Optional, for serving: vanilla ice cream; whipped cream
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and grease a deep-dish (9-inch) pie plate.
PREPARE THE BLUEBERRY FILLING:
In a large bowl, gently stir together the blueberries, sugar, cornstarch, lemon juice and vanilla extract. Transfer to the prepared dish.
PREPARE THE BISCUIT TOPPING:
In a large bowl (or in a food processor), combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Using a pastry cutter or two forks, cut the butter into the mixture until it resembles coarse meal (pea-sized crumbs). You can also do this by pulsing a food processor. Gently mix in the buttermilk, just until the dough comes together. Be careful not to overwork or over-mix the dough, or you will end up with tough, dry biscuits.
Plop the damp dough onto the blueberries (it won’t entirely cover the fruit, but it will spread as it bakes and give the cobbler that rustic appeal).
Bake for 50-55 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the biscuit topping comes out clean. If the biscuit topping starts to get too brown before it’s cooked through, just tent loosely with foil. Set aside and cool on a wire rack for about 5-10 minutes before serving.
Notes
You can use fresh or frozen blueberries in this cobbler recipe. If you're using frozen berries, do not thaw them first. The frozen fruit filling will be more saucy and juicy, but it's still great. You will likely need to increase the baking time by a few minutes.
The butter and buttermilk need to be as cold as possible for flaky and tender biscuits. You can freeze the cubed butter for about 10-20 minutes before using it or keep it in the refrigerator. I also keep the buttermilk in the refrigerator right up until it’s time to add it to the dough.
If the tops of the biscuits start to get too dark before they are completely cooked through, you can tent the dish loosely with foil during the final few minutes of baking.
Use any berries that you like, or a combination of berries to total about 5 cups. Blackberries, raspberries or diced strawberries would all be delicious additions to the cobbler filling.
Instead of lemon juice, try using orange juice in the filling. For a stronger citrus flavor, add lemon zest or orange zest to the filling, too.
Don't have buttermilk? You can make your own buttermilk for the biscuit topping using regular milk and lemon juice. To do so, stir 1.5 teaspoons of lemon juice into 1/2 cup of milk. Let sit for a few minutes in the refrigerator, and then use in the recipe as a substitute for the buttermilk.