You will be smitten with this vegan cobbler cake! Plentiful amount of berries, easy to prep, and with a delicate crisp topping—it’s delicious.
I have been smitten with this vegan cobbler cake—and I think you will be too!
We have been picking blackberries, as they grow abundantly wild in our area. We can walk for 5 minutes and start picking. Blackberries are prickly to pick (lots of thorns), but worth the effort.
Paul is our designated blackberry picker. He takes pride in bringing home buckets of berries! A couple of weeks ago he brought home two large containers of beautiful blackberries.
Char looked at them and said “mom, do you have a cobbler recipe?”
I had to think. I wasn’t sure. I’ve written a few recipes. 🤣
And, as you know, I often name my recipes in rather unconventional ways. For instance, in eat, drink & be vegan, I have a “Berry Grunt” recipe. Very much a cobbler by definition, except that it cooks stovetop rather than in the oven.
And then I thought back to one of my very first recipes. It’s called “Blueberry-Orange Crisp Cake“, from The Everyday Vegan.
My cooking and recipes have changed some since that book. But I remember that cake fondly and decided to recreate it – in the style of a vegan cobbler cake to share with you all.
This new version is oil-free, whole-grain, and gluten-free (if you can use gluten-free oat products). And it’s darn easy! Plus, it has a delicate ‘crisp’ topping that is entirely delightful with the tender, fragrant cake.
Vegan Cobbler Cake Q&A
No, you can use any berry you love. I’ve also made it with blueberries, and you can make it with raspberries or chopped strawberries.
Traditionally a cobbler is an oven-baked desert with a fruit base (often berries, but sometimes peaches, cherries or other fruit) with a pastry or biscuit-like topping.
Fruit crumbles and crisps are quite similar. They both have a streusel-like topping made with flour, sugar, (and traditionally butter). Crisps usually also contain oats.
Yes, try it with peaches, nectarines, or plums, or other berries. Share your variations with me!
Yes, I have a couple. My newest that is oil-free, is called “Charming Apple Crisp”. You’ll find it in Dreena’s Kind Kitchen.
Try my Fresh Blueberry Squares, Sugar-Free Jam, Berry “SCUFFINS”, and Chocolate Chip Blueberry Muffins.
Can I use frozen berries?
Yes! Baking time will be a little longer, but you can absolutely use frozen berries, see my recipe notes.
Before we get to the cake, a reminder that you have JUST over a week to order Dreena’s Kind Kitchen and get your FREE ebook (and other gifts). And, to enter the giveaway of over $1K in prizes. Link to do so.
Now let’s get to this delicious Vegan Cobbler Cake recipe!
Berry Crisp-Cobbler
Ingredients
- 2 cups oat flour
- 1/2 cup unrefined sugar remove & reserve 2 tbsp for topping, see note
- 1 – 1 1/2 tsp lemon zest
- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp sea salt
- 1 cup non-dairy milk
- 1/2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 tbsp pure vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cup fresh or frozen berries see note
Topping:
- 2 tbsp rolled oats
- 2 tbsp reserved unrefined sugar see note
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350ºF. Prepare a baking dish (I use 8” x 12” glass dish, see note) by wiping the inside with a drop of oil and lining with a strip of parchment paper. In a large bowl, add oat flour, sugar, zest, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir through to combine. In another bowl, add milk, vinegar, and vanilla, stir through. Add wet ingredients to the dry, and mix through to incorporate. Finally, add the berries and gently but quickly mix through. Pour batter evenly into prepared pan. Sprinkle on the 2 tbsp of reserved sugar and rolled oats. Bake for 25-28 minutes, until lightly golden and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove from oven and cool in pan before cutting into pieces. Serves 6 or more.
Notes
photos credit: Angela MacNeil
Katherine Yernberg says
Absolutely wonderful. Served with some vegan vanilla ice cream. Thank you.
K says
Can coconut sugar be used? Thanks for this.
Dreena Burton says
Absolutely. I didn’t for the photo as I like how “bright” it looks using unrefined sugar. But, coconut sugar a fine sub!
JUDY says
Can’t have grains. Any recipes without cheese or grains???? Thanks!
Dreena Burton says
Hi Judy, I have many bean/legume recipes.
Erica says
Can i ground rolled oats for the oat flour? (Sorry if this is a silly question, I’m inexperienced with oat flour!)
Dreena says
Hi Erica, yes, you are right, it’s basically oats or oat grouts ground into a fine flour. So, you can do it yourself with a blender if you want. Sometimes the texture isn’t quite as fine when making yourself vs buying storebought.
Sara says
This looks wonderful! Really appreciate the time you take to develop such thoughtfully created recipes. One thing that would make them easier for some would be to include weight measurements! Especially for baked goods.
Looking forward to making this with a berry mixture!
Heidi says
Would I be able to substitute whole wheat or spelt for the oat flour?
Thank you
Dreena says
Hi Heidi, you sure can. Use a little less, maybe 1 tbsp less. Should work just fine!
Dawn says
Could you possibly use regular all purpose flour or almond flour?
Dreena says
Hi Dawn, do you mean substitute all of the flour with a/p flour or almond flour? I wouldn’t sub all almond flour, it will give a different texture. If you want to sub a/p flour, use about 1-2 tbsp less. That should work.
Jen says
Looks fab. Would maple syrup work instead?
Dreena says
Hi Jen, thanks! if you use maple syrup you’ll need to adjust the wet to dry ingredients, as there will be too much moisture.
Lynn says
Morning! Just curious as to the benefotnofn”gluten free oat products”…..i eat steel cut oats every morning…is there a benefit of looking for gluten free?
Dreena says
Hi Lynn, no not at all. I mention this only for people with gluten intolerance (celiac) or other gluten sensitivities. There is no benefit to purchasing gluten-free oats otherwise!
Lynn Strauss says
Thanks so much for your response! So very kind….off to buy some oat flour and berries to make this!
Sandra says
Have you ever made 1/2 recipe? Baked in cupcake cups? Think this would work ok?
Dreena says
Hi Sandra, I haven’t. It looks like a large cake, but it’s thin so it’s not as big a batch as it seems. But you can always try halving all of the ingredients and baking in a smaller dish. For sure you could try in cupcake size – use parchment liners so they don’t stick, and reduce baking time – check for doneness maybe around 18 minutes.
Kari says
Do you think it would turn out OK if I omit all sugar? Kari
Dreena says
Hi Kari, if you are accustomed to baking without any sweetener, I guess you could do so. You’ll want to replace that volume with more oat flour, maybe 1/4 cup. I’m not sure how tasty it will be without the sweetener, but up to you!
Jcb says
Any other sweetener I can use such as dates, unsweetened applesauce?
Dreena says
Hi Jcb, I didn’t use dates or date sugar here because of color, and how much it would darken the cake. I’m not sure applesauce is sweet enough, if you want to experiment with it you’ll need to adjust the wet-to-dry ratio.