It’s pie time! After weeks of passing by the cherries in the grocery store, I finally bought some. 4 pounds worth. My cherry pie was a success! I made it on Saturday and it’s already gone…you might say that my husband and I really enjoyed it. You’d be right. 🙂 Juicy, plump cherries slathered in cherry sauce covered in a melt in your mouth pie crust. Yep, it’s good. I decided to go with a less tart cherry and used Bing cherries. I really liked the results, you must try this at home! Oh and the crust, the crust is my go-to crust…I just haven’t found one that I love as much!
Fresh Cherry Pie Print Recipe Here
From: Taste of Home Best-Loved Pies
Serves: 8
Prep: 25 Minutes
Bake: 55 Minutes + Cooling
Ingredients
1 1/4 cups sugar
1/3 cup cornstarch
1 cup cherry juice blend
4 cups fresh tart cherries, pitted or frozen pitted tart cherries, thawed
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
1 recipe of Pie Crust, see below
Directions
Combine the sugar and cornstarch in a large sauce pan. Slowly pour in the cherry juice and stir until smooth. Bring the mixture to a boil and stir for 2 minutes until thick. Remove pan from heat and add the cherries, cinnamon, nutmeg, and extract. Set aside.
Roll out one of the pie crusts on a lightly floured surface to fit a 9″ pie pan. Place crust in pie pan and trim the sides. Pour in the filling. Roll out the second pie crust and cut out lattice. Place lattice on top of the filling and trim, seal, and flute the edges.
In a 425 degree preheated oven, bake the pie for 10 minutes. Now reduce the heat to 375 degrees and continue baking for 45-50 minutes. The crust should be turning golden brown. Remove from oven and cool pan on a wire rack. Slice & serve after the pie has cooled. Enjoy!
Pie Crust
From: Paula Deen
Make 2 9″ Pie Crusts
Ingredients
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon fine salt
3 tablespoons granulated white sugar
1/4 cup vegetable shortening, cold
12 tablespoons butter, cold and cubed
1/4 cup to 1/2 cup ice water
Directions
Sift together the flour, salt, and sugar in a large bowl. Add in the cold shortening and work it into the flour with your hands or a pastry cutter. Now add the cold butter cubes and continue working until coarse crumbs form. Drizzle in the ice water, a little at a time, until the mixture comes together into a ball. Do not overwork the dough. Divide in half & flatten to form disks. Wrap each disk with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before rolling out.
I’ve got my recipes ready to go!
Look at this nifty recipe card holder that my parents made out of a fork.
Sift 2 1/2 cups of flour,
1/4 teaspoon fine salt,
and 3 tablespoons of granulated sugar into a large mixing bowl.
Get 1/4 cup of shortening ready. I pop mine in the freezer for about 10 minutes before I use it.
Break up the shortening with your hands.
Coat the shortening with the flour mixture.
Add the buttah.
Combine until the mix is crumbly.
I add a couple ice cubes to 1/4 cup of water and swirl it around.
Pour the ice water in, a little at a time, until the dough comes together.
Form the dough into a ball, when it comes together STOP working it.
Split the dough in half and form into disks. Wrap with plastic wrap and put in the fridge for at least 2 hours. I put mine in the freezer for about 15 minutes, that seems to work too.
Time to get the cherries ready! Wash 4 cups of cherries. More if you want to snack along the way like I did…
I don’t have a cherry pitter, so I had to get creative. I tried a nut cracker/opener thingy, but it was much to dangerous. I tried a straw, but it was much to flimsy. Then I tried a turkey baster….
and the turkey baster wins!
4 cups of cherries later and my hands were stained red.
Oh hey, my apron matches the pie I’m making. Sorry, I got distracted…back to baking!
Combine 1 1/4 cups of sugar
and 1/3 cup of cornstarch in a large saucepan.
Get your cherry juice blend ready. I used Ocean Spray.
Gradually stir in the cherry juice.
Bring the mixture to a boil and cook for 2 minutes or until thickened. Remove from heat.
Add the cherries,
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon,
and 1/4 teaspoon almond extract. Mix and set aside.
Take one disk of dough and get it ready to roll out.
Roll out into a 10-11″ circle.
Here’s my trick to get the dough into the pie plate easily. Fold the dough in half…
and in half again.
Place the quarter-folded dough into your pie plate.
Unfold once…
and twice. Now your dough is in the plate with no problems!
Clean up the edges. I like to flute the edges now, but you can wait until your lattice top is on if you want.
Dump the cherries in.
Roll out the second disk of dough. I use a ruler to cut out strips for the lattice. It’s not perfect, but it’ll do!
Place strips going vertical on your pie to start the lattice top.
I decided to play around with the traditional lattice by doing the second set of strips diagonally. Place the strip across the pie by alternating over & under the vertical set of strips.
Continue
until you have enough strips placed to cover the pie.
I then tuck the lattice strips into the pie and press them against the bottom crust.
Place in the oven at 425 for 10 minutes and then turn the oven down to 375 for 45-50 minutes. I put a pie crust shield on the pie for about 20 minutes of the cooking to prevent the crust from burning.
All done! Let the pie cool on wire rack.
Enjoy!
This looks so delicious!