I think it’s high time for some cobbler.

Although, for me, it’s always time for cobbler. Cobbler has many of the attributes of some of my favorite desserts…strawberry shortcake, hot fudge brownie sundaes, or hot blondie sundaes. Love the mixture of hot and cold, love the sweet fruitiness of the filling and tenderness of the crust. Love how the ice cream melts and becomes a sauce that begs to be swiped up with your biscuit/brownie etc.

Cobbler is like eating pie in a bowl but with better crust. This one is a perfect fall treat, especially since the mild week we’ve been having around here is supposed to give way to some much chillier weather. Oh, and that’s another reason to love cobbler! Hot cobbler is a great excuse to eat ice cream on a cold day. Not that you should ever need an excuse for ice cream. Ever. Maybe you just need a reason to break out the ice cream scoop in October.

Plus, this cobbler boasts a whole wheat topping along with fruit, so you can already check off two healthy boxes to the one ice cream splurge box and still find yourself up by one. I know. It’s new math. But since I’ve had to completely re-learn basic math functions an entirely different way than I learned originally, just so that I can help my kids do simple homework problems like multiplication (ugh, can you say the “lattice method”?)….I figure I can make up my own quotient on how to calculate the health factors in a recipe.

Cobbler is also so much easier than baking up a pie. There’s no dough to roll out or refrigerate. Just cut up some fruit and spoon some batter on top and pop it in the oven. This cobbler is filled with sweet juicy pears. Then, it’s topped off with a tender whole wheat batter that bakes up a little crispy on the top and tender in the middle, while the bottom almost melts into the hot fruit filling. Break into that crisp topping and make room for a scoop of ice cream and you will be one very happy camper.

I normally double this recipe and make it in a casserole dish. But for today, I thought I’d bake it up in individual portions so that you don’t have to share. Because one divided by one always equals one, no matter what kind of math you use.

Whole Wheat Pear Cobbler. This one’s for you.

Whole Wheat Pear Cobbler

Yield: 4 individual servings

Ingredients

For the filling:

4 cups peeled and chopped pear
3 Tablespoons brown sugar
1 Tablespoon flour
1 Tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon apple pie spice

For the biscuit topping:

1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat pastry flour
3 Tablespoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 Tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 cup skim milk

For final topping:

2 teaspoons unsalted butter, melted
1 Tablespoon raw sugar, or white sugar
Vanilla ice cream

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Combine the 5 filling ingredients in a bowl and toss gently to coat.
Spoon pear mixture into four 3 1/2" ramekins (or other small baking dishes) coated with cooking spray.
Combine flours, brown sugar, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl.
Cut butter in until it resembles a course meal.
Add in just enough milk until the mixture forms a wet, soft dough, tossing with a fork to combine. You may not need the full half cup.
Divide and drop dough evenly on top of pear mixture in each of the ramekins.
Brush top of dough with melted butter and sprinkle with sugar.
Place on a small baking sheet to catch any drips and bake for 25-30 minutes or until filling is bubbling and topping is lightly browned.
Serve warm topped with vanilla ice cream.

Notes

*If you don't like the texture of whole wheat, use only all purpose flour.

*The recipe can also be doubled and baked in an 8 or 9" square pan or similar sized casserole dish.

*Baking time may need to increase up to 45 minutes, but watch for bubbling fruit and a lightly golden crust to determine doneness.

Recipe adapted from Cooking Light, January 1997

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Dorothy @ Crazy for Crust

Thursday 6th of November 2014

Oh my, that topping is fabulous. It's like a pear cobbler cookie!

Ramona

Friday 7th of November 2014

Dorothy! Thanks for stopping by! I do love a good pear dessert...that's why I can't wait to try your pear crumble bars! Yum!

Thursday 30th of October 2014

oooh this looks good! I've always wanted to try pear cobbler, and now I think I will!

It's a healthier version of pear cobbler, so there's a bit less guilt in splurging on it! Let me know if you like it!