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serving of cherry chocolate cobbler with chocolate chunk biscuit and vanilla ice cream in white bowl

Cherry Chocolate Cobbler

Yield: 12 servings
Prep Time: 35 minutes
Cook Time: 45 minutes
Additional Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour 50 minutes

Ingredients

Cherry Filling:

  • 2 ½ to 3 pounds (8-10 cups) pitted sweet cherries (fresh or frozen - see note)
  • 1 cup (212 g) granulated sugar
  • 2 tablespoons cornstarch (see note)
  • 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • ½ teaspoon almond extract, optional

Biscuit Topping:

  • 2 cups (284 g) all-purpose flour
  • ⅓ cup (71 g) granulated sugar
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder
  • ¼ teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ½ cup (113 g) salted butter, cold or frozen
  • ¾ to 1 cup (113 to 170 g) semisweet chocolate chunks or chocolate chips (regular or mini)
  • ½ cup buttermilk
  • 1 large egg
  • Coarse sugar, like turbinado for sprinkling (optional)

Instructions 

  • Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Lightly grease a 9X13-inch baking dish.
  • In a large bowl, add the cherries, sugar, cornstarch, lemon juice, vanilla extract and almond extract (if using). Toss to combine well. Spread the filling in the prepared pan.
  • For the biscuit topping, in a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Use the large holes of a box grater and grate the butter into the dry ingredients. Toss to coat the butter pieces evenly with the flour. Add the chocolate chunks or chips and toss to combine.
  • In a small bowl or in a liquid measuring cup, whisk together the buttermilk and egg. Add to the dry ingredients and mix with a rubber spatula until the dough starts to come together. It may help to ditch the spatula and start mixing with your hands. Don't over mix - just press the dough together until it forms a shaggy ball.
  • Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured counter and pat or lightly roll into a 10X6-inch rectangle, about 1/2-inch thick. Cut the dough into 12 pieces.
  • Arrange the biscuits evenly over the cherry filling (I place them in three rows of four biscuits each). Sprinkle the biscuits with coarse sugar, if desired.
  • Bake for 45-50 minutes until the biscuits are golden and the filling is bubbling around the edges of the pan. To check for doneness, gently lift a biscuit - if it's still raw on the bottom, continue to bake for a few more minutes. Try not to over bake or the biscuits might be dry.
  • Let the cobbler cool for about 30 minutes; the filling will thicken as it cools. Serve warm with ice cream.

Notes

Frozen cherries: if using frozen cherries, increase the cornstarch to 3 tablespoons. Don't thaw before using. ALSO, when using frozen cherries, I bake the cherry filling on its own for 10 minutes and then add the biscuit topping and continue to bake for 40-45 minutes.