I love cherry pie (I love just about all pie) but once I made this recipe, I’ve never made it any other way. That may be a flaw, because they sell “cherry pie filling” in a can, and I have to assume it’s tasty and probably easier than what I do, but I tend to stick with what I know. So, I use canned tart red cherries in water.
Here’s my recipe:
- 2 16-oz cans pitted tart red cherries in water
- 1 cup sugar
- ¼ cup cornstarch
- 1 TB butter
- 3-4 drops almond extract
- Food color, as desired
- Homemade OR frozen pie crust (thawed).
Preheat oven to 375.
Drain the cherries, saving the liquid. In a large saucepan, combine ¾ cup sugar with the cornstarch. Add your cherry juice…if you didn’t drain out one full cup, add water to reach that amount. Cook and stir this on medium until it gets thick, then cook and stir two more minutes.
Take it off the heat, stir in the remaining ¼ cup sugar, the butter, almond extract, and food color if you like.
Stir in the cherries last.
Pour this into the pie crust. You can bake it now, or make it extra beautiful with an easy, homemade lattice top!
Recipe: Mix together 1 cup flour and ¼ tsp salt. Cut in 1/3 cup shortening until the pieces are pea-sized. Add 1 TB water, stirring to bring it together. Add another 1 TB water, and a third if needed. It should be a ball by now. Roll this out on a floured counter and using a pizza wheel, cut into ½-inch strips. Weave together on the pie to make a lattice crust. Snip off the ends, pinch, and brush with a beaten egg wash.
NOW bake it for 20 minutes, then cover the edges with a little foil, and bake another 35-40 minutes or until the crust is golden. Cool on wire rack before slicing.
