The Best Cherry Pie

After years of searching, I’ve finally found the best cherry pie recipe (or at least a really good one). It’s beautiful on the inside and out, and it packs a tanga-licious punch (yes, I just made up a word). Why not make it for a Mother’s day treat?

To be honest, cherry pie has been a struggle for me. I almost gave up on enjoying cherry pie at all. But surprisingly, Target (of all places – no affiliate links here either) has saved cherry pie for us all.

Cherry Pie, My Nemesis

Try as I might, I just couldn’t get cherry pie right. First I tried fresh sour cherries (sweet cherries won’t do). I searched in markets all around my home, but to no avail (not even frozen). I tried picking my own, but the only farm that offered sour cherries closed the ‘pick-our-own’ option as soon as I walked up (okay fine it was like the day before). Wish they said that before I showed up. I was excited to find a jar of sour cherries at a farmer’s market, only to find that the cherries were not pitted. After making a delicious little tart, I couldn’t be bothered taking the time to pit the rest of them.

Don’t Hate on the Can

This left me no choice but to try canned cherry pie filling, breaking my own scratch-made rule for the sake of the sour cherry. First, I accidentally bought artificially sweetened cherry pie filling, and nearly upchucked. Next, I bought an ”all natural’ brand, but it lacked flavor. I tried “original” (with corn syrup) of a popular brand, and was utterly disgusted. Way too much goop, and not enough cherries. But this review made me want to try again. Could it be, a pie filling that is tasty?

With a flicker of hope in my heart, I ran out to Target, stood on a long line to get in (just download the app and get them to drop it off to your car), and picked up 2 cans (for $1.98 each!). Once home, I couldn’t wait to crack open the first can. My heart was racing. The moment of truth…

And… it’s delicious. Tangy, and just the right about of liquid (ie. lots of cherries). It tasted like a fruit; a FRUIT!!!!! Not an artificially flavored slime with a few ‘food products formerly known as cherries’ buried at the bottom. My kids fought to eat it straight out of the can.

Cherry Pie, Restored

I always say, if you start with a good fruit, you can have a good pie. If someone else can avoid the struggles I had, then the pain was all worth it. And now that we have our fruit, let’s BAKE!

What you need

basic crust ingredients (this is a great pie for using almond extract in the crust)
2 cans of Market Pantry cherry pie filling
1/2 tsp cinnamon
2 tbsp white sugar

Instructions for Best Cherry Pie Recipe

Prepare your crust according to our basic crust recipe.
While the crust is chilling in the fridge (for at least 15 minutes), preheat your oven to 450 degrees, and mix the cherry pie filling with the cinnamon and sugar.
Roll out your crust, pour in your cherry pie filling, and add the top crust with either a lattice top (like mine) or just a regular vented crust (maybe use cookie cutters to cut out the word “mom” in the top crust?). Brush with egg wash and ready to bake!
Bake at 450 degrees for 15 minutes. Reduce the temperature to 375 degrees for another 30 minutes or until the crust is brown and the filling is bubbling.

You’re all done!

It’s best to allow the pie to rest for about an hour before slicing to allow the filling to set back up. We garnished ours with roses (which are edible). Have fun with it, and let us know how it goes! Click here for more pie recipes!

Pro tips:

It’s a great idea to put your pie on a baking sheet (lined with foil for easy cleanup) to catch any runaway pie filling.
If you brush the inside of the pie with egg was before you put in your filling it may help to prevent the bottom crust from becoming soggy.
For a lattice top, roll out your top crust to a circle a bit wider than your pie dish. Use a pizza cutter to slice the crust into 1/2 inch strips. Lay one set of strips parallel to each other over the pie. Then pull back every other strip (part way), lay down a perpendicular strip, and fold everything back to their original position. Repeat that process until you’ve covered the pie. Trim the edges, and roll them around the bottom crust to seal the edges. Apply your egg wash to the lattice. If this process has taken a while, and your crust is no longer cold, chill the pie again for at least another 15 minutes.