The Cobbler You Can’t Mess Up (Truly)
Bri McKoy's Individual Berry Cobblers and other cobblers I'm obsessed with.
Friends, hi—
Next up in our maternity leave kitchen rotation is my dear friend Bri McKoy, and listen… if we ever needed someone to remind us that cooking can be joyful, forgiving, and maybe even a little bit funny - Bri is our person.
I met Bri on a mission trip to Uganda what feels like a lifetime ago. My luggage didn’t make it (a humbling experience), which meant I wore the same pair of pants every single day. Those pants became such a character that, to this day, Bri and I simply refer to them as Pants. Capital P. A legacy, really.
Bri, on the other hand, has always had her life much more together! She’s an incredible cook, bestselling author of The Cook’s Book: Recipes for Keeps & Essential Techniques to Master Everyday Cooking, a genius meal planner, mother of The House Special Lasagna, and one of those people whose joy just… spills over onto everyone around her. It’s contagious! I love her for it!
Which is why I absolutely love that she’s bringing us a dessert. A very Bri dessert. These individual berry cobblers are unfussed, jammy, and just the right amount of sweet.
I’m so happy to have Bri in our kitchen this week. Be sure to subscribe to her newsletter and follow her on Instagram. Let’s bake something simple and really good!
xo Joy
Now here’s Bri!
I was raised by a baker and grew up around bakers. My mom and her sisters even owned a bakery for several years! If there wasn’t flour dusting the countertops or super-fine sugar kissing the floors, I was in the wrong kitchen.
Which is why I grew up to cook…chicken.
All forms of meat and chicken! A vegetable here. A pasta dish there.
The first time I decided to bake something (boxed muffins…we must start somewhere) I used salt instead of sugar. Negative 10 points to both of them for looking so absolutely identical. Negative 100 points to the person who stored them side by side in unlabeled jars. (That would be me. I am the villain of this story.)
I came to the conclusion that baking is for people who have some balance of science and math and honestly a dash of philosophy (which is why I love learning from Joy!).
And then one day, something shifted. I decided I wanted a dessert recipe of my own…one that was foolproof, unfussy, and perfect in any season. A dessert recipe even I couldn’t sabotage.
So I called my mom.
We developed individual berry cobblers. The kind where you can make just one (for you, on a Tuesday, no explanation needed) or a whole tray (technically for guests, realistically also for you).
The recipe had to have a few non-negotiables:
Easy to bring together! This cobbler dough is beyond easy and that’s saying something because dough hates to see me coming.
Not overly sweet. I want butter notes, biscuit warmth, and enough tartness to make you feel like a person of delightful sensibilities.
Down-scalable (this is a culinary term!). Because sometimes one cobbler is exactly the right amount of cobbler. (Which means any leftovers can be frozen!)
And so this bubbly-buttery-berry cobbler was born. I hope you try them!
Just for You Berry Cobblers
This recipe makes 4 individual berry cobblers in 6-7 inch ramekins. You can freeze the dough and berry mixture if you only want to make 1 or 2. Thaw the dough and berries in the refrigerator overnight to make more the next day!
Ingredients
For the Berry Filling:
1 (18-20 oz) bag of mixed frozen berries (any combination of blackberries, raspberries, blueberries, cherries, strawberries…) or 3 & 1/2 cups fresh berries
1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
2 Tbsp cornstarch
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
3/4 cup white sugar
For the Drop Biscuit:
1 & 1/2 cups self-rising flour*
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1/2 cup white sugar
Additional Ingredients:
Sugar for sprinkling
2 Tbsp sweetened condensed milk
2 Tbsp melted butter
*If you are using regular flour (not self rising) use this for your flour mixture:
1 & 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 & 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp plus 1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
Instructions
Preheat the oven 400 degrees.
If you are using fresh berries, rinse and clean the berries and add to a large bowl. If you are using frozen berries, you can use them straight from the freezer, no need to thaw.
To the bowl of berries add the lemon juice and mix.
In a small bowl mix together 2 Tbsp cornstarch, ¼ cup packed brown sugar, and 3/4 cup sugar. Pour over the berries. Mix to combine.
Generously butter 4 ramekins (or however many you’re making) and set on a foil-lined baking sheet.
For the Drop Biscuit:
In a bowl lightly mix 1 & 1/2 cups self-rising flour, 1 cup heavy cream, and ½ cup white sugar until all the ingredients are combined. The dough will be sticky.
Drop 2 Tbsp of the dough into the buttered ramekins. No need to spread the dough out, it will expand as it bakes. Top the dough with 1 tsp sweetened condensed milk.
Bake for 9 minutes.
For the Cobblers:
Remove from the oven and add a heaping 1/2 cup of berries evenly among ramekins. To the top add an additional 2 tablespoons of the dough. Do not cover the berries totally with the dough. Steam needs to escape. The dough will gradually cover the berries as it bakes.
At this point if you are only making 1-2 cobblers you can freeze the leftover berries and the leftover dough in separate freezer safe containers.
Brush the tops of the dough with butter and a sprinkle sugar. Bake for 22-27 minutes. The dough will be golden brown all over! Cool before eating. Enjoy!
Or you can download and print this PDF of Bri’s recipe!
Fresh From the Archives
• All this talk of cobbler has me thinking about My Favorite Blueberry Cobbler which is made with lemon zest (for zip) and bonus blackberries (because they lend to the sweetness and overall texture of the cobbler). The top is like a loose, craggly, buttery biscuit and - it hits the spot every single time. Save this for your future cobbler endeavors.
• It’s hard to believe this Tomato Cobbler with Blue Cheese Biscuits runs so far back in the Joy the Baker archives. 2012!? That was a different world. I’ll tell you what… this cobbler still sticks the landing. Sweet cherry tomatoes are baked down to jammy with caramelized onions and herbs, topped with downright dirty (obvi in a good way) blue cheese biscuits. It’s savory, bright, has some earthy umami and it’s just unexpected! Add it to the list!
• Welcome to No Rules Baking where we’re topping our cobbler with actual cookie dough balls instead of a biscuit topping. It’s great here: Peanut Butter and Strawberry Jam Cobbler.
Have a wonderful week, friends! More soon! xo
 | A guest post by
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Pants!!! A legacy 🤩 So grateful to be invited over to your space on the internet, Joy! 💛