Blackberry Cranberry Sauce Cobbler

Cranberry sauce can be a great addition to a cobbler or crisp recipe. The basic cranberry sauce recipe calls for whole berries and sugar, which are also the two main ingredients in most fruit cobbler recipes (although you can use fruits besides berries, of course!). The cranberry sauce is already cooked, so it isn’t necessarily a great choice on its own to serve as the base for a cobbler, but it can be combined with all kinds of other fruits to make some delicious desserts.

This recipe for Blackberry Cranberry Sauce Cobbler is a great way to use a little bit of leftover cranberry sauce. It uses whole blackberries and whole cranberries, in addition to the cranberry sauce. The blackberries are much sweeter than the cranberries, so they give a rich flavor and a nice sugar level to the dish. The cranberry sauce helps to bring out the flavor of the cranberries without emphasizing their tartness, which simply adding more cranberries could do.

Use fresh or frozen berries for this dish, depending on what you have on hand. I like it simple, with just a bit of ice cream or whipped cream on the side. It is definitely best when it is fresh from the oven – especially if it is cold outside! If you don’t have cranberry sauce, add an extra half cup of blackberries. The cobbler will have a little bit less of a pronounced cranberry flavor than the cranberry sauce version, but it will still turn out to be a tasty, simple dessert.

Blackberry Cranberry Sauce Cobbler
Filling
2 cups fresh or frozen blackberries
2 cups fresh or frozen cranberries
1/2 cup whole berry cranberry sauce
1/3 cup sugar
2 tbsp cornstarch

Topping
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup quick cooking oats (not instant)
1/4 cup sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/4 cup butter, melted and cooled
1 cup buttermilk
coarse sugar, for topping

Preheat oven to 375F.
In a medium bowl, combine all filling ingredients and stir well. Transfer to 9-inch square baking dish.
In a large mixing bowl, make the topping. Stir together flour, oatmeal, sugar, baking powder, nutmeg and salt. Pour in butter and buttermilk and stir to combine, mixing until no streaks of dry ingredients remain. Drop dollops of topping onto cherry mixture forming a roughly even layer with a “cobbled-together” look. Sprinkle with coarse sugar for a touch of extra sweetness, if desired.
Bake for 40 minutes, or until topping is browned and fruit is thick and bubbling.
Cool for at least 15 minutes before serving.

Serves 8