Classic Cherry Pie

5 from 1 vote

You don’t need to be a pro baker to create a mouthwatering cherry pie with this easy and delicious recipe. No matter if using fresh, canned or frozen cherries, the homemade filling is irresistibly jammy and tangy, wrapped in a perfectly flaky pie crust!

Prep Time1

Cook Time1

Total Cooling6

Total Time8

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Difficulty: Easy

Servings: slices

Calories: 367kcal

Author: Nora from Savory Nothings

Ingredients

1 pie crust for double crust pie homemade or store-bought
5 cups pitted sweet or sour cherries about 1.5-2 lbs; OR 1.5lbs frozen; OR 3 (14.5-oz) cans cherries; see notes for using canned!
1 cup sugar for sweet cherries use ¾ cup
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
⅛ teaspoon almond extract optional
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon optional
⅛ teaspoon salt
¼ cup cornstarch or more as needed
4 tablespoons cool water
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 egg white mixed with 1 teaspoon water; brush pastry with heavy cream if not wanting to use egg
1 teaspoon granulated sugar or more to taste

Instructions

Note about crust: If making homemade crust, make at least 2 hours in advance to ensure adequate chilling time!

Make filling

Cook cherries: Place cherries in wide pan with sugar, vanilla extract, almond extract, cinnamon (if using) and salt. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, then reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, uncovered, for 5-10 minutes until cherries have released juices.
Thicken filling: Whisk cornstarch into water to make a slurry. Take pan with cherries off the heat, then quickly stir in cornstarch slurry, stirring constantly until fully incorporated into juices. Place pan back over medium-low heat and simmer filling until juices have thickened, about 2-3 minutes.
Taste and adjust: Taste filling, add lemon juice to taste (tart cherries may not need any). If filling is too thick, thin out with 1-2 tablespoons water. If filling is too thin, thicken with a little more cornstarch slurry (please note that filling thickens as it cools; consistency should be jammy or filling will be too thick and unpleasant to eat).
Cool filling: Allow filling to cool completely to room temperature. If needed, transfer to a wide shallow bowl to fasten cooling time, stirring from time to time.

Assemble pie

Bottom crust: Once pie crust has chilled at least 2 hours, and filling is at room temperature, assemble pie. Before you begin, place a well-buttered 9-inch pie dish in freezer for 15 minutes. Then roll out bottom crust between two sheets of baking parchment or plastic wrap to a circle 10 inches in diameter. Fit into pie dish, leaving any overhang attached. Place dish in fridge to chill for 15 minutes.
Prep oven: While bottom crust is chilling, place a foil-lined baking sheet in lower ⅓ of your oven. Turn on oven and preheat to 425°F.
Top crust: Roll top crust into a circle 10 inches in diameter the same way as bottom crust. Cut into strips ⅓ - ½ inch wide. Place in fridge until ready to use.
Assemble: Remove chilled dish with bottom crust from fridge. Spread pie filling in bottom crust, making sure to remove any air bubbles or gaps. Arrange top crust strips in a lattice weave on top of filling (see post for image instructions). Fold any overhang from bottom crust and lattice weave over to create edge, crimp to seal. Brush thinly with egg white wash and sprinkle with granulated sugar.

Bake pie

Bake: Place pie dish on prepared baking sheet in oven. Bake at 425°F for 15-20 minutes. Reduce heat to 375°F without opening oven door and finish baking for 30-40 minutes. Edges may get too dark after 20-30 minutes in oven, cover with foil or pie shield as needed. If lattice gets too dark, tent entire pie with foil. Pie is done when crust is flaky, golden brown and filling is starting to bubble up to crust around edges.
Cool: Once pie is done, turn off oven and remove pie using thick oven mitts. Remove any pie shield or foil (careful, hot!). Place pie on cooling rack to cool at least 2 hours or longer until at room temperature before slicing to serve.

Notes

Ingredient notes

Crust: My go-to is my homemade pie crust, and store-bought crusts can be tricky to use with fruit fillings because they tend to be a little thin. If you’re in a hurry and need to use a store-bought crust, just be mindful of using it well-chilled and make sure to not stretch it out when adding it to the pie dish.

Canned cherries

Strain cherries, catching juice, then place juice in a wide pan, reserving ⅓ cup. Add extracts, cinnamon and pinch of salt. Add sugar to taste (some cherries come in sweetened juice, be sure to adjust). Bring to a boil. Dissolve ⅓ cup cornstarch in ⅓ cup reserved juice. Take pan off the heat and whisk in cornstarch slurry until fully incorporated. Put pan back over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until thickened. Stir in lemon juice (if needed) and butter. Stir in cherries, adjust for taste and texture as described in recipe and allow to fully cool to room temperature. A deep dish pie dish may be needed when using canned cherries.

Recipe tips

Follow instructions to keep crust well chilled for best, flakiest results
Cool filling to room temperature before using in crust
Follow baking directions exactly for the most even baking
Keep pie from browning too much by using a pie shield or tenting with foil if needed
Cool pie on a cooling rack to avoid a soggy bottom
Be patient and allow adequate cooling before slicing into pie

Storage

Make ahead: Filling and crust can both be made ahead 2 days in advance, keeping both chilled in fridge until ready to use.
Leftovers: Keep leftovers covered on counter for up to 2 days.
Freezer: Freeze baked pie well wrapped in plastic wrap and foil for up to 3 months. Thaw in fridge overnight, allow to come to room temperature before serving.

Nutrition