This cherry cobbler with brown sugar pecan topping takes the classic cobbler to the next level, featuring a sweet and crunchy topping made with brown sugar and pecans. Every bite is loaded with bright, sweet cherry flavor, tender cobbler topping, and a sweet, earthy crunch.
Our dessert and potluck recipe rotations are always heavy on cobblers. These old-fashioned desserts are easy to make and feature delicious comfort food flavors, such as mixed berry cobbler and, of course, peach cobbler.
Of course, as much as we love the classics, we also love adding our own special touch to recipes to make them even better. One of our favorite ways to do that is by adding our brown sugar pecan topping. We love adding this sweet, crunchy topping to baked goods like our mini butternut squash muffins to give them an extra dose of sweetness and a wonderful crunch.
That’s what we did with this cherry cobbler recipe. It has a classic filling made with homemade cherries and a traditional topping. However, before baking it, we add the extra sweetness and crunch of our brown sugar pecan mixture. The result is a sweet, old-fashioned flavor with a textural twist.
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Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Basic Ingredients: This recipe uses basic baking ingredients, most of which you probably have in your kitchen right now.
- Easy: The filling, cobbler topping, and brown sugar topping are all incredibly easy to make, and the entire recipe only takes about an hour and a half from start to finish.
- Old-Fashioned Flavor: The sweet cherry filling and cobbler topping are both old-fashioned favorites, just like grandma used to make.
- A Sweet, Crunchy Twist: The addition of brown sugar pecan topping adds another layer of sweet flavor and crunchy texture to the cobbler.
Ingredients
You’ll find a complete list of ingredients and their exact amounts in the recipe card at the bottom of the post.
Variations
- Filling: You can use your favorite fruits like berries, sliced peaches, sliced pears, or diced apples for this recipe.
- Fresh Cherries: Frozen cherries are a good alternative if you can’t find really good fresh cherries or you’re making the cobbler out of season.
- Pecan Topping: The brown sugar pecan topping can be made with nuts like walnuts, almonds, or almost any of your other favorites to create new, interesting flavors.
How to Make This Cherry Cobbler
Step 1: Mix all the filling ingredients in a large bowl and let them sit for 10 minutes while preparing the cobbler topping. Then, pour them into a prepared 12-inch cast-iron pan or 3-quart baking dish.
Step 2: Whisk the dry ingredients in a medium bowl. Then use a pastry blender or two forks to work in cold butter until the mixture is crumbly.
Step 3: Pour boiling water into the mixture and stir until combined. Spoon the mixture evenly over the filling.
Step 4: Combine all the brown sugar pecan ingredients in a small bowl and sprinkle the mixture evenly over the cobbler.
Step 5: Bake at 375 degrees until the topping is golden.
Step 6: Enjoy with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
Tips
- Let your filling mixture sit for at least 10 minutes in the bowl, so the cherries have time to begin macerating.
- Leave your butter pieces in the fridge until you’re ready to cut them into the flour to achieve the best cobbler texture.
- Your water should be at a rolling boil before you add it to the dry topping ingredients.
Cherry Cobbler FAQ
For a cobbler with a balanced flavor, tart cherries like Montmorency are an excellent choice. For a sweeter cobbler, try cherries like Bing or Hudson. Finally a mix of the two creates a filling with a lovely blend of sweet and tart flavors.
Boiling water serves a few purposes in cobbler batter. First, the hot liquid dissolves the sugar in the batter, giving it a smoother texture. Second, it fully activates the leavening agent in the batter, resulting in a fluffier texture. Third, the thinner batter combined with the heat of the water makes the topping moist and cake-like.
This filling utilizes maceration to help the cherries release their juices, making the filling sweeter. The result is a chunkier, more rustic filling.
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Cherry Cobbler with Brown Sugar Pecan Topping
Ingredients
Cherry Filling
- 8 cups fresh cherries, pitted
- ⅓ cup granulated sugar
- ⅓ cup brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- Zest from large lemon
Cobbler Topping
- 1 ½ cup all purpose flour
- ⅓ cup sugar
- ⅓ cup brown sugar
- 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup butter, cut into small pieces (1 stick)
- ⅓ cup boiling water
Brown Sugar Pecan Topping
- ¾ cup brown sugar
- ¼ cup all purpose flour
- ¾ cup chopped pecans
- ¼ cup butter, melted
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375° and spray a 3-quart baking dish or a 12-inch cast iron pan with non-stick cooking spray. Set aside.
Cherry Filling
- Rinse cherries, and place in a large bowl.
- Sprinkle sugar, brown sugar, lemon juice, lemon zest, and cornstarch over cherries. Stir gently and let sit for 10 minutes while preparing the flour mixture.
- Pour cherries into the prepared baking dish.
Cobbler Topping
- In a medium bowl, whisk flour, brown sugar, sugar, baking powder and salt together until combined.
- Using a pastry blender, or two forks, mix butter into flour mixture until crumbly.
- Pour boiling water into the flour mixture. Stir until combined.
- Spoon topping mixture over berries and gently spread making sure to cover the cherries completely.
Brown Sugar Pecan Topping
- In a small bowl add all the brown sugar pecan crust ingredients. Stir to combine.
- Spoon brown sugar pecan mixture evenly over cobbler topping.
- Bake for 55-65 minutes, or until the cobbler topping is thoroughly cooked. *If topping is getting too brown, light cover with aluminum foil.
- Serve warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
Notes
- Refrigerate for up to 4 days in an airtight container.
- Microwave individual portions at 30-second intervals until warm.
- Let your filling mixture sit for at least 10 minutes in the bowl, so the cherries have time to begin macerating.
- Leave your butter pieces in the fridge until you’re ready to cut them into the flour to achieve the best cobbler texture.
- Your water should be at a rolling boil before you add it to the dry topping ingredients.
