Plum and Blueberry Cobbler

This sweet tart mix of fresh blueberries and late summer plums is cooked into a gooey perfection under a crisp, brown sugar cobbler topping. Whip up this plum and blueberry cobbler and enjoy a summer inspired dessert.

Ever since I found my grandma’s never fail cobbler topping a while back, cobblers have become one of my favorite things to experiment with. It’s become a basic formula of fruit and sugar, topped with the easiest and most adaptive cobbler topping that I can play with to come up with new creative combinations.

This plum and blueberry version was just that. I saw gorgeous plums at a local farm stand and had a big basket of blueberries in the fridge. The combination of the two is magic, slightly tart sweet from the plums, rich in color, and the addition of oats and brown sugar to the cobbler topping made it almost oatmeal cookie like. It was definitely a winner!

Cobbler, Crisp, Crumble

There are a lot of names for a lot a recipes that are more or less a similar process. Some sort of baked fruit filling topped by some sort of biscuit/cookie/cake mixture.

I still can’t find a real, always true, answer on when to call them what. I’ve always called a fruit dish with this topping a cobbler, because my grandma did, and really, who am I to argue? But the addition of oats would likely have some calling this a crisp instead. While the addition of oats to this topping did change the texture, creating some crisp cookie like texture, it’s still cake-like underneath.

So I’m sticking to my guns! Cobbler it is. Call it a crisp if that’s what you prefer, all that really matters is that it’s delicious.

Ingredients

The cobbler formula holds true for this recipe, it’s a simple combination of fresh plums and blueberries with sugar and cornstarch. Top that with a cobbler topping made from other easy pantry staples and cobbler will be bubbling away in your oven in no time.

• Plums – you can use your favorite plum variation here. I made with both red and black plums during testing and it worked great!
• Blueberries – I recommend fresh blueberries for this, but frozen will do in a pinch, no need to thaw.
• Brown sugar – I think the rich flavor of molasses infused sugar really compliments the dark fruit in this recipe.
• Cornstarch – The essential thickening agent in this, without it, you’ll have fruit juice instead of a thick gooey cobbler filling.
• All Purpose Flour – just basic white flour works well here.
• Baking powder – this gives the cobbler topping enough lift to create a cake-like underside.
• Old Fashioned Oats – I really love the oatmeal, blueberry, plum combo and the oats give a nice texture to the topping.
• Cinnamon – Cinnamon is a really beautiful thing to add to blueberries, it enhances the flavor.
• Salt – Just a pinch elevates and intensifies the other flavors.
• Egg – One large egg is the binding agent for the cobbler topping.
• Butter – Butter give the topping moisture and fat (flavor!).
• Vanilla – Just a bit to the melted butter rounds out the flavor of this cobbler nicely.

Pro Tip: If cornstarch is unavailable to you, there are many options for substitutions. Check out this article for cornstarch substitutions, or for my UK readers, corn flour is what you’re looking for.

Let’s make cobbler

The process of making a mixed fruit cobbler isn’t much different than a regular cobbler. It’s a very simple process that usually takes me no more than 15 minutes or so to get in the oven. It’s best served warm out of the oven, and can serve about 6 with generous helpings. Here are my key tips for getting that cobbler cooking and perfect.

1. Chop the plums into smallish sizes, this allows them to disperse evenly in the cobbler with the blueberries.
2. Mix the sugar, cornstarch, and cinnamon together with the fruit until it’s well combined.
3. Melt the butter before you make the rest of the cobbler topping, that allows it to cool slightly before you mix it in.
4. Combine the dry ingredients for the cobbler topping (this includes the sugar) and then work the lightly beaten egg in until there are pea-sized chunks or smaller. Spread it all over the fruit filling.
5. Mix the vanilla into the butter, then pour it over the topping and put that baby right in the oven.
6. Let it sit for at least 15 minutes before serving, this just lets the cobbler filling set up a little so it’s not as liquid when you cut into it.

All my cobblers using this topping take exactly 35 minutes in a preheated 375°F oven. Your oven may be different, so bake until the top is golden brown and the fruit is bubbling.

FAQ’S

I hope you find this summer fruit cobbler as warm and gooey and inviting as I did. I highly recommend you serve it warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or freshly whipped cream. Enjoy that summer fruit!

If you like this recipe, check out these other summer fruit recipes!

• Red Wine Cherry Cobbler
• Loquat Cobbler
• Lemon Meringue Pie Recipe
• Peach Hand Pies
• Plum Blackberry Sorbet
• Rhubarb Cherry Pie
• Mixed Berry Cobbler

I’d love to hear what you think, feel free to tag me on Instagram @theflourhandprint so I can see how it went! Until next time, Happy Eating!