Bake

Deep-Dish Cherry Pie

June 18, 2015
3
4 Ratings
Photo by Mark Weinberg
  • Makes 1 fatty 9-inch pie, serves 12 to 15
Author Notes

I made a "crust lover's" pot pie this winter in a springform pan, and the results were so delightful I couldn't wait to try it again with summer produce. This super huge cherry pie did not disappoint. —Erin Jeanne McDowell

What You'll Need
Ingredients
  • For the pie crust:
  • 3 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
  • 3/4 teaspoon salt
  • 3 (12 ounces) sticks cold unsalted butter, cubed
  • 3/4 cup ice water, plus more as needed
  • For the finished pie:
  • 4 pounds sour or sweet cherries, pitted
  • 1 lemon, zested and juiced
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
  • 2 1/4 cups granulated sugar
  • 3/4 cup cornstarch
  • 1 egg wash, as needed for finishing
  • 1 pinch turbinado sugar, as needed for finishing
  • 1 splash Heavy cream, for serving (optional)
Directions
  1. Preheat the oven to 425° F. Lightly grease a 9-inch springform pan and place it on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper
  2. Make the pie crust: In a large bowl or in a food processor, combine the flour and salt. Add the butter and toss to coat. Cut the butter into the flour with your hands or a pastry cutter (or pulse it in the food processor) until the butter resembles the size of walnut halves. (For more on mixing pie dough, check out my article here: https://food52.com/blog/10753-everything-you-need-to-know-about-pie-crust).
  3. Add the water and mix to combine. Add more water as needed to get the dough to come together. It should not be wet or sticky. Divide the dough—you’ll need 2/3 of the dough for the bottom crust and 1/3 for the top crust. Wrap each piece of dough and chill for at least 30 minutes in the refrigerator.
  4. On a lightly floured surface, roll out the larger quantity of dough to 1/3-inch thick. Transfer it to the springform and trim the edge so there is 1/2-inch overhang all around. Chill the dough inside pan for at least 30 minutes in the refrigerator.
  5. Dock the chilled dough with a fork on the base and sides. Line the crust with parchment paper and pie weights, and bake until the crust is beginning to brown at the edges, 15 to 20 minutes. Remove the parchment and pie weights. If the base looks visibly wet or under-baked, return the crust to the oven without the pie weights for another 5 minutes. Cool to room temperature.
  6. While the pie is cooling. In a large bowl, combine the cherries, lemon zest and juice, and vanilla. In small bowl, mix the sugar and cornstarch to combine, then add to the cherry mixture. Mix until the cherries are evenly coated.
  7. Mound the filling into the cooled crust, pressing firmly to ensure minimal air pockets. Make a nice, rounded mound at the top.
  8. On a lightly floured surface, roll out the smaller amount of dough to 1/3-inch thick. Use a rolling pin to transfer the dough to the top of the pie.
  9. Trim away any excess dough, leaving 3/4 inch all the way around the edge. Nudge the edge down into the side of the springform pan so that it meets the top edge of the bottom crust. Push the crust down a bit so the excess puckers outward and creates a little lip, just like the edge of a typical pie. Press that outer lip together to seal the edges a bit, then crimp with a fork to seal.
  10. Egg wash the top crust evenly and sprinkle with turbinado sugar all over. Cut vents in the top of the pie.
  11. Transfer the pie to the prepared baking sheet and bake until the crust is very golden and the filling is bubbling through the vents, 45 to 50 minutes. If the pie is browning too much or too quickly, reduce the oven temperature to 375 and/or tent the top of the pie with foil.
  12. Cool the pie completely—seriously!—before slicing and serving. Unmold the outer edge of the springform pan. Slide an offset spatula around the edge of the base of the pan; if the pie is really cool and it feels solid in the middle, you’ll likely be able to pick up the pie with your hands (or a large spatula) and transfer to a platter or stand. If it feels soft in the middle, you may rather keep it on the springform base for slicing. If you’re feeling naughty, serve it with a drizzle of cold heavy cream.

See what other Food52ers are saying.

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    Nancy B Brismeur
I always have three kinds of hot sauce in my purse. I have a soft spot for making people their favorite dessert, especially if it's wrapped in a pastry crust. My newest cookbook, Savory Baking, came out in Fall of 2022 - is full of recipes to translate a love of baking into recipes for breakfast, dinner, and everything in between!

36 Reviews

Elle July 27, 2019
My crust turned out perfect but the amounts of corn starch and sugar seemed off, producing a watery filling that was way too sweet. I have read other cherry pie recipes that use half or a quarter amount of the sugar called for in this recipe. I would recommend doing that here.
 
Maria D. March 31, 2019
Erin, Approximately how many cups of cherries does that equate to? I typically use about 6 cups of "mixed" cherry varieties in my pie?
 
jcasare June 12, 2018
It's really beautiful, but after reading the soupy comments I'm tempted to boil the filling on the stove first....thoughts?
 
Melissa C. September 17, 2022
That’s what I did and it did the trick!
 
Lindsay B. December 10, 2017
Any tips on using frozen cherries? Good idea? Bad idea?
 
Marcia A. September 18, 2016
I'm not sure if I will ever make a pie in a pie dish again...just because this pie is so beautiful...pile in the fruit...the higher the better. Thank you for this joyous way to bake a pie....!!
 
CookingIsLikeLove July 15, 2016
I've made a super deep dish caramel apple pie before. I wish I'd thought to use a springform pan! What a great idea to show off the crust! :D
 
Pegeen June 30, 2016
I felt nachas when I saw the double-height pie and read the recipe. What a gift. Want to try it with apples and other fruits.
I had two thoughts: first, to avoid bottom crust sogginess from so much fruit, use a short crust for the bottom layer (like Amanda's press-in crust from the peach dessert recipe). Use "regular" pie dough for the sides and top.
Second, I recall a Nick Maglieri apple pie technique of siphoning off the fruit liquid, reducing it on the stove, then adding it, much more thickened, back to the pie.
 
Pegeen June 30, 2016
nachas = joy
 
Stephan M. June 12, 2016
is pre baking the bottom pie crust necessary? if so, how do i go about attaching & sealing the top part of the pie.
 
Nancy B. May 21, 2016
Ca you use peaches, blueberries, etc?
 
Soozll November 10, 2015
I make a recipe for cherry pie from Gourmet, June 2007, (its still on the Epicurious site) that instructs you use 3 Tbsps cornstarch and 2 Tbsps Minute Tapioca, ground in a spice grinder. You add this mixture to the 2 lbs (6 cups) of sour cherries along with the sugar and let it sit for at least half an hour, stirring occasionally. It sets the filling perfectly; it's clear and is not gummy or too stiff once it's cooled, at all. I imagine it could be doubled for this pie. Just a thought for those having problems with soupy filling.
 
Julia C. August 20, 2015
I don't like the taste of cornstarch. What would be the amount of tapioca I should use as in substitution? The recipe looks fabulous and I can hardly wait to make it!
 
Charles F. August 19, 2015
What are you pouring on the pie? Cream?
 
Mary E. August 19, 2015
What changes to the recipe would anyone recommend if using apples?
 
Sarah H. August 7, 2015
Ok- Here's the Skinny: I made this last week. It was FANTASTIC. However, I read through all the comments and avoided a few pitfalls that seemed common. Here's what I did to make it work for me.

1. The "TOO MUCH JUICE" Issue: I Mascerated the cherries overnight in jus the sugar then drained the liquid- this helps draw out excess liquid and prevent "soup pie".
2. Baking Time: I par baked the bottom crust at 425 for 20 minutes/golden brown as the recipe instructs. Added my cherries and the top pie crust, baked at 425 for 30 minutes, then added tin foil to the crusts' edges (they were browning too quickly) and baked for 60 minutes at 325. Then bumped up the heat to 425 again for the last 30 minutes to ensure the middle of the top crust got golden brown. Total bake time: 90 minutes
3. The Cornstarch Issue: Yes, 3/4 Cup is necessary. To avoid tasting the starch it has to come to a boil. Make sure it's evenly distributed when you mix it into the cherries (also my cherries sat out at room temp for an hour or so before I added them making it easier for them to boil once in the oven) They should be just lightly coated. It's hard to tell if the cherry mixture has boiled- but the 90 minutes of baking worked for me.
4. Cooling the Pie: I let mine cool overnight because I wanted some stellar pics and didn't want to risk it falling apart. This worked well. Just know if you're not cooling it completely, you risk soup pie.

It was delicious. I served it to my 70 year old grandpa and he gave me the best compliment ever saying "this tastes just like my mom's pie".... wow. I can die now.
 
Marcie R. July 1, 2016
Hi Sarah, how did you mascerate the cherries?
 
Kim J. August 3, 2015
Just made this on the weekend. Overall, we enjoyed, and the crust is really out of this world. A few comments regarding the cherry filling - I followed the 50 minute bake time and found that it was not enough time to thicken it up. It was quite soupy, as previously mentioned by another commenter. Also after baking and letting the pie stand until cool, I noticed the cherries kind of "deflated" a little bit. This left quite a gap between the fruit and the domed top of the pie. Is that normal?
 
M W. July 29, 2015
Just made this last night and crust came out perfectly however its more like a pie soup. Is this normal?
 
Stacy B. July 29, 2015
How long did you bake it? Did you let it boil? I had to let mine bake for 2.5 hours before it thickened up!! I found the timing recommended for baking wasn't appropriate (for me anyway!) - maybe it just needed to bake longer?
 
M W. July 29, 2015
I followed the directions. It tastes great but its literally soup.
 
Kate C. July 22, 2015
this is stunning! would you be willing to elaborate on/ share the pot pie recipe that you refer to? sounds amazing!
 
Sarah H. August 7, 2015
ME TOO, I WANT THAT TOO
 
Doreen C. July 5, 2015
I would use almond instead of the vanilla extract...but sounds good.

 
ori July 4, 2015
made it yesterday, came out wonderful, its really the tall structure of the pie that makes it standout
the dough was a challenge, it was stiff and very far from the pictures.
one last comment , it does not make any sense to preheat the oven, it will take at least 1 hour before you will have anything to put in it
 
Jean F. July 3, 2015
I wondered about the cornstarch amount in the recipe too. I always use tapioca in double crust fruit pies.