add more sugar to taste.
Nutrition Facts
Nutrition information is estimated as a courtesy. If using for medical purposes, please verify information using your own nutritional calculator. Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
This recipe has been tested several times. If you choose to use other ingredients, or change the technique in some way, the results may not be the same.
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📖 Variations
You can vary this easy blackberry cobbler recipe with different fruit fillings.
- half raspberries and half blackberries
- strawberries
- blueberries
- peaches - peeled
- plums - peeled
- raspberries
- a mixture of all of it!
🔪 How to make blackberry cobbler
This is one of those recipes that looks impressively homemade without demanding a full day's commitment.
- Mix sugar and fresh berries and simmer.
- Combine flour and remaining topping ingredients in a large
mixing bowl . - Melt the stick of butter in the baking dish and pour the topping mixture in.
- Place blackberries over the top of the batter and gently pour in any juice that's left in the pan.
🥫How to store blackberry cobbler
Leftover blackberry cobbler should be covered with plastic wrap or placed in an airtight container and stored in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
I don't like to freeze it because the fruit loses texture but you can. Wrap it in plastic wrap then aluminum foil and freeze for up to 3 months.
💭 Tips for making blackberry cobbler
Expert Tip: If your berries are very sweet and ripe you'll want to cut back on the amount of sugar you add to them. Instead of 1 cup try ¾ cup.
- You can use 1 ½ cups of Bisquick instead of flour, salt, and baking powder in this classic southern recipe if you wish.
- Wild blackberries or dewberries are the absolute best if you can find them.
- Use frozen blackberries if you can't find fresh.
- I like my blackberry cobbler thick so I use a smaller baking dish (9x9-inch square or similar). For a thinner top crust use a 13x9-inch pan as directed in the recipe.
- Don't over mix the batter or it will be tough.
- If you have a lot of fresh blackberries you can double the amount for more berry-to-topping ratio. Add more sugar to taste.
👩🍳 FAQs
In most parts of Texas people use the names almost interchangeably and the recipe works perfectly with either. Dewberries are bigger than blackberries but are harder to find these days.
The batter of this fruit cobbler soaks up any extra juice so it won't be runny. Other cobblers may need cornstarch or flour to thicken the juice.
Yes, leftover cobbler should be covered and stored in the refrigerator.
It never lasts long around here but it will be fine in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
📚 More old fashioned fruit desserts
- You can't miss with this cream cheese cherry bubble up! So easy.
- I love to make this peach cobbler dump cake when I'm in a hurry.
- No one can turn down one of these fried pies and when they're this easy you'll make them a lot!
🍽️ Serve with
This is one of our favorite summertime meals...
- BBQ chicken breast is wrapped in bacon and grilled for a tasty, quick summer meal.
- Cornbread salad is easy to make and absolutely delish! Make it ahead of time for the most convenience and flavor.
- Serve this old fashioned blackberry cobbler warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, whipped topping, or whipped cream.
Pretty much everyone around here has their own southern blackberry cobbler recipe and they'll swear on a stack of bluebonnets that it's the only way to make it.
Cobbler recipes are one of those things that families in the south will go to war over. I am almost positive the whole Hatfield and McCoy feud was ignited by a vicious cobbler disagreement.
- One crust or two?
- Pie crust dough or biscuit crust...or crumble crust?
- Dumplings IN the filling or no?
- Shortening or butter?
Oh honey, it gets intense! Give this one a try and see if it isn't the best blackberry cobbler you've ever put in your mouth.
✍🏻 A note from Marye
We used to go blackberry picking pretty much every summer. Generally, it would start with me finding a patch of wild blackberries or dewberries while doing some summertime exploring.
We'd perfume ourselves with mosquito repellant and wrap double sided tape around the bottoms of our legs to handle the ticks.
When a bowl was filled we'd head back home, covered in mosquito bites despite the best efforts of OFF. At some point in the evening, Mom would hand us bowls of warm cobbler with some sweetened cream poured over it.
Such warm, cozy, and sweet memories!
Terry says
Blessed Sunday, Marye! ■ On Oct 25/21 Cindy asked about a substitution for wine, and you suggested she use grape juice, or an apple blackberry blend. Was this taken out in a recent revision? If so, what was its original purpose, and why was it removed? ■ This old woman is once again baffled. On the recipe card, you state 1-1/2 cups sugar, with the provisio that an extra 1/2 cup can be used if the berries aren't very sweet. ■ Instructions step 2 says to combine the berries and 1 cup sugar in the pan. Step 8 says to "add the remaining 1 cup sugar..." - which seems to automatically assume that you used the additional 1/2 cup because the berries weren't sweet enough, thus a total of 2 cups of sugar are used. ■ Should that actually be 1 cup with the berries, if they're sweet enough, and 1/2 cup with the rest of the dry ingredients, or 3/4 cup to each, to equal the 1-1/2 cups total? ■ Many thanks, as always!
C.J. says
Sounds incredible! Have a cherry pudding recipe of my mom, that the batter is on the bottom and ends up on the top! Delicious! Need to make it again!