Fresh Cherry Pie Recipes

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
• Place rolled out crust in bottom of pie place.
• Roll out top crust and set aside.
• In a large bowl combine tapioca, salt, sugar, cherries, and extracts.
• Let stand 15 minutes.
• Turn out into bottom crust and dot with butter.
• Cover with top crust, flute edges and cut vents in top.
• Place pie on foil lined cookie sheet, in case of drips.
• Bake for 50 minutes, until golden brown.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425°. In a large saucepan, combine sugar and cornstarch; gradually stir in cherry juice until smooth. Bring to a boil; cook and stir until thickened, about 2 minutes. Remove from the heat. Add cherries, cinnamon, nutmeg and extract; set aside., In a large bowl, combine flour and salt; cut in shortening until crumbly. Gradually add cold water, tossing with a fork until a ball forms. Divide dough in half so that one ball is slightly larger than the other. , On a lightly floured surface, roll out larger ball to fit a 9-in. pie plate. Transfer dough to pie plate; trim even with edge of plate. Add filling. Roll out remaining dough; make a lattice crust. Trim, seal and flute edges. If desired, brush with egg wash., Bake for 10 minutes. Reduce heat to 375°; bake until crust is golden brown, 45-50 minutes. Cool on a wire rack.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (205 degrees C). Place bottom crust in pie pan. Set top crust aside, covered.
• In a large mixing bowl combine tapioca, salt, sugar, cherries, and extracts. Let stand 15 minutes. Turn out into bottom crust and dot with butter. Cover with top crust, flute edges and cut vents in top. Place pie on a foil-lined cookie sheet--in case of drips!
• Bake for 50 minutes in the preheated oven, until golden brown. Let cool for several hours before slicing.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425.
• Pit and halve cherries, set aside.
• In a separate bowl stir together flour and salt, stir in the sugar, add the cherries and almond extract. Then mix in the cold, cubed butter. Place mixture in the fridge to keep the butter from melting.
• To make the crust stir together flour and salt.
• Add the 3/4 cup of butter flavor Crisco and cut in shortening with a fork, 2 knives or pastry cutter until shortening is the size of small peas.
• Add water, a tablespoon at a time, and mix with fork until the dough starts to form a ball.
• Work dough into one large ball then separate into two. (If doing a lattice top, or using a deep dish pie pan, I normally make the ball for the bottom pie crust a little larger, gives you more to work with when rolling out the dough).
• You can either roll out the dough between 2 sheets of wax paper, or a floured surface. I prefer rolling it out on a floured surface, sprinkling a little flour on top of the crust and my rolling pin, rolling it out until about 1/8 inch thickness. Then rolling the crust onto my rolling pin and placing it on the pie plate. Make the crust a little larger then your pie pan.
• Prick bottom crust with a fork.
• Add the cherry filling into the crust.
• If making a solid top, again roll out another pie crust and add to the top, crimp edges with a fork that's been dipped in flour, and cut slits into the pie.
• I like to add a small amount of melted butter brushed over the top and a sprinkling of white sugar to give the crust a little sweetness, but this is of course optional.
• Place pie on a cookie sheet in center of oven and bake at 425 for 40 minutes, or if you're in high altitudes, bake at 400, until golden brown.
• Note: if the edges of the crust are browning too quickly, wrap edges in aluminum foil.

Steps:

• Place cherries in medium saucepan and place over heat. Cover. After the cherries lose considerable juice, which may take a few minutes, remove from heat. In a small bowl, mix the sugar and cornstarch together. Pour this mixture into the hot cherries and mix well. Add the almond extract, if desired, and mix. Return the mixture to the stove and cook over low heat until thickened, stirring frequently. Remove from the heat and let cool. If the filling is too thick, add a little water, too thin, add a little more cornstarch.
• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• Use your favorite pie dough recipe. Prepare your crust. Divide in half. Roll out each piece large enough to fit into an 8 to 9-inch pan. Pour cooled cherry mixture into the crust. Dot with butter. Moisten edge of bottom crust. Place top crust on and flute the edge of the pie. Make a slit in the middle of the crust for steam to escape. Sprinkle with sugar.
• Bake for about 50 minutes. Remove from the oven and place on a rack to cool.

Steps:

• Roll out the pie dough to 1/8th-inch thick and chill on parchment lined sheet pans. Cut out disks of dough 1-inch bigger than your ovenproof 8 to 12 ounce crocks. Keep chilled until ready to use.
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
• Drain the cherry juices into a medium saucepan; you should have about a cup of juice. Add the cornstarch, sugar, ginger, and lemon juice and whisk to dissolve the cornstarch then bring it to a simmer over medium heat whisking all the while. When thickened, turn off the heat, stir in the cherries.
• Pour the cherry filling into the ovenproof dishes and set aside to cool slightly. Carefully place the rolled-out disks on top and ease them into the dishes so it doesn't hang over the edge. Brush each disk with a little heavy cream and then sprinkle lightly with 2 tablespoons of sugar. With the tips of a pair of scissors, snip a X vent hole in the top of each crust.
• Place the pies on a sheet pan, to catch any juices that boil over. Bake until the crust is golden brown and the juices are bubbling at the vents, 25 to 30 minutes.
• Let cool to room temperature. Serve at room temperature with vanilla ice cream.
• In a mixer fitted with a paddle attachment (or using a hand mixer), mix the flour, salt, and sugar for 1 minute. Add the butter and mix just until you have a crumbly, sandy mixture. You should still be able to see the pieces of butter.
• In a small bowl, stir the water and vinegar together. With the mixer running at medium speed, drizzle in the water-vinegar mixture and mix just until a dough forms. You should still see small bits of butter.
• Turn out onto a work surface, divide the dough in half, and shape into round, flat disks. Wrap separately in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 30 minutes before using. (Or, refrigerate up to 48 hours or freeze up to 1 month before using. If frozen, let thaw in the refrigerator overnight before rolling out.)
• When the time comes to roll out the dough, let the dough warm up for a few minutes at room temperature. Dust a work surface with just a few tablespoons of flour and keep some extra flour at hand. If you like, you can roll out the dough between two sheets of waxed paper (flouring the bottom sheet and the top of the dough before rolling), which makes it much easier to transfer to the pan later on. However, you won't be able to check the progress of the dough as easily. It's entirely up to you.
• Sprinkle a little flour on top of the dough and start rolling outward from the center with quick, light strokes. Don't worry if the edges split a bit; concentrate on getting a good circle going from the center. Lift up and rotate the dough 1/4 turn every minute or so to help ensure even rolling. The dough should feel smooth and soft; some say it should feel like the inside of your forearm. If it gets sticky, sprinkle on a bit more flour, but don't do this more than two or three times; the dough will absorb too much flour. Instead, put it back in the fridge for 15 minutes to firm the butter up. Keep rolling until the circle is at least 2 inches larger than your pan (for example, 11 inches wide for a 9-inch pie pan), or 3 inches larger for deep-dish pies.
• Set your pie or tart pan nearby. We always use heavy aluminum pans, because glass pans seem to bake the crust too fast. However, we know that the advantage of glass is that you can easily check the color of the crust. Again, it's up to you. Either choice will work.
• To transfer the crust to the pan, we find it easiest to roll a finished crust up onto the rolling pin, then gently unroll it in the pan. Or, you can fold it gently in quarters, lift it up, position the center point on the center of the pan, and unfold it into the pan. If using waxed paper, peel off the top layer, turn the crust gently into the pan, and peel off the remaining paper. Make sure that the dough is allowed to settle completely into the pan.
• Don't stretch and press the dough into the corners; stretched dough will likely shrink back when you bake it. Instead, lift the edges of the crust to let it settle down into the corners. If the dough tears a bit, don't be concerned; it will patch easily. Using scissors or a sharp knife, trim the dough to within 3/4 inch of the rim. Use any extra scraps to patch the crust, pressing with your fingers (wet them if necessary) or set aside.
• For a double-crust pie: Leave the edges of the bottom crust hanging over the rim. Roll out the second piece of dough into a circle about 11 inches in diameter. Line a sheet pan with parchment or waxed paper. Roll the dough up onto the rolling pin, then unroll it onto the sheet pan.
• Chill the finished crust or crusts for 20 to 30 minutes before filling the pie. When the bottom crust is filled, rest the top crust on top and pinch the edges together, turning them under all the way around. To decorate the rim, just press it all around with the back of a fork. For a slightly more advanced look, press the thumb and forefinger of one hand together. Use them to gently push the thick dough rim outward, while pushing inward with the forefinger of the other hand, so that they intersect in a "V" with the dough in between. Repeat all around the rim to make a wavy edge.
• For a prebaked pie or tart crust (blind baking): Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line the inside of the chilled crust with aluminum foil (don't turn it down over the rim, but leave the extra sticking up so that you have something to hold on to). Fill the foil all the way up to the top of the shell with pie weights or dried beans. Bake 25 to 30 minutes, until dry and beginning to turn "blond". Lift the foil and weights out of the shell and bake another 10 to 15 minutes, checking frequently to prevent over baking, until medium brown.
• Yield: 2 crusts Preparation time: 15 minutes plus rolling and shaping Cooking time: 30 minutes Ease of preparation: moderate
• Recipe courtesy Gale Gand, "Butter Sugar Flour Eggs" by Gale Gand, Rick Tramonto, Julia Moskin: Clarkson N. Potter Publishers, 1999

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Press the bottom pie crusts into 2 pie pans.
• Combine cherries, 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar, and cornstarch in a saucepan. Let sit until sugar begins to draw out the cherries' juices, about 10 minutes. Bring to boil, stirring constantly. Lower the heat; simmer until the juices thicken and become translucent, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat; stir in butter and almond extract until well mixed. Pour into the bottom half of the pie shells. Cover with top crusts, crimp the edges to seal, and cut vents into the top with a sharp knife.
• Bake in the preheated oven until crust is golden brown, 45 to 55 minutes.