Tulo

Cherry Pie Recipe

A double-crust cherry pie with a tart-sweet filling, best made with fresh or frozen sour cherries.
Photo by Esra Afşar on Pexels

Sour (tart) cherries hold their shape and balance the amount of sugar the filling needs, sweet cherries alone can push the whole pie cloying without enough acidity to counter it.

Prep
30 min
Cook
50 min
Total
200 min
Servings
8

Ingredients

Servings8
  • 1 package double pie crust, homemade or store-bought
  • 5 cups sour cherries, pitted (fresh or frozen)
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/4 cup cornstarch
  • 1/4 tsp almond extract
  • 1 tbsp unsalted butter, cubed
  • 1 large egg, beaten (for egg wash)

Nutrition per serving

Calories
393
Protein
4g
Carbs
61g
Fat
16g

Based on the recipe as written, one serving. Recalculates if you swap an ingredient above. An estimate only, exact values depend on the specific ingredients used.

Need different units or a different yield? Try our Conversion Calculator →

Instructions

  1. 1Preheat the oven to 425°F (220°C) and fit one crust into a 9-inch pie dish.
  2. 2If using frozen cherries, thaw and drain well, reserving 1/4 cup of the juice.
  3. 3Toss the cherries with sugar, cornstarch, almond extract, and the reserved cherry juice (if using).
  4. 4Pour the filling into the crust and dot with the cubed butter.
  5. 5Cover with the second crust, seal and crimp the edges, and cut vents in the top.
  6. 6Brush with egg wash.
  7. 7Bake for 20 minutes, then reduce the oven to 375°F (190°C) and bake 30 minutes more, until deep golden and bubbling through the vents.
  8. 8Cool at least 3 hours before slicing to let the filling fully set.

Tips & variations

  • Sour (tart) cherries, sold frozen year-round if not in fresh season, make a noticeably better pie than sweet cherries here, don't substitute without adjusting the sugar down.
  • A splash of almond extract is a classic pairing with cherry, it doesn't taste like almond so much as it deepens the cherry flavor itself.

Storage & reheating

Store loosely covered at room temperature up to 2 days, or refrigerate up to 5 days. Reheat individual slices in a 300°F oven to re-crisp the crust.

Tips from the Tulo kitchen

  • A cherry pitter makes fresh cherries genuinely fast to prep, worth owning if cherry pie becomes a repeat recipe.
  • Set the pie on a foil-lined baking sheet before it goes in the oven, this filling reliably bubbles over the vents partway through.

FAQ

Can I use sweet cherries instead of sour cherries?

You can, but reduce the sugar by about half and add a tablespoon of lemon juice, sweet cherries alone make a filling that reads as one-note without that extra acidity.

Do I need to thaw frozen cherries first?

Yes, thaw and drain them well before using, otherwise the extra liquid can make the filling too loose even with the cornstarch.

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