Chocolate Cherry Cobbler – Your New Favorite Dessert
There’s a tea house in New Jersey (I’m from New Jersey and still have family there) called High Societea Tea Room. This place is a family favorite. We’ve had birthdays there and even a bridal shower. My aunt goes so buys Christmas gifts for the owner. And they have this incredible dessert: Chocolate Cherry Cobbler,
At least, it always sounds incredible. The last three times I went to the tea house (that’s what we call it for short–we’re very witty), I ordered the chocolate cherry cobbler. But after the Queen’s Tea-a veritable smorgasbord of delightful savories and sweets I am always full, so I ordered the dessert to go. Now, when I see the dessert packaged up I always think to myself, “Gosh, I should have just eaten it.” It comes in a mini dressing container, the kind usually reserved for dressing or ketchup.
And, I think because it’s such a small amount, I never go back and eat it. While this amount of dessert is perfect after a full tea, it seems kind of not worth it when I am actually hungry. There’s also the fact that I don’t get back to NJ nearly as often as I’d like to anymore, and so when I trying to squeeze in all my favorite foods (ah–the food is so much better there) is like trying to solve a Rubik’s cube. So, alas, the chocolate cherry cobbler never gets eaten.
But I am so intrigued by the idea of it that I just had to crate a chocolate cherry cobbler of my very own.
Why You’ll Love It:
Chocolate. Cherries. Need I say more?
Okay, I will. Vanilla ice cream. Mmmm . . .
Now, if you don’t like chocolate or cherries you won’t like chocolate cherry cobbler. But if you do . . . Oh my gosh this is the dessert you have been waiting for all your life.
Warm cherry pie filling, topped with a delicious chocolate biscuit topping. The combination is the perfect pairing of rich chocolate and sweet fruit. But not too sweet. The cocoa based chocolate topping really balances the sweetness of the filling.
Chocolate cherry cobbler is also easy to make. You can whip up this entire dessert in about an hour. And a food processor helps the chocolate topping to come together easily. No food processor, no problem. Mix everything up in a bowl. See the recipe notes for additional details.
But it feels special. Maybe it’s just me, but anytime you serve a warm dessert with a scoop of vanilla ice-cream, it feels like a party. I don’t like ice cream on my cake. I don’t like the crumbs. But ice-cream on pie or cobbler or crisp, now that’s delicious.
How to Make Chocolate Cherry Cobbler:
Cherry Filling:
The first thing you need to do is make the cherry filling. I just use a basic cherry pie filling. I suppose you could buy can cherry pie filling if you were pressed for time. But really, it only takes ten minutes to make it from scratch. If you’re at the store anyway, pick up a bag of frozen cherries (you want dark, sweet cherries) and you will have homemade cherry pie filling in no time. BTW: frozen cherries can be expensive. I usually buy mine at Walmart where the price is MUCH better than my local grocery store, so don’t be afraid to shop around.
In a saucepan over medium heat, combine 8 cups cherries, 2/3 cup water, 2-3 tablespoons lemon juice, 3/4 cup of sugar and 5 to 6 tablespoons cornstarch. Start with five tablespoons and if you need to thicken up the sauce a bit more go ahead and another tablespoon later.
Bring the cherry mixture to a boil. Then reduce heat to low and cook, stirring frequently, for about 10 minutes. Add additional cornstarch if necessary to thicken filling. If I need to do this, I usually scoop out about a cup of the filling and mix the corn starch into the cherry filling and then add it all back to the pan.
Remove the cherry filling from the heat and stir in vanilla extract.
Chocolate Topping:
After the cherry pie filling is ready, preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Spray a 9×9 baking dish with cooking spray. You can also make chocolate cherry cobbler in individual dishes. If you plan on doing this you will need about 8 4-6 ounce oven-safe dishes. Be sure to spray them all with cooking spray.
In a food processor, combine 1 cup flour, 3 tablespoons sugar, 3 tablespoons cocoa powder, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder, and 1/4 teaspoon salt in a food processor
Then add 3 tablespoons of cold butter cut into small pieces and pulse until crumbs form.
Pour in 1 cup heavy cream and continue pulsing until until a soft dough forms. Add slightly more cream, if needed, to make dough come together. The dough should form a nice ball, but not be too sticky.
Transfer the dough to a medium bowl and gently stir in 1/4 cup mini chocolate chips.
Chocolate Cherry Cobbler:
Spread the cherry pie filling in the bottom of the prepared pan. Drop spoonfuls of chocolate dough over the top of the filling.
Bake in a preheated oven for 25-30 minutes until the chocolate topping is cooked and filling is bubbling. To check for doneness, lift up one of the chocolate biscuits and check the bottom. It should hold its shape and be firm to the touch.
Remove from the oven and place on a wire rack to cool 15-30 minutes before serving. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream or fresh whipped cream.
Enjoy!
Chocolate cherry cobbler is an easy week night dessert.
It’s delicious with a cup of tea or a glass of milk (if you like milk. I don’t. So take that recommendation for what it’s worth).
This is also a perfect dessert to serve at a dinner party. You can prep all the ingredient ahead of time and pop the unbaked cobbler in the fridge. Set on the counter about thirty minutes before baking. If you pop it in the oven when you sit down to dinner, you’ll have a nice warm dessert waiting when you finish.
Oh, and chocolate cherry cobbler will make your house smell delicious!
Do you love the combination of chocolate and cherry? Try my cherry chocolate chip muffins.
Happy Eating!
Chocolate Cherry Cobbler
Equipment
- sauce pan
- food processor
- bowl
- 9 x 9 baking pan
- oven
Ingredients
Cobbler
- 1 cups all purpose flour
- 3 tbsp granulated sugar
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 3 tbsp dark cocoa powder
- 3 tbsp cold unsalted butter
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- 1/4 cup mini chocolate chips
- 1 batch Homemade Cherry Pie Filling, see below
Cherry Pie Filling
- 8 cups fresh or frozen pitted cherries
- 2/3 cup water
- 2-3 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 5-6 tbsp cornstarch
- 1/4 tsp vanila extract
Instructions
Cobbler
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray a 9×9 baking dish with cooking spray.
- Combine 1 cup flour, 3 tablespoons sugar, 3 tablespoons cocoa powder, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder, and 1/4 teaspoon salt in a food processor
- Add 3 tablespoons cold butter and pulse until crumbs form.
- Pour in the 1 cup heavy cream and continue pulsing until until a soft dough forms. Add slightly more cream if needed to make dough come together.
- Transfer to a medium bowl and gently stir in 1/4 cup mini chocolate chips.
- Spoon the cherry pie filling into the prepared dish. Drop spoonfuls of chocolate dough over the top of the filling.
- Bake 25-30 minutes until dough is cooked and filling is bubbling. To check for doneness, lift up one of the chocolate biscuits and check the bottom.
- Remove from oven and place on wire rack to cool 15-30 minutes before serving.
Cherry Pie Filling
- In a saucepan over medium heat, combine 8 cups cherries, 2/3 cup water, 2-3 tablespoons lemon juice, 3/4 cup sugar and 5 tablespoons cornstarch.
- Bring to a boil; reduce heat to low and cook, stirring frequently, for about 10 minutes. Add additional cornstarch if necessary to thicken filling.
- Remove from heat and stir in vanilla extract.
Notes
Leftovers can be stored covered in the refrigerator for up to three days. Serve cold or heat in the microwave before serving. If you don’t have a food processor, combine all the dry cobbler ingredients in a large bowl. Cut in the butter with two forks or a pastry cutter, or just use your hands. Your hands will soften the butter, so work quickly, but I find my hands are the fastest and easiest way to incorporate butter. Since you are make biscuits with this dough, don’t worry too much about keeping it light and airy. Then stir in the chocolate chips with a spoon.
