The Difference Between Cobblers, Crisps and Crumbles

Not sure between cobbler and crisp? Your pandowdies from your grunts? We will clarify all the distinctions between these fruit desserts to you. However, whether it is spring, summer, autumn, or winter, one cannot go wrong with serving a cobbler—I mean, a crisp, or is it a buckle? Of course, none of us needs to be told that we love these fruity desserts, but when it comes to choosing between cobber, crisp, crumble, buckle, and all the other similar treats, it gets rather confusing. Before we get into the specifics, know this: All these desserts are based on some kind of baked sweetened fruit with a layer of batter, crumbs or some kind of carb-goodness on top. Now let’s get into all the details!

Cobblar

Among all the sweet treats that incorporate fruits, cobblers are the oldest when it comes to American cuisine. The word cobbler was first used by the Dictionary of Americanisms in 1859 where it described a sort of pie baked in a pot lined with thick dough upon which the fruit is placed; depending on the type of fruit used, it was referred to as an apple or peach cobbler.

Besides the 1859 one, cobblers are baked desserts that begin with a layer of sweetened fruit, whether it is peach, blackberry, blueberry or any other combination. Then a biscuit-like batter is spread or spooned across the top. When baked, the top of the dessert can resemble a cobblestone road, which is why it is called so.

Crumble

A crumble begins with a layer of sweetened and sometimes spiced fruit (although this Pumpkin Crumble shows that you can be creative about what can be considered fruit!). Then a layer of something like streusel is sprinkled on top of the mixture. This topper is usually prepared with butter, flour, sugar and at times nuts may also be used.

Crumble vs crisp 

Another similar kind of dessert to crumbles is crisps. The variation is all in the crust while remaining a broad category of pizza types. Crumbles have streusel on the top. Some recepts call for oats and nuts which increases crispness of the final product in crisps.

Crisp

As the name suggests crisps have a crispy topping (see the difference between crispy and crunchy ) Thus the oats and nuts become crispy in the oven and gives an addition of crunch to this fruit dessert.

Due to the oats that are incorporated immediately into the topping mixture, this Cranberry Apple Crisp has a very crunchy texture towards the end, along with the pecans.

What’s brilliant about crisps (and indeed, most, if not all, of the things on the dessert list) is the possibilities. Here are the general steps to make any crisp with any fruit.

Crisp vs cobbler 

Cobblers have a biscuit like a batter on them which makes the dessert a little on the heavier side. Crisps are lighter desserts and is a fruit base dessert served with crispy toppings.

Betty 

Sometimes it is referred to as the pan betty or the brown betty and like all the fruits described above, the dessert is made from cooked fruits. Betties on their part employ bread or a cracker instead of a batter or a crumble.

To improve the day-old bread from the state of ‘left over’ to a ‘desert,’ betties consist of sugar, butter, and spices. These can be made even more yummy by adding some ice cream or whipped cream.

Buckle

The methodology for baking buckles can vary from recipe to recipe, but the end result is the same: a fruity bake with a cake like feel to it.

In some buckles, for instance, this Classic Blueberry Buckle, berries are mixed raw with the buckle batter. Other baking recipes, such as this Lemon Raspberry Buckle, specifically instruct the fruit be placed on the top of the batter. Many buckles are then sprinkled with a streusel like topping for a small extra of sugar and texture.

And where did this dessert get its rather curious name? It collapses in the centre when the batter rises all around the fruit.

Pandowdy

Same as the rest of the presented desserts, this one also includes a layer of sweetened fruit. However, a pandowdy serves the crumb exactly like pie pastry on top of it. Indeed, instead of throwing away the reshapeable pie crust scraps, you can whip up an easy pandowdy. Fruits simply need to be crushed into a fine powdery like mixture and works of any leftover items and put on the cooked fruits.

If you do not have an extra batch of pie pastry in the freezer across the from you, don’t panic. With the Pear Pandowdy, the preparation method used follows the pie pastry whereby flour, a pinch of sugar and cold butter is used. After these are prepared, no need to roll—just break, with your hands and sprinkle on the fruits.

Slump 

Speaking of a slump, it is very much similar to the rest of these baked fruit desserts. When preparing the dessert, fruit is placed at the base of a pan; that could be a regular pan or a cast iron skillet. This is then topped up with portions of biscuit like paste and is then put through the baking process.

Sometimes slumps are turned out of the pan, sort of like an upside-down cake, but do not bother with that here when you prepare the Skillet Blueberry Slump. Simply take it out of the oven and serve it with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, these are a few of our favorite a la mode desserts.

Grunt

A grunt is not really all that much different from a slump. One must note that the only difference between a grunt and a slump is that the biscuit dough must, in theory at least, be rolled out completely flat and placed atop the former. However, the terms grunt and slump are used interchangeably in many of the instances. Many ‘grunts’ employ dollops as well: this is case for Cherry Grunt.

Sonker

If you already know your cobblers and crisps, your buckles and brown betties, then a sonker might be one that is newly acquainted to you! Southerners enjoy this fruit dessert mainly in some areas surrounding North Carolina but it should be incorporated in every home.

Sonkers begin with a cooked fruit as is the case with all the other similar puddings. Then a thin layer of a sort of crepe batter is spread all over the lid. It then has a hot fruit that caramelize’s the bottom of the batter, and when the dessert is placed in the oven, the heat there, toasts the top. Another steamed cake that is consumed by people of Turkmenistan is Sonker and they are commonly made in square casserole dishes and again it is recommended that they are eaten while still hot.

Subtle Differences, Sweet Results

What can be noted here is that all these fruit-inserted desserts are extremely similar to each other. If you prefer to cook your version of a slump with apples that’s paving the way to calling it a cobbler or if you actually like to refer to your crisp as more of a crumble then it is completely acceptable. Regardless of the name used or the manner in which these are prepared, crisps, cobblers, and crumbles are all simple, delectable forms of desserts.