This gluten free apple cobbler is a winner across categories: it's gluten free, dairy free, egg free, and so delicious. There's nothing quite like digging into a warm and gooey cobbler full of juicy apple and crisp biscuit pieces. Add (dairy free) ice cream or whipped topping to make the experience even more heavenly!
Apple cobbler is one of those classic desserts that brings back warm, fuzzy feelings with each bite. If you've been dreaming of desserts of the past and thinking your days of enjoying treats are over, don't worry! This recipe has all of the traditional flavors, but with no gluten, dairy, or eggs. With the right ingredients, this sweet, fruit-filled dessert comes together easily. Bake it for the family or take it to a party where it will be loved by many.
Want more gluten free cobblers? Check out this blueberry cobbler and this peach cobbler!
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Table of contents
Why this recipe is the best!
This recipe turns out a lovely, classic apple cobbler every time. It will soon become your ol' reliable for family gatherings, holidays, and potlucks. The fact that it's allergy-friendly just makes it even better! Here are a few more things you'll love about this gluten free apple cobbler:
- It has all the delicious apple and buttery biscuit flavors of a traditional apple cobbler.
- On top of being free of gluten, it is also dairy and egg free (but substitutions for things like butter can be made if you don't need it to be dairy free).
- It takes less than 30 minutes to prep, which gives you plenty of time to clean up and get a few other things done while it bakes.
- This dessert serves 8, so it's perfect for an after-family-dinner dessert.
💭Pro tips for making this cobbler
1. Use cold butter
It's important to use cold butter to make the biscuits. I recommend leaving your butter in the refrigerator until you need to combine it with the flour mixture. Like these biscuits, the goal is to have a mixture that resembles crumbs, so the butter shouldn't be soft or melted to achieve the right texture.
2. Chill the biscuit dough
Make sure you take 15 minutes to let the biscuit dough chill in the refrigerator. This allows it to firm up so that you can spoon dollops of the dough onto the apple mixture and it won't be too thin and runny.
3. Use Granny Smith apples
I highly recommend using Granny Smith apples in this recipe. They are easily one of the best kinds of apples to bake with because they are a bit tart, so they balance the flavors in the dessert really well.
4. Slice the apples ¼ inch thick
Like in most apple recipes, the size of the apple pieces is important to get right. If the pieces are too big they'll be under-baked and too crunchy, and if they're too small they'll just turn into mush. So ¼ inch thick pieces of apple are optimal for the baking temperature and time of this recipe. They'll be baked just enough with a lovely texture to bite into.
5. Helpful tools
Here are a few tools that will help you make this gluten free apple cobbler:
- Digital Scale (to accurately measure the dry ingredients)
- Whisk
- Pastry blender
- Sturdy spoon
- 2 large bowls
- 2-quart baking dish
- Aluminum foil
🍏Slicing the apples
This recipe calls for two and a half pounds of sliced apples. To make this process a bit easier, use a potato peeler to peel the apples before slicing. The ideal size for them is ¼ inch wide. Any larger and they may not bake all the way through.
Ingredients & substitutions
- Gluten free flour mix - King Arthur Measure for Measure Gluten Free Flour Mix was tested in this recipe. Other flour mixes may work but haven't been tested.
- Sugar - The granulated sugar can be swapped for Swerve sweetener.
- Baking powder - There is no substitute for the baking powder.
- Baking soda - There is no substitute for the baking soda.
- Salt - The salt can be omitted if you are following a low salt diet.
- Butter - Country Crock vegan butter was tested in this recipe but you can use a different brand or regular butter instead.
- Buttermilk - You can use regular buttermilk if you can tolerate dairy, or you can make your own vegan buttermilk with white vinegar and non dairy milk.
- Apples - I recommend using Granny Smith apples in this recipe.
- Brown Sugar - I don't recommend substituting the brown sugar.
- Lemon juice - There is no substitute for the lemon juice.
- Cornstarch - Tapioca starch can be used in place of the cornstarch.
- Vanilla extract - There is no substitute for the vanilla extract.
- Cinnamon - There is no substitute for the cinnamon.
- Nutmeg - There is no substitute for the nutmeg.
Measurements for each ingredient, along with instructions for making the apple cobbler are in the recipe card below.
Note about vegan buttermilk
You can quickly and easily make vegan buttermilk by adding 2 tablespoons of white vinegar to a measuring cup and filling to the ¾ cup line with non dairy milk. Let this sit for 5 minutes to develop and you have yourself some non dairy buttermilk!
Mixing
First up is making the biscuit mixture. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour mix, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt (step 1 above). Next, use a pastry blender to cut in the butter until the mixture resembles crumbs (step 2). Mix in the buttermilk with a spoon until batter forms (step 3). Cover the bowl and chill in the refrigerator for 15 minutes (step 4). Then preheat the oven to 350F and slice the apples.
Next up is the apple mixture. In a large bowl mix the apples, brown sugar, lemon juice, cornstarch, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt with a sturdy spoon (step 5). Spray a 2-quart baking dish with cooking spray and spread the apple mixture into the dish (step 6). Place heaps of biscuit dough on top of the apples. The dough doesn't need to fully cover the apple mixture.
Baking & serving
Bake the apple cobbler at 350F for 50-60 minutes. Cover with foil after 45 minutes if the biscuits start browning too quickly. It should be bubbling slightly and the biscuits should be slightly browned when it's done. This dessert is its absolute best when served warm with ice cream or whipped cream on top!
Storing
Apple cobber can be stored in the fridge, with a lid on the dish or in an airtight container. Although I highly recommend you enjoy it to the fullest when it's fresh out of the oven!
FAQ's
It will last for about 4 days stored in the fridge. It reheats very well - reheat servings for about 1 minute in the microwave.
Chilling the dough for 15 minutes is an important step you won't want to skip. Letting it chill will allow the dough to get more firm so you can scoop spoonfuls of it into the apples, and when it bakes it will hold its shape.
Yes, absolutely. While I don't feel like there's quite enough apples in canned apple pie filling, it can absolutely be used in this cobbler. Use two of the 20 ounce cans.
More dessert recipes!
Recipe
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Gluten Free Apple Cobbler: Dairy and Egg Free
Ingredients
Biscuits
- 200 grams King Arthur Measure for Measure Gluten Free Flour Mix about 1 ½ cups
- 70 grams granulated sugar about ⅓ cup
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 6 Tablespoons vegan butter cold
- ¾ cup vegan buttermilk cold
Apples
- 2 ½ pounds apples Granny Smith, peeled and sliced ¼ inch thick
- 73 grams brown sugar about ⅓ cup
- 1 Tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 Tablespoon cornstarch
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon nutmeg
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
Instructions
For the biscuits:
- In a large bowl, add flour mix, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Whisk until fully combined.
- Using a pastry blender, cut in the butter until mixture resembles crumbs.
- Add the buttermilk and mix with a spoon until batter forms.
- Cover bowl of batter and set in the refrigerator to chill for 15 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 350F. Prepare apples.
For the apples:
- In a large bowl, add the apples, brown sugar, lemon juice, cornstarch, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt. Mix with a large spoon to combine all ingredients.
- Spray a 2 quart baking dish with cooking spray.
- Spread apple mixture into bowl.
- Place heaps of biscuit dough onto apples. Bowl will be full. It does not need to fully cover each apple.
- Bake for 50-60 minutes, covering with foil, if needed, at 45 minutes.
- Serve warm with dairy free ice cream or whipped cream.
Notes
- To make dairy free buttermilk, add 2 Tablespoons white vinegar to a measuring cup, fill to the ¾ cup mark with dairy free milk. Let the mixture sit for at least 5 minutes to develop.
- Recipe was tested with King Arthur Measure for Measure GF flour mix.
- Granulated sugar in the biscuits can be substituted with Swerve sweetener.
- I would not recommend substituting the brown sugar in the apple mixture.
- Granny Smith apples are recommended in the recipe.
- Recipe was tested with Country Crock vegan butter. Regular butter or another variety of vegan butter can be used.
- Biscuit mixture does not need to perfectly cover the apples.
- Apple cobbler is best served warm, but will also last for up to 4 days, covered in the refrigerator, after baking.
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