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This Pecan Pie Cobbler recipe combines a traditional pecan pie with a cobbler for an easy dessert! The ingredients are layered in a baking dish, and hot water is poured over the top. Once baked, you get a delicious homemade cobbler with a golden crust and gooey pecan filling. It’s easy and best served with a big scoop of ice cream!
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Sometimes the best desserts are the simple ones, and a hot water cobbler is one of the easiest! If you’ve never heard of this type of cobbler, I’m so excited to share it with you. It’s easy and delicious.
Hot Water Cobbler Recipe
Some cobbler recipes have you mix up a batter to pour over a filling in a pan. However, a hot water cobbler is totally different.
For this type of dessert, you layer melted butter with pecans and the dry ingredients in a baking dish, pour boiling water over the top, and it turns into the most fantastic cobbler once it’s baked!
For this version, we’re making a Southern pecan pie cobbler. It takes a pecan pie filling, combines it with a cobbler batter, and turns it into a warm, gooey cobbler. So there’s no pie crust to worry about and no complicated steps.
Sometimes it’s called crazy crust pecan pie because when you get all of the ingredients in the pan, you’ll think, “there’s no way this will work!” But it does, and it magically forms three distinct layers: a pecan filling with an amazing caramel sauce, fluffy soft cake, and a golden crust. It tastes like a crustless pecan pie with cake. In other words, it’s so good!
Ingredients
Unsalted Butter: Cut it into tablespoon slices
All-Purpose Flour: Be sure to measure it correctly
Granulated Sugar: Sweetens the cobbler topping
Baking Powder: This helps the cobbler be nice and fluffy.
Salt: Needed since we started with unsalted butter.
Milk: This is our cobbler binder. You can use regular, 2%, nonfat, whole milk, or non-dairy milk.
Vanilla: Adds flavor to the pecan mixture
Chopped Pecans: You could leave them in halves if you prefer.
Brown Sugar: This makes the gooey pecan pie filling, like a Brown Sugar Pecan Pie. Be sure to pack it in your measuring cup.
Boiling Water: This is the magic of the cobbler! During baking the water mixes with all the cobbler ingredients and creates a soft and fluffy cobbler!
How to Make Pecan Pie Cobbler
- Mix the flour, granulated sugar, baking powder, and salt with a wire whisk in a large bowl.
- Next, whisk in the milk and vanilla. Set aside.
- Place the sliced butter in a 9×13” baking pan and place it in the oven while it preheats.
- Once butter is melted, remove the hot pan from the oven to your work surface and drop the flour mixture by the spoonful evenly over the melted butter.
- Sprinkle the chopped pecans over the top of the flour and butter, and then sprinkle the brown sugar evenly over the pecans.
- Lastly, pour the boiling hot water over the top of all the ingredients.
- Bake until puffed and set.
Recipe Tips
- When you melt the butter in the pan, be careful transferring it back and forth to the oven. The pan will be hot!
- It’s delicious served hot or warm, but you can also serve it at room temperature. Don’t forget to add some whipped cream or a scoop of vanilla ice cream!
- You can store the cobbler at room temperature for up to two days or in the refrigerator for up to three days. Just keep it loosely covered with plastic wrap.
FAQ
Yes, but it won’t be as good when it’s thawed. Part of what’s so great about a hot water cobbler is it gets a crisp, firm crust with a soft cake texture underneath. Freezing and then thawing it will ruin this texture and won’t be as good as when it’s freshly baked.
Keep it loosely covered either at room temperature or in the refrigerator.
You can serve it plain or with ice cream, whipped topping, or homemade whipped cream. Or do what I do and spoon half each of whipped cream and ice cream over the top! I also love that you can serve it warm or at room temperature.
A hot water cobbler is an easy way to make a cobbler. The ingredients are layered over melted butter in a pan and, once baked, transform into a delicious dessert with a sweet filling, soft cake, and a golden crust. Hot water cobblers are often made with fresh fruit but can have other fillings, too.
The only crazy thing about this pecan cobbler is how delicious it is! You might not go back to a regular pecan pie once you try it – it’s so easy. Enjoy!
Other Pecan Pie Desserts
Have you made this recipe?
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Pecan Pie Cobbler Recipe
Ingredients
- 6 tablespoons (91g) unsalted butter , sliced into tablespoons
- 1 ¼ cups I155g) all-purpose flour
- ¾ cup (150g) granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ⅔ cup (158ml) milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups (228g) chopped pecans
- 1 cup (200g) packed brown sugar
- 1 ½ cups (355ml) boiling water
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. While oven is preheating, place the butter in a 9×13-inch baking dish and place the pan in the oven so the butter can melt as the oven is warming.
- Whisk flour, granulated sugar, baking powder and salt in a medium sized bowl. Whisk in milk and vanilla extract.
- Once butter is melted, carefully remove hot pan from the oven. Drop spoonfuls of the flour mixture evenly all over the melted butter.
- Sprinkle the chopped pecans over the top of the batter, then sprinkle the brown sugar evenly over the pecans.
- Carefully pour the boiling water evenly over the top of the cobbler.
- Place the cobbler back in the oven and bake until the cobbler is golden brown all over, about 25-35 minutes.
- Cool slightly before serving. Store loosely covered for up to 2 days on the counter or 3 days in the refrigerator.
- Serve hot, warm, or room temperature with whipped cream, ice cream or plain.
Recipe Video
Recipe Notes
- Milk: You can use regular, 2%, nonfat or any non dairy milk.
- If you use salted butter, reduce the salt by ¼ teaspoon.
- You can boil the water in a kettle or do what I did: microwave it in a microwave safe measuring cup for about 3-5 minutes or until it boils. Be careful; the measuring cup will be hot to the touch.
Recipe Nutrition
This Pecan Pie Cobbler is a delicious homemade cobbler with a golden crust and gooey pecan filling – it’s the perfect flavors of pecan pie but in a cobbler!
Could I use almond milk or heavy cream?
I believe so, yes, although I haven’t tried it in this recipe, but it’s just for the cake part, and I’ve used nondairy in other cakes just fine.
What is the reason for adding the wet mixture to the butter by spoonfuls? It’s very loose and it would be easier to just pour it in.
I substituted maple extract for the vanilla….Maple Pecan Pie Cobbler….yummm!!!
Looks amazing, I will be making this for Thanksgiving this year😋
Can I cut the quantity of sugar to half in this recipe? Being diabetic can’t have too much sugar, or can I use Splenda as a substitute ?
I have not tried using a substitute but I’m sure you can! Usually I use half Splenda to sugar – let me know if you try it!
I’m sure you can lower the sugar – I have not tried sugar substitute. I am 99% sure splenda or similar would work, but I have not tried it. Can you let me know if you try it?
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