Easy Apple Cobbler recipe with a sweet soft cake topping over tart, buttery spiced apples. This delightful, sweet Fall apple treat that will quickly become a family favorite.
Easy Apple Cobbler
Well Summer is officially over for us. My kids except the baby are back to school. It's rainy, chilly, and the leaves are changing.
While I'm reluctant to put away the grill for the season, I know that it's that time here in the Midwest, and I now have visions of apples and cinnamon and Fall in my head.
So we're going to start with the baking season with this absolutely perfect and ridiculously easy apple cobbler recipe.
Imagine with me. Buttery cinnamon apples tucked under a soft cake cobbler with more cinnamon sugar sprinkled on top. The smell of cinnamon spices and sweet apples drifting through your cozy house.
Yup. It's officially (unofficially) Fall. Time to get baking! Your senses will thank you.
Top with ice cream for a perfect warm, spiced Fall dessert.
What's the Difference Between an Apple Cobbler, Apple Crisp, and Apple Crumble?!
What's the difference?! Is there even a difference? Yes, there actually is, though it's subtle, and the terms are sometimes used interchangeably.
All three are baked fruit desserts. The difference is in the
topping!
- Cobbler will have a cake or biscuit-like topping, depending on the region they're made. They will all however have some sort of dough or batter on top that turns cake-y when baked. This apple cobbler recipe will use a thin pancake-like batter and bake up soft and finely crumbed.
- Crisp is topped with a flour, sugar, and oat mixture. Sometimes nuts are also added. When it's baked, the topping "crisps" up and becomes crunchy, thus the name.
- Crumble is now used interchangeably with crisp. However, it traditionally had a similar crumbly topping like a crisp, but with no oats.
What are the Best Apples to Use for Apple Cobbler?
The best apples for cobbler are just your classic baking apples. The most common baking apples are Granny Smith and Honeycrisp, because of their slight tartness and their ability to keep shape when baking.
Braeburn, Cortland, and Jonagold are some more options that are great for baking, but I usually have a more difficult time finding these varieties outside of an actual orchard.
I use Granny Smith apples most often because they're easy to find, and very cost effective.
Stay away from "dessert" or "eating" apples such as Delicious (red and golden), Gala, Fuji, and McIntosh. These apples are softer and sweeter and will not hold up well in baking (though they do make great applesauce!)
Should I Peel the Apples?
If you want! I prefer to peel mine, but it's a matter of preference.
It's not necessary, but when you bake an apple the flesh becomes very soft, while the skin will remain intact. This sometimes leads to a difference in texture when you get a bite with skin versus without.
But if it doesn't bother you or you're short on time, you can go ahead and skip the apple peeling and your cobbler will still come out amazing!
More Apple Recipes You'll Love
- Apple Brown Betty - Quick and easy dessert with baked apples and a graham cracker topping.
- Snickers Caramel Apple Salad - a dessert more than a salad with candy bar pieces, caramel, and apple bites in a creamy base.
- Apple Butter - fresh apples simmered with spices, all in the slow cooker!
- Classic Apple Pie - a classic for a reason. This pie features homemade filling and it's the best you'll ever have.
- Slow Cooker Applesauce - the easiest applesauce recipe ever.
Easy Apple Cobbler
Ingredients
For the Apples
- 8-12 medium baking apples (see notes above) peeled, cored, and sliced
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
- 2 teaspoons flour
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- ½ cup butter melted
For the Cobbler
- 1 cup flour
- ½ cup brown sugar
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 cup milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Cinnamon Sugar Topping
- 3 teaspoons granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425°F.
- In a 9"x13" baking dish, add apples, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and flour. Toss gently to coat.
- Pour lemon juice and melted butter over top of spiced apples.
- Bake for about 20 minutes.
- While apples are baking, prepare the cobbler batter. Add flour, sugar, and baking powder to a large mixing bowl. Whisk to combine.
- Add milk and vanilla. Whisk again until combined. Set aside.
- Mix remaining cinnamon and sugar for topping in a small mixing bowl. Set aside.
- When apples are done baking, pour cobbler batter on top. Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar mixture.
- Bake at 375° for about 30-35 minutes, until cobbler is cooked through, and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Allow to cool for at least 30 minutes before serving.
Notes
- Serve warm topped with vanilla ice cream!
- Drizzle each serving with a little caramel sauce for an especially pretty plate.
- The batter will be runny! It's supposed to be like that, so don't worry!
- Make Ahead: Make and bake cobbler per recipe instructions. Allow to fully cool. Cover and store in the refrigerator. Remove from refrigerator 30-60 minutes before serving to allow to come to room temperature, or microwave individual servings for 30-60 seconds to lightly warm before serving.
- Storage: Cover and store leftovers in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
- Freezer Directions: Cover and freeze the baked cobbler for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and warm in the oven before serving.
Nutrition
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Helen at the Lazy Gastronome says
Looks absolutely delicious!! Thanks for sharing on the What’s for Dinner link up and don’t forget to leave a comment at the party – Next week’s features that also leave a comment get pinned and tweeted!
Cristina at Ava's Alphabet says
I love this simple recipe! And just in time for apple season. I would love to have you visit and link up at Family Joy Blog Link-Up Party Sundays at noon EST on Ava's Alphabet.
Karly says
Easy apple cobbler? Now that's dangerous. I need about 5 of these dished in my life ASAP!
Brooke Grangard says
These look really yummy! Thanks for sharing!
Suzie from Munchkin Time says
This looks really delicious! Thank you Michelle for posting this awesome recipe! - Suzie
Jessy @ The Life Jolie says
What a delicious and easy fall dessert!
Heidi says
Love that you made these in individual ramekins! Very fun and Yumo!
The Better Baker says
YUM! I love cooking with apples too...and am thinking I'll have to make this tasty recipe today. Thanks so much for sharing with us at Weekend Potluck. Have a delicious weekend.
Michelle says
Thanks! You too! And let me know how it goes if you try it!
Valerie says
What a delicious fall dessert. As much as I dislike fall (because then that means winter is right around the corner) I do love the smell of fall baking in my home.
Michelle says
Yeah, I'm not much of a winter person either, especially after Christmas. But I totally agree. Love the smell of cinnamon and baking during the Fall 🙂 <3
Alisha Rodrigues says
I need to go buy some apples to make this one .. Gotta be a favorite among my kids .. Loving the images too
Amanda Marie Boyle says
Fantastic recipe! I usually just do pie, but my husband loved the switch to cobbler.
Andrea Metlika says
I love how easy this is to make and Its totally drool worthy!
Beth says
Yummy! This looks so delicious and tasty! My family is going to love this recipe!
Shadi Hasanzadenemati says
I have everything I need for this dish, can’t wait to make it this weekend!
Shelley says
I think I'm feeling much the same way as you are. Not quite ready to stop all the fun summer grilling ... yet with the chill in the air, it's definitely reminding me that I need to let go of summer and embrace all the deliciousness of apple season! And this deliciously EASY apple cobbler recipe is the perfect nudge to do it! So simple, and such perfect fall comfort food! Thanks for the wonderful recipe!
Emmeline says
Oooh this looks yummy and I can tell just from the pictures how much this smells like fall!! So ready to bake this on a rainy fall day.
veenaazmanov says
This is definitely a delicious and flavorful dessert. Something unique and special. I love the Topping too. Yum. Best try this weekend.
Andrea Metlika says
So much easier than I thought to make. It looks perfectly delicious!
Maria San Juan says
This looks really yummy! And surprisingly easy to make, too! This is so going to my Sunday menu this week.
Kristine says
So...I usually make an excuse not to make apple cobbler, but when I found your recipe and it seemed easy, I had to try it. It was easy, and also incredibly good! Thanks for changing my mind. 😁
Mirlene says
These are one of the best apple cobblers I've had. Its easy to make and so delicious as a treat whenever!
Angela says
This is so good and so easy to make! Came together quick and was an instant hit with my family.
Gwynn Galvin says
This recipe is at the top of our list of what we will be making after we go apple picking this year! Yum!
Amanda Wren-Grimwood says
Made this at the weekend when we had family over and it was a big hit. Will definitely make again as it was so easy and delicious!
Amy says
This is the perfect recipe to welcome autumn, I love those spiced apples!
MJ says
This turned out to be such a yummy fall dessert! We had so many apples from our apple tree this year and this is a great recipe to help enjoy them all.
Tayler says
I made this cobbler over the weekend and it’s already gone! We all loved it so much!