Pie, Cobbler and Crumble Recipes & Ideas

From the filling to the whipped topping to the pie crust, coconut in its various forms makes an incredibly decadent vegan pie a reality. Neither the layer of banana slices hidden underneath a silky chocolate filling nor the fluffy whipped coconut cream topping need much of an introduction. If you love coconut and are looking for a vegan treat that delivers on flavor, this is it. But to be clear, the real star of this recipe is the incredibly flaky vegan pie crust.

Every so often there comes a restaurant meal which really inspires us in our own kitchens. This is a dish influenced by my own recent visit to the Porthminster Café, a breezy restaurant nestled below an ocean cliff just steps away from the stunningly blue water in St. Ives, Cornwall. Headed by Australian chef and surfer Michael Smith, the Porthminster Café’s menu mixes Mediterranean and Asian influences, and it’s heavy on the local seafood.

The tomato tart is a classic summer dish. It stands alone as a great appetizer, makes a light brunch with an egg on top, or supports the lead as a charming side dish with grilled chicken or seafood. It has a surprise ingredient of cinnamon — borrowed from the dishes in the Mediterranean — that works to bring together the briny feta and rich tang of cream cheese into one glorious homage to tomatoes that you can pull together in just 15 minutes.

Rhubarb is an odd fruit. To begin with, it’s actually a vegetable — a vegetable with poisonous leaves. The stalks are crisp and juicy, with a vegetal crunch rather like celery. And yet this prosaic stalk can produce some of the most beautiful and delicious food of the spring season. It’s also far easier to prepare than we realized; this crumble involves no pre-cooking, no stewing. It’s a fast dessert with a delicate sweetness and hearty topping.

Lemon meringue pie, with its tender-crisp crust, tangy-rich filling, and light-as-air meringue, is the perfect mid-winter baking project. I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised by how easy it is to make the classic pie — and we’ve made it even easier with our simple three-step process. There are two essential components to any lemon meringue pie.

I’m declaring this cobbler the Recipe of Summer. It take those pints of cherry tomatoes that you can’t help bringing home from the farmers market and transforms them into silky, oh-so-tender bites. Plus, you know, cheddar biscuits. Trust me: It’s worth turning on the oven for this one. Make sure your cast iron skillet is well-seasoned for this recipe. Tomatoes are acidic, and they can dissolve the seasoning somewhat.

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.

Just short of eating a fruit by hand, a summer cobbler is on the short list of stunningly simple desserts. In this rendition, blueberries are cooked with both lemon and orange zest, and lightly spiced with nutmeg before being topped with fluffy whole-wheat biscuits. While this cobbler (or any cobbler, really) is a delicious after-dinner treat, something about the combination of whole-wheat biscuits and blueberries makes this feel distinctly appropriate for breakfast.

There are very few cravings as strong as the combination of peanut butter and chocolate. Combine it with pretzels, bananas and salty goodness and what do you have? A no-bake Fat Elvis pie, that’s what! There’s something ridiculously perfect about a dessert creation that doesn’t have to be perfect. Especially when the end result looks extra fancy.

The times I tend to crave chicken pot pie the most are at the end of long, crazy-busy days, which is exactly when I don't have the time to make it. This recipe is the answer.

Spring is a lovely time of year to be a farmer. Yes, the days are incredibly busy from sunup until sundown, and most of that time is spent hunched over the dirt in a back-breaking position. But on our farm, we’re are never bitter in springtime (which is quite a contrast to the middle of August!). Right now, the unfolding of the summer seems bright and full of promise. Spring is also a great time of year to start eating lighter and healthier meals to fuel our bodies for long days ahead.

When temperatures drop, my smoothie consumption usually begins to taper, but this year I’ve been experimenting with adding fall ingredients to the usual blender suspects. My family’s most admired autumnal smoothie to date is this thick and creamy pumpkin pie version. It’s sweetened enough (with fruit!) that the pumpkin and spices bring pie to mind, but not so decadent that it strays into dessert territory. You can definitely still have this for breakfast or an afternoon snack.

Have you ever made a tart? We hadn’t until recently, when our removable-bottom tart pan lured us into what seemed like a tricky undertaking. Guess what? It was so easy!Since then, fruit tarts have become our go-to dessert. Food processors make tart crusts extra easy: throw your butter, flour, salt and sugar into the food processor and presto you have a crust. It’s actually preferable to mixing by hand, since the food processor doesn’t warm the butter the way your fingers do.

It is indeed cherry season here in the Bay Area, a little early but no one’s complaining. Unlike asparagus and strawberries, cherries are hard to find out of season and tend to induce a little frenzy when they appear. Here’s my contribution to the madness, a long-time favorite.I’ve been making this tart since the ’80’s when I used to churn out dozens as a novice pastry chef at a now defunct French bakery in Milwaukee.

When we got a basketful of nectarines from our CSA, we initially thought of turning them into a dessert … but the fruits were so juicy and sweet in their own right that it seemed a crime to cover them up with sugar! Thus, we came up with the nectarine tartine. Not only is it fun to say but it has all the qualities of our favorite kind of summer dish – light, fresh, little or no heat required, and taking full advantage of the season’s produce.

When I first conceived of these bright little tarts, I imagined them as dessert. Later I decided that they were even better as a fancy, yet healthy (gluten-free and sugar-free), breakfast. Either way, they are a luscious pairing of two winter gems: kumquats and dates. Kumquats and dates are some of my favorite treats from the winter farmers’ markets here in Southern California.

I must confess that weeknight dinners can be a major struggle in my house, which probably seems contradictory coming from someone who writes about food! It’s true that my refrigerator is often filled with an eclectic group of ingredients—most of which cannot be transformed into any sort of suitable meal. I often find myself scavenging the pantry for anything I can pass off as adequate, and trust me when I tell you that a starving girl + Nutella does not equal dinner.

I get really excited when I see berries growing on the side of the road. I inherited this obsession from my mother who, during our vacation each summer in northern Idaho, would go on a walk with a big bag and not allow herself to return until she had picked a thousand huckleberries. We’d make dozens of jars of jam, huckleberry pancakes, and frozen kiddie drinks. I don’t remember us ever looking at a recipe.

I can think of few finer uses for jam than a bakewell tart, a scrumptious British dessert combining buttery short crust pastry with sweet fruit preserves and almond frangipane. For these mini bakewell tarts made in a muffin tin, I used raspberry jam and early autumn figs, a lovely summer-meets-fall pairing.Biting into a bakewell tart is pure bliss – on the outside you have a flaky crust, which holds rich, chewy almond frangipane and below that, a layer of sweet jam.

This time of year can be a tricky one for inspired breakfasts. Oatmeal is my go-to on weekdays, and on the weekends we often flail for something a bit more interesting but no more complex. With this morning tart, flail no more! I call this a morning tart instead of a quiche because I tend to think of quiche as more major, perhaps even towering.

Jammy pink rhubarb, coconut custard, and a honey-rose water drizzle! Who needs gluten (or dairy or nuts or refined sugar, for that matter) when you’ve got all this going on?! A weeknight dinner was an unusual inspiration for this dessert, but the idea took hold as soon as I made the Fennel & Coconut Tart recipe from Vegetarian Everyday by David Frenkiel and Luise Vindahl of Green Kitchen Stories. (A review of their excellent new cookbook coming later this week!

Summer may be over according to the school and holiday calendars, but my kitchen counters continue to overflow with bowls of sweet cherry tomatoes that I associate with picnic season. In fact, it was a picnic that inspired this recipe for a polenta and roasted cherry tomato tart, and it’s just right for carrying to your local park. Of course, if you can’t squeeze in time for a picnic these days, the tart is just as delightful on a dinner table or in a lunch box.

As we wrap up edits on The Kitchn’s upcoming cookbook, I’ve been thinking a lot about my first book, The Greyston Bakery Cookbook, published in 2007. I learned many tough lessons that first go-around about how to make a book, but one thing I still return to and use is the recipes. There are many I make regularly when it comes time to get dessert on the table.

Fall is tart time for me, and I brought a few of my favorite autumn flavors to this dessert offering. It’s made with a rich walnutty tart crust, filled with creamy golden frangipane and topped with tender slices of spiced poached pears. And it holds a little gift for those of us baking for a diverse group: it just happens to be gluten-free. Don’t you love desserts that do it all? This tart has an element that may be unfamiliar: frangipane. What is it?

This is the time of year when I start craving savory tarts. This vegetarian tart has vinegar-roasted onions, mushrooms, and ricotta cheese, making it a great appetizer for a group, or a dinner for two when served with a side salad. Why not? It’s getting cold out there and sometimes you just need a dinner that feels like the food equivalent of sliding on a cashmere sweater: decadent and yet perfectly functional.

I know about a secret cranberry spot on Long Island, and from foraging trips there, this recipe was born. Each fall I’d spend two or three weekends on my knees in my wellies, gathering those ruby jewels autumn. I’d rinse and freeze enough for Thanksgiving, then use the rest to play with in the kitchen.

It’s spring, the sun is shining, and that feels like reason enough to celebrate. It’s just the right time to serve this bright, zingy lemon tart, a simple, no-bake dessert that combines Greek yogurt and bottled lemon curd in a tender pastry crust. It’s a pretty, no-fuss sweet perfect for a sunny weekend brunch. The first time I encountered the happy marriage of lemon curd and Greek yogurt was while catering a baby shower last spring.

During our month devoted to the glory of vegetables, we wanted to call out a few common yet perhaps under-appreciated vegetables and show a fresh, diverse set of ways to enjoy them. Last week, it was radishes; this week, lettuce. As Jill argued passionately yesterday, lettuce is not just the background to a decent salad. It’s not a bland way to shovel in your vegetables. Lettuce has a sweetness and a flavor all its own — and it deserves to be appreciated on its own terms.

Summer baking sounds like a contradiction. Who wants to turn on the oven when the temperature tops 90 degrees in the shade? On the other hand, the anticipation of fruit pies, cobblers, and tarts at the end of a meal make it worth heating up the kitchen. I found that making a quick tart with puff pastry is the perfect compromise on a hot summer day, and it ends Shabbat dinner on a delightfully sweet note.

Mini tart shells are great to have on hand; they’re ready to bake into a quick dessert or savory bite at the drop of a hat. This tart dough is stable, rich with butter, and designed specifically to be frozen and then baked straight from the freezer — but that’s not to say you can’t bake them right away. We’ve got you covered on all fronts.

Avocado toast is as delicious as it is ubiquitous. Here I’ve riffed on the concept and elevated the idea for a ladies’ tea to create these avocado tartlets. When blended with a little vanilla and maple syrup, avocado cream becomes a revelatory sweet pastry filling. I knew I had to include this very popular recipe from my book for our tea party; it hits all the right notes for a crowd: sweet, creamy, and a touch salty from the pastry crust.

Caramelized onions are the backbone of many dishes, but it's time to give these humble alliums a turn in the spotlight with this tart.

This savory tart is a stunner — there’s no denying that. Blossoms made of butternut squash ribbons, sage- and garlic-flecked ricotta, and a tender olive oil crust make for a dish that’s 100 percent worthy of any and all Thanksgiving dinners. But the best part? Your guests will appreciate just how fancy it looks, but they’ll never know just how easy it is to make.

Meet the dessert that tastes like summer (and that you could probably even eat for breakfast).

If it were up to my fiancé, the only appetizer that would be served in our apartment would be Bagel Bites. That’s not what these are, but I’ll tell you — he declared that these are better. Maybe it’s because the hard, flavorless mini bagels are replaced with extra-buttery, flaky puff pastry squares, which are topped with juicy fresh tomatoes and melted fresh mozzarella.

The name translates literally to "flame cake," but flammekueche is neither a cake, nor is it on fire.

And it has a smart tip to avoid a soggy bottom.

This unique take on a French classic is sure to win praise.

Turn juicy tomatoes into this loaded cheesy tomato tart.

What's not to love about a buttery, flaky tart crowned with roasted asparagus, diced ham, and a cheesy egg custard?

It's my go-to for all occasions.

This warm, pull-apart tart is a guaranteed crowd-pleaser.

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.

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.

Oh, hello there! Were you just thinking you’d like a bite of cheesecake without the bother of water baths or a hot kitchen? One that would, perhaps, win you friends and earn you accolades at backyard picnics this summer? Why, me too! Great minds really do think alike. While you could theoretically start the ice cream for this pie on Saturday morning and serve it that evening, it’s better and easier to think of this as a two-day affair.

Strawberry season is starting! Strawberry season is starting! You’ll find me stuffing strawberries in my face from now until the last pints leave the farmers’ market. These scones are a riff on one of my favorite combos: fresh strawberries dipped in sour cream and coated with brown sugar. They’re just the thing for a lazy weekend brunch with the windows open and bottomless cups of coffee close by.

Crumbles and crisps are the ultimate fall dessert because they’re simple to put together and humble in appearance, but will light up a fall evening like nothing else. While apple crisp is a classic this time of year, the plums have been so irresistible in the markets lately that we thought we’d use them while we still can. The secret to making a really fantastic plum crumble is using ripe, in-season plums.

We were big fans of Stephanie Izard during Top Chef Chicago, and since her big win, she’s been busy planning a new restaurant and making appearances all over the country. She’s also been blogging, and we’ve been checking in occasionally to take a look at her recipes.

Here’s a summery dessert that takes advantage of seasonal fruit, wherever you’re at. We found perfectly tiny apricots at the market last week and just had to show them off.We liked the hearty base of this crostata; unlike the usual pie crust base, we used a biscuit crust that gets deeply golden on top and tender in the middle.

It's. So. Flaky.

The search for our favorite pumpkin pie is officially over.

This method totally threw me for a loop.

It uses an absolutely wild technique I've never seen (or even heard of) before.

I'm not going to lie — I really expected this pie to be the winner of our showdown.

Plus, the history behind them.

This recipe is a great traveler and makes friends everywhere it goes.

Kim Pineda of Lubbock, Texas, says Thanksgiving feels like an extension of Dia de los Muertos for him. "I guess my theme is a different kind of Thanksgiving, one where the food is an extension of my culture." There is always pie.

Johnisha Levi of Nashville, Tennessee, is looking to create new Thanksgiving traditions with her husband. This sweet potato pie is a start.

In a race between Alton, Ina, Martha, and Ree, one celeb reigned supreme.

Because why would you make an apple pie when you can have an apple and CHEESE pie?