Hello everyone! I browsed through multiple different sources to find the simplest cherry pie that I could find. It came right out of the Joy of Cooking cookbook by Irma S. Rombauer and Marion Rombauer Becker. Warning: lots of dishes were used in the making of this pie…and it is kind of time consuming! But what good dessert isn't time consuming!? I was lucky enough to get some leftover dough so I made easy Cherry turnovers!! But let's focus on the pie :) I hope you find this recipe useful!


Note: I also doubled the recipe used in the cookbook because I like more cherries in my pie… but it was a little too much so I changed the recipe to be about perfect.


Cherry Pie
Adapted from the recipe in Joy of Cooking
Marietta May

9-inch pie pan
Butter dough: homemade or store bought (and enough for a top and bottom)
5-6 cups fresh sour cherries
2-3 Tbsp cornstarch
1/4-1/3 c. water or fruit juice
1 c. sugar
A couple drops of almond extract
1-2 Tbsp unsalted butter
1 egg
1 Tbsp sugar

*Prebake the pie crust! This is crucial* Maybe 325º for 20-30 mins?
1) Preheat the oven to 450º F.
2) Roll out two balls of dough (one will be the bottom, another the top) with flour on a hard surface and let sit while you work on the filling.
3) Wash and pit all of the cherries. If you don't want whole cherries in the filling, cut all the cherries into small pieces.
4) Combine the cornstarch and liquid (water or fruit juice) in a separate bowl, mixing until smooth. Add sugar and almond extract; mix. 
5) Pour the mixture into the bowl of cherries and let sit for 10-20 minutes. If you don't want a lot of juice in the pie, you can drain the cherries a bit. Or if you like it with lots of juice, leave it in the filling.
6) Take one circle of dough and place it into the pie pan. You may want to poke a few holes in the bottom with a fork, just to be safe :) 
7) Place the liquid mixture with cherries into the pie pan. Flatten them down as much as possible.
8) Dot the filling with the butter
9) Place second circle of dough (with some fork holes) or lattice on top of cherries and close the edges down.
10) Make an egg wash with the egg (beat it in a small bowl) and brush it on the top of the pie. Sprinkle the sugar over the top.
11) Put the pie in the oven on a cookie sheet for 10 minutes, then reduce heat to 350 and leave the pie in for about 40 more minutes or until golden brown. 



What I would do differently: I used about 8 cups of cherries, and I thought it was slightly too much. I doubled the liquid mixture too, which oozed out of the pan the whole time it was in the oven. So I would do less of that (the recipe seems to use roughly the correct amount for the amount of cherries). I used whole cherries, and even though it was pretty, I wish I had cut the cherries into smaller pieces.




Scroll down to see pictures!






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I'd say about half of the time the seeds don't come out on the first try. Really make sure that the seed is out; it's very important!!
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Remember to let the liquid mixture soak the cherries for 10-20 minutes!
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Want to learn how to make a lattice? Check out Cooking Guide's youtube video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Jv8BGw31Cg
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And voilà! An easy, delicious cherry pie.



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