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Piece of pie on white plate with forkful.
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5 from 2 votes

Homemade Cherry Pie

Classic summer cherry pie with tart cherries, in season or canned, in a perfectly flaky crust.
Prep Time1 hour 30 minutes
Cook Time1 hour
Total Time2 hours 30 minutes
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Servings: 8 slices
Calories: 537kcal

Ingredients

For Crust:

  • cups unbleached, all purpose flour
  • teaspoons sugar, more to sprinkle on finished top
  • 1 teaspoon salt (I use Kosher salt, even for baking)
  • ½ cup chilled unsalted butter (I actually like salted Kerrygold for this crust), cut into ½-inch cubes 1 stick
  • ½ cup chilled lard, ½-inch pieces
  • 5 tablespoons, at least, ice water
  • 1 egg and 1 tablespoon milk or water, for egg wash

For Filling:

  • 4 cups canned tart cherries, drained (2 cans) or fresh tart cherries, washed and pitted
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 3 tablespoons tapioca use instant Minute Tapioca
  • 1 tablespoon butter, to dot on top

Instructions

  • Make crust. In a food processor, pulse flour, sugar and salt to blend. Add cubed butter and lard and pulse on/off until mixture resembles coarse meal. You should still see pieces of butter and lard. Transfer mixture to bowl and add 5 tablespoons of ice water. Mix with a fork until dough starts to clump together. If too dry, add more ice water by teaspoonfuls until you can gather dough into ball. Divide in half and flatten each half into a disc. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for AT LEAST 1 hour.
  • Preheat oven to 425º. About 15 minutes or so before dough is ready to roll, make filling. In bowl, combine drained cherries, 1 cup sugar and tapioca. Set aside and let sit for 15 minutes.
  • In small dish, whisk together egg and milk, set aside.
  • Remove 1 disc of dough. Lightly flour work surface and rolling pin. Roll dough from center out, turning frequently and adding more flour if sticking. Transfer dough to glass pie dish and gently press into place. Trim excess dough but leave some overhang. Patch any holes or tears with dough scraps. Return to refrigerator while you roll the 2nd disc for the top.
  • As with the bottom, roll the top disc into a large round to top the pie. Remove bottom crust in the plate from refrigerator. Fill with cherry mixture and then dot with 1 tablespoon butter.
  • Carefully place top crust over filling. If you can, try rolling the dough around the pin and then unroll it over the filling. Trim excess dough and roll under edges and crimp, with a fork or flute with thumb and index finger. Brush top and edges with egg wash and sprinkle with sugar. Using a small knife, cut 4 or 5 slits in top crust to vent.
  • Place pie on baking sheet and bake in middle of oven for 20 minutes. Turn heat down to 375º and continue baking until crust is browned and juices are bubbling, about 30-35 minutes. Cool completely before cutting.

Notes

Makes one double-crust 9" pie
  • Tart Cherries  fresh seasonal tart cherries, available a short time during early summer.  They can be hard to find and so I often use canned tart cherries.  Key word here is tart, bright red cherries (not the sweet, deep red ones).

Nutrition

Calories: 537kcal | Carbohydrates: 71g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 27g | Saturated Fat: 12g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 9g | Trans Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 55mg | Sodium: 313mg | Potassium: 207mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 35g | Vitamin A: 473IU | Vitamin C: 5mg | Calcium: 24mg | Iron: 2mg