I’ve been itching to bake and finally found an excuse to dip into my butter, sugar and flour supply this past Friday. That’s because my mom invited us kids – and our significant others – over for an early Fourth of July potluck dinner. I offered to bring dessert and when I asked my parents if they had any special requests, my dad quickly chimed in: “How about pie?” It was a done deal.
Since I’ve been obsessing over cherries, settling on a flavor was a no-brainer. You can use frozen fruit in the filling but fresh is best if it’s in season. Yes, pitting cherries is a bit tedious; however, the effort is well worth it. The same goes for the crust: Store-bought pie dough works in a pinch, but it’ll pale in comparison to one made from scratch.
While dinner (fresh heirloom tomato soup with cream, barbecued chicken and steak, German potato salad, steamed corn on the cob, and mixed greens) was delicious, everyone saved room for a slice of my sweet cherry pie. It was a hit – and Jason and my dad even went back for seconds.
Recipe adapted from A Cozy Kitchen.
- 2½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- 16 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold, cut into small pieces
- 4-5 tablespoons ice water
- 2 pounds sweet cherries, halved and pitted
- ¼ cup firmly packed light brown sugar
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 3 tablespoons cornstarch
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
- 1 egg, beaten
- 1 tablespoon Demerara sugar
- In a large bowl, combine the flour, granulated sugar and salt. Add the butter and rub it into the flour mixture with your fingertips until it resembles coarse meal. Add 4 tablespoons water and mix with a fork. If it is crumbly, add more water, 1 teaspoon at a time, until the ingredients start to come together. Then use your hands to lightly knead the dough in the bowl until it forms a ball.
- Turn the dough out onto a work surface and divide in half. Shape each half into a disc, wrap with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or up to 2 days.
- In a large bowl, combine all the filling ingredients.
- Remove 1 disc of dough from the refrigerator and let it sit for 5 minutes. On a lightly floured work surface, roll out dough to a 14" circle. Carefully transfer the dough to a 9” springform pan, pressing it against the bottom and sides. Pour the filling into the pie shell and transfer to the freezer.
- Remove the other disc of dough from the refrigerator and let it sit for 5 minutes. On a lightly floured work surface, roll out dough to a ¼"-thick circle. Using a sharp knife or pizza cutter, cut dough into 8 strips.
- Remove pie from the freezer and arrange strips over the filling to form a lattice. Gently press edges of lattice into the bottom crust to seal; use a sharp knife to trim excess dough.
- Press together scraps and roll out dough until it's about ¼" thick. Cut out small circles and lay them in a single layer on a baking sheet. Transfer cutouts and pie to the freezer and let chill for at least 30 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
- Remove cutouts and pie from the freezer. Brush the top crust with egg wash and arrange the cutouts over the edge of the lattice. Brush cutouts with more egg wash and sprinkle with the Demerara sugar.
- Place the springform pan on a baking sheet. Transfer to the oven and bake for 30 minutes.
- Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees and bake until the crust is golden brown, about 30 minutes. Check the pie after 20 minutes; if the top crust gets too brown before it is done baking, cover loosely with foil.
- Remove pie from the oven and let cool for 15 minutes. Then remove ring and transfer pie to a wire rack to cool for at least 2 hours before serving.
