Cobbler

Crumble, crisp, cobbler, pie — which has your heart? I’m a cobbler girl myself; I love biscuits and there’s never quite enough biscuit to satisfy me. So this simple dessert is for me and all the rest of us who like a little fruit with our biscuits. Think of it as a cross between a shortcake and a cobbler — warm biscuits, baked right on top of fresh, juicy peaches, topped with a spoonful of whipped cream. When it comes to summer desserts, this is exactly what I want.

With May upon us and hot days already starting to hit Los Angeles, we’ve started thinking about backyard BBQs and the abundance of fruit that summer brings. Then when we found blackberries on sale at the market for $1 per container, we decided to get a jump on summer and make some individual blackberry bourbon slumps. What’s a slump, you ask?

A pandowdy flips the traditional pie on its head. Here, it’s not all about a beautiful crust. It’s about the fruit. Juicy, ripe, flavor-packed fruit picked at the very peak of its season and not a second sooner. This one is for the fruit-lovers.It’s very possible that you’ve never heard of a pandowdy. This is a classic New England fruit dessert in the tradition of cobblers, grunts, slumps, and crisps.

This recipe is one that I often teach in cooking classes because you can make it year-round (just use frozen blueberries when you can’t find them fresh!) and because the crumbly topping — once you’ve done it once — is something you can begin using to top just about anything. I use it on apple crisps and cobblers, any fruit bar I make these days, and even bake it up on its own to scatter atop vanilla ice cream.

When you’ve reached the point of salad fatigue and are looking for a way to make the most of sweet summer corn and juicy red tomatoes, look no further than this savory cake. It’s inspired by tomato cobbler and skillet corn bread, with a nod to the sweetness of a classic tarte Tatin. This cake comes out of the oven with a crisp edge and a light and tender crumb.

It’s been a while since we had a reader recipe: this one comes from Melinda in Pittsburgh. “I picked up fresh blueberries at the Farmer’s Market this week and made this super simple dessert from my South Carolina childhood. There are many different types of cobbler crusts/toppings–buckles, crumbles, brown-bettys–but this is my favorite, a sweet, buttery, rich batter, with crispy and chewy bits. Delicious plain, but even better with vanilla ice cream.

I am a chocoholic and not afraid to admit it. I’ll take a dark, rich, oozy dessert over a fruit-based one any day. So while this “chocolate cobbler” is really no cobbler at all, it doesn’t mean I’m not going to eat it. And like it. I don’t judge! It seems recipes for chocolate cobbler started going viral at some point last year. I immediately made a mental ‘must bake’ note and then wondered why I’d never had it — or heard even of it!

Was there ever a dessert more tailor-made for a skillet than a rustic, streusel-topped fruit crisp? Sure, you can assemble it in a gratin dish or your favorite Pyrex casserole, but I stand behind the idea that serving this oh-so-American autumn apple dessert in a cast iron skillet is the presentation it deserves — nay, warrants. If we’re talking semantics, the presence of oats sets this dessert firmly in crisp territory, but I’m not standing on ceremony here.

This gluten-free cobbler couldn't be more of a classic.

Put this recipe on repeat all year long.

Freeze the entire topping ahead of time for the easiest last-minute dessert.

Cobbler may be the best reason to turn on the stove in the summer. Jammy fruit, crisp and buttery topping — all you need is a scoop of ice cream. This particular cobbler might just be the easiest I’ve ever made. It’s the kind of recipe you make once and then remember forever. You can make it with a spatula or a soup spoon, in a New York apartment or at your vacation beach house, with peaches or with any other fruit you want to turn into dessert.

Fair warning: You're going to want to put this on everything.