Crisps, crumbles and cobblers have a lot in common. For instance:
- They are all best served warm.
- All contain fruit that is mixed with sugar and often thickened with flour, cornstarch or tapioca.
- They are often served with ice cream or whipped cream on the side.
- All are popular simple summer desserts that use readily available fruit. They’re also typically great to bake on a brick on the barbecue.
- As delicious rustic desserts, they are generally served right from the baking dish or pan.
So what makes them different from one another? We have a set of working definitions we use with an Alberta kitchen in mind, though different countries and regions may use different names or recipe criteria.
Cobbler: A fruit dessert made with a top crust of pie dough or biscuit dough but no bottom crust.
Crisp/crumble: In Alberta, the terms are mostly interchangeable. Both refer to fruit desserts similar to cobbler but made with a brown sugar streusel topping sometimes containing old-fashioned rolled oats. The crisp/crumble is then baked until browned and crisp, as the name suggests.
Brown Betty: A variant on the crisp, Brown Betties are made with alternating layers of fruit with spices and buttered crumbs.
Because there are so many variations on recipes for crisps, crumbles, cobblers and Brown Betties, and because one region’s crisp is another region’s cobbler, don’t judge the recipe by name alone. If you want a biscuit-topped cobbler, look for the biscuit topping in the recipe instead of solely relying on the name.
FAQs
Cobbler: A fruit dessert made with a top crust of pie dough or biscuit dough but no bottom crust. Crisp/crumble: In Alberta, the terms are mostly interchangeable. Both refer to fruit desserts similar to cobbler but made with a brown sugar streusel topping sometimes containing old-fashioned rolled oats.
What is the difference between a crisp and a brown betty? ›
A brown betty is similar to a crisp or crumble, except the topping is layered into the fruit mixture before baking for an intensely crunchy effect. Food Network Kitchen's Grilled Rhubarb Brown Betty is warm, sweet and super-crisp — excellent when served with a scoop of strawberry ice cream.
What is the difference between apple crisp and crumble? ›
Apple Crumble is synonymous with Apple Crisp in the U.K. and Australia, but in Canada and the U.S., it is a slightly different dish. Like an apple crisp, an apple crumble is a baked fruit dessert with a layer of topping. But unlike the crisp, the crumble topping rarely includes oats or nuts.
What's the difference between a pandowdy and a cobbler? ›
Pandowdy: A pandowdy is a deep-dish baked fruit dessert with a flaky pie or biscuit topping. The main difference between a pandowdy and a cobbler is that the topping is rolled out to the shape of the baking dish, placed on top of the fruit mixture and partially baked.
Why is it called Brown Betty? ›
This has led some historians to believe that Betty was the name of the cook and creator of the recipe and that brown was in reference to her skin color.
What makes a cobbler a cobbler? ›
Cobbler is usually topped with batter or biscuits in lieu of crust. Cobbler's name comes from its sometimes cobbled texture, which is a result of spooning or dropping the topping over the fruit rather than distributing it equally. This way, the filling can peek through.
What do Americans call crumble? ›
An apple crisp dessert is made with a streusel topping. In the US, it is also called apple crumble, a word which refers to a different dessert in the UK, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. Ingredients usually include cooked apples, butter, sugar, flour, cinnamon, and often oats and brown sugar, ginger, and/or nutmeg.
What's the difference between a pie and a cobbler? ›
The biggest difference is that a cobbler is so easy to make (easier than pie!). While a pie is made with a bottom crust and often a top crust, the dough and the fruit filling cook together in a cobbler. Peach cobbler is best served warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top, but it's also delicious cold.
What is a crumble crumble? ›
A crumble is typically a dessert with a crumbly topping consisting of flour, butter, sugar, and sometimes oats, baked over a fruit filling.
Why is my crumble not crispy? ›
The main reason your crumble topping isn't crunchy is probably because you haven't used Demerara sugar. Although, it could also be that you've got your topping ingredient quantities wrong: either too much or not enough flour and butter alongside the sugar.
Apple Crisp is very much like apple pie in that it doesn't NEED to be refrigerated, but the shelf life will be extended if you do store it in the refrigerator. I recommend storing it on the countertop for up to two days, or up to four days in the refrigerator.
What's the difference between a pear crumble and a cobbler? ›
For the record, though, and in case you join me in wondering, the differences are mainly in the toppings: The streusel topping on a crisp contains oats. The streusel topping on a crumble does not contain oats. A cobbler features a biscuit topping, giving it a cobbled-road appearance and inspiring the name.
What is the difference between a cobbler and a betty? ›
Betty. Whereas crisps and cobblers are made up of a layer of fruit with either a streusel or pastry topping, with apple betty and its variations, we start constructing desserts made of alternating layers of fruit and pastry—or in this case crumbs.
What is the difference between a cobbler and crisp? ›
Whereas crisps and crumbles are topped with a streusel-like mixture, cobblers are topped with a cake-like batter or a biscuit-like dough.
What is the difference between a buckle and a brown betty? ›
A brown betty is both layered and topped with sweet butter crumbs. The crumbs should be dry to absorb between the layers while remaining crunchy on top. Breadcrumbs or graham-cracker crumbs are used in this dessert. A buckle is generally made with berries folded in cake batter before baking with some crumb topping.
What is the secret to crunchy crumble? ›
A pastry chef friend shared the technique. Instead of sprinkling the raw crumbs on top of the fruit, where they absorb the juices and turn a little mushy on their undersides, he spread them out in a pan and baked them separately, until crisp and cookielike.
What is the American version of crumble? ›
A crisp is “a type of dessert consisting of fruit baked with a crumble topping,” according to the Oxford English Dictionary's definition, citing an early use in a 1916 recipe for an apple crisp with a topping of butter, sugar, and flour that's mixed together by rubbing your fingertips “*ntil crumbly.” Often, at least ...
What makes a crisp a crisp? ›
Chips are made from potatoes cut into long lengths approximates 10 to 12mm think and deep fried in hot vegetable oil. Crisps are cut into thin slices approximately 2 mm thick and fried in hot oil.
What does crumble mean in baking? ›
A crumble is a baked pudding made from fruit covered with a mixture of flour, butter, and sugar. [British] ... apple crumble.