Tangy red currant cobbler with a sweet and easy-to-make, soft pastry topping. Ready in 30 minutes.

Today's red currant cobbler is simple, something to make when the guests are already knocking on your door without having previously announced their visit. It happens to us all the time, especially on a lazy Sunday afternoon, when you cannot go shopping for stuff you might need and when you don't feel like spending too much time in the kitchen either.
I often bake on Sundays, especially when I know people are coming, but this easy red currant dessert has proved to be a lifesaver on those occasions when people are not announcing their coming or only do so about half an hour before they come.
Why should you make this currant cobbler?
- The cobbler is a great thing to eat not only in summer when the red currants are plentiful but throughout the year as well, as you can definitely use frozen red currants to make this.
- It is versatile; you can make it with red, white, or black currants; you can make it with blueberries, blackberries, gooseberries, or raspberries. Of course, either fresh or frozen.
- And if you don't happen to have any berries, you can use fruit: peaches, nectarines, plums, grapes, and so on.
Ingredients
Red currants:
- Very tart, beautiful berries. You can get them at the market and even in the supermarket during the summer months.
- When out of season, you can use frozen berries or other kinds of berries. Or softer fruit, like peaches, nectarines, plums, or grapes chopped into small pieces.
- If using frozen berries, let them thaw and drain well in a colander before adding them to the baking dish.
Icing sugar: About 6 tablespoons. They are enough to balance the tartness of the berries.
Other ingredients: eggs, all-purpose flour, flaked almonds, vanilla extract, and a little unsalted butter.
How to make a cobbler?
- Wash and dry the berries. Only remove the stem after washing and drying them. Place them in the buttered baking dish.
- Whisk the eggs, sugar, and vanilla extract until thick and pale, about 5 minutes. Sieve the flour over this mixture and fold it carefully. Pour the batter over the berries in the baking dish.
- Sprinkle the flaked almonds on top, dot with the two teaspoons of butter, and bake in the middle of the hot oven for about 20-25 minutes until golden.
- That's it! And you can serve it immediately!
Expert Tips
We had some queries regarding the amounts of sugar and flour needed for this recipe, apparently, people are worried they might not be enough even before trying the recipe.
- Sugar: Six tablespoons of icing sugar are enough to make the topping of the cobbler very, very sweet, and after making this dessert so many times over the years, I have never felt the need to use more sugar.
- Red currants are probably the tartest berries I know, and they will remain tart after baking, but that's what we love about this recipe: to taste the genuine tartness of the currants, which is balanced by the very sweet topping.
- We always serve this dessert with a sweet sauce or topping (as you can read below), and that also mellows the tartness of the dish.
- Flour: Only four tablespoons, and that is the right amount; I didn't make a mistake when writing the recipe. This is not a cake; it's more of a dessert casserole, where the main ingredients of the topping are the eggs held together by a little flour.
How to serve?
- The red currant cobbler can be served directly out of the oven or at room temperature.
- I always serve it with a topping. Despite the juicy red currant layer, the sponge cake is rather on the dry side, and a topping keeps the balance between the dry and the wet components.
- When served, hot vanilla ice cream is the best choice.
- Otherwise, vanilla sauce or freshly whipped cream are amazing choices as well.
- Or, what I also like to serve with a cobbler, a crisp, or a crumble: some crème Fraiche mixed with a little brown sugar. Leave it until the sugar dissolves, and serve. Delicious!
More red currant recipes:
- Red Currant Cake - German Recipe
- Prawn Salad with Red Currant Sauce
- Mini Fruit Tarts
- Spitzbuben Cookies (with red currant jam)
- Original Linzer Torte (with jam as well)
Red Currant Cobbler
Ingredients
- 300 g red currants 10.5 oz, Note
- 3 eggs large
- 6 tablespoons icing sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 4 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 2-3 tablespoons flaked almonds
- 2 teaspoons soft unsalted butter
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 200 degrees Celsius/ 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Butter a medium casserole form.
- Prepare red currants: Wash and dry them. Only remove the stems after cleaning them. Place them on the bottom of the prepared form.
- Batter: Whisk the eggs, sugar, and vanilla extract until thick and pale, about 5 minutes. Sieve the flour over this mixture and fold it carefully. Pour the batter on top of the berries. Sprinkle the flaked almonds on top and dot with the butter.
- Bake in the middle of the hot oven for about 20-25 minutes until golden.
- Serve warm with vanilla ice cream or cooled with whipped cream, vanilla sauce, or crème Fraiche mixed with brown sugar.
Notes
- You can use other berries instead. If using frozen berries, defrost them and drain well in a colander.
grace says
we just don't use currants much (if ever) over here, and that's a shame! love this idea and the ratio of cake to fruit. 🙂
Adina says
In Romania, we never used red currants either although they grow there as well, here in Germany everybody loves them.
Laura Dembowski says
I don't get to work with currants much, but when I do next I am making this cake. Gorgeous!
Adina says
I hope you try it, Laura. Thank you. 🙂
Mike D says
Your recipe is really flawed. 4 Tbsp of Flour? That wouldnt even cover a coffee cup with dough, especially for 10 oz of currants. No sugar in the currants either, which will make them bitter, unless you like bitter tasting deserts. You might need to revise this, its totally off.
Adina says
The recipe is ok, try it before you judge it! And currants will never go bitter, they are thoroughly sour, I can't imagine anything you could do to them to make them bitter. 6 tablespoons sugar in the batter are more than enough to balance their sourness, and again, they would not turn bitter in a million years just because they weren't mixed with sugar. The amount of flour is right as well, this is a dessert, not a cake.
Rissa says
I just made your recipe, and it was wonderful! I added extra red currants (as I have a glut of them at the moment) and only used 4 tablespoons of icing sugar, and it was plenty sweet enough for my taste. My mother-in-law loved it so much she asked for the recipe! Now I'm eager to try it with rhubarb at the base, although I think it might need a bit of liquid/sugar with the rhubarb, maybe.
Adina says
Thank you so much for the feedback. I am happy you all liked the recipe.
Margaret Minoletti says
I really enjoyed both making and eating this cobbler. I have a disability which makes standing for any length of time very challenging so at last a dessert I can make reasonably quickly. We have a glut of redcurrants and so found this recipe ideal. I agree with you Alina- no extra sugar required as the redcurrants have a clear flavour that is tempered by the icing sugar in the topping. The topping set fine- no need to alter it at all. My only question is what do you use the two knobs of butter for?
A great recipe- thank you
Adina says
Hi Margaret. Thank you so much for the feedback. The butter goes on top of the cobbler just before baking together with the almonds. I will add that; thank you for pointing out it's missing.