Chocolate cobbler recipe for two made in a small baking dish. This Southern chocolate cobbler recipe is basically a brownie baked with hot fudge on the bottom.
This recipe is an updated version of the earlier chocolate cobbler on my site. I reduced the water by ¼ cup and tested both Dutch-processed and regular cocoa powder and they're both great here.
I’ve heard this chocolate cobbler recipe called many things over the years: chocolate pudding cake, mud pie, brownie pie, brownie fudge bake, death by chocolate, and more. But mainly, I hear it referred to as ‘the best chocolate dessert ever.’ Which is 100% true.
Essentially, it’s a brownie baked with hot fudge sauce, all in one pan!
The method to make this Chocolate Cobbler feels very strange. It starts with a thick layer of brownie batter on the bottom of the baking dish, followed by a crumbled dry mixture on top. Boiling water is poured on top of both layers in the dish—it is never stirred. Resist the urge to stir the layers together, or you will not get a layer of fudge on the bottom with brownie on top!
You will doubt me when you’re baking. You will think I’m crazy, but when it comes out of the oven, you will become a believer. At that point, you will praise me for helping you get brownies and hot fudge sauce in the same pan for such little effort!
This recipe for chocolate cobbler is amazing served with vanilla ice cream, because the heat of the fudge sauce just begs for it. Warm chocolate cake with fudge sauce and ice cream is the literal definition of ‘best chocolate dessert ever.’
Chocolate cobbler relies on milk for moisture and fluff. I use the milk that I always have in my fridge: Horizon Organic Grass-fed 2% milk.
I’m a long-time believer in grass-fed dairy (it’s what our grandparents ate, by the way), and was thrilled when my favorite organic milk by Horizon became available in a grass-fed version! I appreciate companies that make the extra effort to make products that are better for our health and the environment.
Grass-fed milk is higher in CLA (conjugated linoleic acid), which is one of the good fats that reduces heart disease and helps increase absorption of vitamins A and D in our bodies.
I’ve bought Horizon Organic milk for years, and love its creamy richness.
Fun side note: this recipe is entirely egg free, so if you’re out of eggs or avoiding eggs because of an egg allergy, you can enjoy this! I seem to have a lot of Mamas write writing to me and asking for more egg-free recipes for their kiddos once they discover my small batch of chocolate cupcakes are egg-free.
I made you a video to show you exactly how to make this chocolate cobbler for two recipe, because I wanted you to see the weird baking method. It's so hard to not to stir this before it heads to the oven, and I want you to see the texture of it.
Baking tips for this Southern Chocolate Cobbler Recipe:
-The pan I use has a 0.6-quart (20-ounce) capacity. Fill your baking dish up with water to test the capacity—it should hold 2.5 cups of water to the top.
-Bake this chocolate cobbler on a sheet pan to catch drips from the hot fudge sauce bubbling up from underneath.
-Let it cool for 15 minutes before scooping and serving with vanilla ice cream.
-Yes, the recipe really doesn’t have any eggs!
Chocolate Cobbler Recipe
Southern chocolate cobbler recipe for two.
Ingredients
- For the brownie bottom layer:
- ½ cup flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon instant espresso powder (optional)
- 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
- 5 tablespoons of Horizon Organic Grass-Fed 2% Milk
- 5 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
- ¾ teaspoon vanilla extract
- For the top layers:
- 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
- 4 tablespoons granulated sugar
- ¼ cup light brown sugar
- ½ cup hot tap water
- for serving: vanilla ice cream
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 and have ready a 0.6L (about 20 ounces) small ceramic dish.
- First, make the brownie layer: In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, espresso powder (if using), and the cocoa powder. Stir in the milk, granulated sugar, melted butter and vanilla. The batter will be very thick. Spread it in an even layer in the baking dish.
- In a separate bowl, make the top layer: whisk together the cocoa powder, sugar and brown sugar. Sprinkle this over the brownie batter evenly.
- Pour the hot tap water on top of everything, but DO NOT STIR.
- Bake the cobbler on a small sheet pan to catch overflow for 35 minutes. Let stand 15 minutes before serving hot.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield:
4Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 412Total Fat: 14gSaturated Fat: 7gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 6gCholesterol: 39mgSodium: 262mgCarbohydrates: 69gFiber: 2gSugar: 47gProtein: 5g
Carrie says
Pure chocolate bliss! This will be another frequent repeat!
Laura Potts says
I am so glad I found this recipe! My mom used to make this when I was growing up, only she made it in an 8x8 pan, so it served several people. I've always wished there was a way to make a smaller amount since I live alone. I'll definitely be making this soon!
sheryl hussey says
this is delish...i made it the first time and ate the whole thing by myself in one day...the second time, i halved it, and cooked it in the microwave , kind of like a brownie in a mug, it was done in 2 1/2 minutes! and it was delish!...
Ashley says
What wattage is your microwave? Mine is 700 watt and I'm trying to judge how long this would take if I also halved the recipe. Thanks.
Renee M. says
Made this tonight for the family and it was absolutely delicious! I used a small casserole dish. Not sure of the size but it was big enough so nothing ran over the edges. Thank goodness! Wouldn’t want to waste a drop of it! It was the perfect amount for the 4 of us with a scoop or two of ice cream on top. Just sooooo good! Great dessert for a special occasion.
Barbara says
Happened to have the right size dish - thanks so much for explaining the correct size in such detail. This recipe was a great treat! With just the 2 of us, it made enough for 4 servings. I made it with Hershey’s Special Dark cocoa powder; next time I’ll try it with regular, plain cocoa powder. Also, in my countertop convection oven, it baked for 35 minutes at 325* (rather than 350*) & it turned out fine.
Cheri says
You said you made a video, there is no video that I can find in this post
Christina Lane says
It's in the side bar on mobile. It's in the paragraph on desktop. Unless you have ad blocker and pop-up blocker enabled?
C Molieri says
Last night I was thinking about chocolate pudding cake from my childhood and decided I needed to search for a two serving recipe. This morning I open Pinterest and this is one of the first things I see! Thank you for developing a small batch recipe. As a chocoholic and diabetic I don’t dare have a full sized cake in the house. I am looking forward to trying this out sometime when I have someone to share it with.
Karen says
Has anyone tried making this on the STOVETOP ? My mom used to make a similar dish and she made it in a medium? saucepan on the stove. I am pretty sure she had the lid on but not sure of the burner setting. I am ovenless currently and would like to try doing it on the stovetop. Her recipe was very close to yours but had chopped nuts and was called Chocolate Brownie Pudding. Thanks~
Amanda S says
I'd like to try baking this in 2 ramekins, any guesses for how much baking time to reduce? Or what is the best way to watch/judge that it is done since with the sauce at the bottom the toothpick probably wouldn't be helpful. I know that isn't the way you wrote or designed the recipe, thanks for any educated guesses you could suggest
Brenda L Torres says
I don't see myself sharing this with anybody....