More Homemade Pies To Try
I cant get enough of pie! I love that you can have a pie as a dessert at just about any event and it always rises to the occasion as an absolute hit! Homemade pie just brings with it not only a delicious taste but a feeling of coming home. Here are a few additional pie recipes to try that will have everyone oohing and ahhhing and asking for more!
Desserts
How To Make The Best Cherry Pie
Making a homemade cherry pie doesnt need to feel complicated. In fact, this recipe is so delicious and great for a beginner! You will wonder why you havent been making pies more often in the first place. Follow these instructions for a fresh pie completely baked to perfection.
Reducing The Cherry Juices On The Stove Takes Less Than 10 Minutes
After you combine the filling ingredients together, set it aside and roll out the pie dough for your pie dish. During this time, your filling is already working as the sugar pulls juices from the cherries. Normally I discard all this juice, but its where a lot of the cornstarch ends up and thats what helps thicken the filling in the oven.
Instead, use a slotted spoon to transfer the fruit into your crust, then pour the leftover juice into a small saucepan. Youll only have a few Tablespoons, but this juice is pure GOLD as it holds our thickening agent and a lot of flavor. Reduce on the stove over low heat for about 3-4 minutes. Cool for 5 minutes, then pour over the cherries and toss gently to combine.
Heres the filling in the mixing bowl. You can see all the juices at the bottom. Spoon cherries into the pie dough:
Reduce the excess juice on the stove until it has thickened:
Let it cool for a few minutes, then toss into the cherries. The sugars in the reduced juice will harden and youll notice this juice become almost caramelized and stringy once it hits those cold cherries. This is NORMAL and totally fine! The juice will melt down in the oven, but keep the filling thick.
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How To Make Cherry Pie Filling
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Learn how to make cherry pie filling recipe from scratch, using 6 simple ingredients. Its quick and easy and can be used in pies, crumbles, cakes and more!
Today, I am showing you how to make cherry pie filling.
This is my Moms recipe and its the BEST cherry pie filling ever!
There are only 6 cherry pie filling ingredients:
Fresh Homemade Cherry Pie Ingredients

Like I said before, FRESH is the keyword to making this pie absolutely scrumptious. Plus it is so delicious that it will have your guests wondering if you spent all day in the kitchen! See the recipe card below for exact measurements.
- Pie Crust: You can make a Homemade crust or store bought pie crusts.
- Pitted Sour cherries: Fresh cherries will take this recipe to the next level but frozen cherries are also a delicious and easy choice!
- Sugar: Using some added sugar will help balance out the natural tartness of the cherries.
- Cornstarch: This ingredient is so important because it will be used to help thicken the filling.
- Almond extract: A delightfuly unexpected ingredient that takes this pie to the next level.
- Lemon Juice: You can use the lemon juice that you have on hand in your fridge or you can use juice from a fresh lemon. Whatever is easier!
- Butter: Use unsalted butter for the best flavor in this recipe.
- Egg yolk: You will use this to make an egg wash for your crust to get that amazing golden brown color.
- Water: Mix this with your egg yolk for your egg wash.
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Dont Forget The Extras
How To Make Homemade Cherry Pie
This cherry pie recipe is so easy All you need to do is mix, fill and bake. The hardest part is pitting the cherries. For that, you might want to buy a cherry pitter or if youre like us, cheat and use one of our suggestions below for how to pit cherries without a cherry pitter.
Stir cherries with sugar, corn starch, lemon juice, vanilla and almond extracts then stir. Roll out a pie crust , fill then top with another crust. Bake and cool. Its that easy.
To be honest, the hardest part is actually waiting for the pie to cool you really want to wait 2 to 3 hours before cutting into the pie. We know its torture!
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Sweeten The Pie Filling
Sweetening your cherry pie filling will give it an instant flavor boost. Most prepared pie fillings tend to be very sweet but cherry pie filling is a different story. Cherries are a naturally tart fruit, and so cherry pie filling may not taste as sweet as youd like.
For a slightly sweeter taste, opt for a cherry jelly or jam. Try adding a few spoonfuls to your prepared filling, tasting as you go. For a more intense sweet flavor, go right to the good stuff and add sugar. A tablespoon of white or brown sugar will take care of any tartness. Or try a natural sweetener and add a bit of honey or agave syrup.
Finally, sweetened condensed milk will add a rich, creamy texture to your cherry pie filling too. Stir in half a cup of sweetened condensed milk into your cherry pie filling and warm it over the stovetop. Once the mixture has come together, spoon it into your prepared pie crust and bake your pie.
Have a little extra time on your hands? Try making your own homemade cherry pie filling.
How To Make Cherry Pie
Tips and Tricks for Recipe Success:
- For the crust and lattice topping, you can use my foolproof all-butter pie crust! Not only is it user friendly, but it tastes absolutely delicious. And if youre new to pie crust, be sure to dive into the tips I have in that post. Youll be a pie pro before you know it!
- Youll need 2 crusts to cover the top and bottom. Ive included instructions for a latticed top, but feel free to do something simpler! Due to the amount of pie filling in this recipe, I dont recommend using frozen store bought pie shells. I did a test run using them and they got so soggy I couldnt even slice the pie
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How Long Should I Bake Vegan Cherry Pie
The sweet cherry pie needs a nice, long baking time. Its tricky to par bake the bottom of a double pie crust . As a result, the risk of a dreaded soggy bottom is high.
I recommend a full hour of baking time to ensure a firm, un-soggy bottom. The bottom will likely be more pale than it would be if you par baked it, but it should be fully cooked and browning slightly.
Youll bake the cherry pie for 15 minutes at 425F, then lower the oven heat to 350F and continue baking for another 45-55 minutes.
The pie should be browning nicely when you pull it out of the oven, but its possible for the edges to get burn a bit during baking. I recommend placing some foil around the edge of the pie if it starts to brown aggressively before the pie is ready. You can purchase a special pie crust protector for this if youre a regular pie baker.
Speaking of foil, its also helpful to place some foil beneath the cherry pie as it bakes, just in case it starts to bubble and drip.
How To Pit Cherries Without A Cherry Pitter
We have a small kitchen. That means that we only buy what we need on a weekly basis and while we would love to eat a slice of this cherry pie every night that just cant happen. So, we dont have a cherry pitter in the house. That didnt stop us, though. We just looked around and figured out two ways to pit cherries without a cherry pitter.
On the top, youll see we used a chopstick. We used the thicker round end to push the pit out of each cherry. The second option was to use a small piping tip. Place it onto the work surface then push the cherry down onto the tip the pit pops right out. Of the two, we preferred using chopsticks. Both work, but the chopsticks were a little less messy.
Recipe updated, originally posted May 2013. Since posting this in 2013, we have tweaked the recipe to be more clear and added a quick recipe video. Adam and Joanne
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How To Pit Your Cherries
As Elise says, “It does help to have a good cherry pitter. Those pits can be rather time consuming to remove.” If you don’t have a cherry pitter try one of these options:
- Hit the cherry with the flat of a knife and remove the pit
- Use a bamboo chopstick to poke out the pit
- Use a paperclip to snag the pit
- Push the pits out using a pastry tip.
Read more about these methods here: 4 Ways to Pit Cherries if You Don’t Have a Cherry Pitter.
Prepare The Cherry Filling

To ensure the cherry taste stays at the forefront, I keep the filling ingredients simple. I use granulated sugar for a clean sweetness, unlike canned products, typically consisting of high fructose corn syrup. Lemon juice and zest add a hint of citrus aromatics and tartness.
A small amount of cinnamon and vanilla extract adds warmth and dimension. I add almond extract because it has a similar taste profile to cherries, elevating the natural flavor. Cornstarch is an effective thickening agent as you need half as much as flour, and I like how it gives a clear glossy appearance.
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Tips To Baking The Sweet Cherry Pie
Baking a pie doesnt have to be complicated or stressful! In fact, follow these quick tips and your pie will go down as a favorite of your family and friends. This will become their most requested dessert after they taste it!!
- Cold pie crust: Whether you are using a store-bought or homemade crust, you will definitely want to implement this tip! To ensure that you are getting that perfectly flaky crust, make sure to chill your pie crust before filling it up and baking it. The butter in your pie crust will melt while baking. The butter will steam in the oven which causes the crust to separate into several flaky layers. This is exactly what will set your pie apart!
- Dont use too much flour: When rolling out the dough, use as little flour as possible. The extra flour sticks to the dough and leaves you with a hard crust.
- Runny pie filling: If you open the oven and find that your pie filling hasnt thickened up, it usually means that your pie hasnt baked for long enough. Bake your pie until the filling is visibly bubbling through the vented pie.
First Make The Pie Dough For The Canned Cherry Pie
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Then Assemble Your Canned Cherry Pie