Cherry Pie with Crumb Topping

Pies & Tarts
June 14, 2019
Pies & Tarts
June 14, 2019

Cherry Pie with Crumb Topping

  • Prep time: 20 min
  • Cook time: 45 min
  • Total time: 1 hr 5 min

The perfect summer Cherry Pie made with fresh or frozen cherries  and topped with a buttery crumble. Top this cherry crumb pie with a scoop of ice cream and you’ll be in heaven.

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Cherry Pie with Crumb Topping

The perfect summer Cherry Pie made with fresh or frozen cherries  and topped with a buttery crumble. Top this cherry crumb pie with a scoop of ice cream and you’ll be in heaven.

slice of cherry pie with crumb topping

The BEST Cherry Pie with Crumb Topping

Is there anything better than an all American fresh cherry pie recipe? Why yes, yes there is. and it’s called Cherry Crumb Pie…and guys, it is so good. Juicy, slightly tart, perfectly sweet cherry pie topped with a seriously addicting crumb topping. I mean…are you drooling? I’m drooling, and I am NOT a pie person. Like I could totally live without pie. But everything changed when we made this perfect cherry pie.

cherry pie with crumble topping and a scoop of ice cream

What is Cherry Crumb Pie?

Oh, let me tell you. Cherry crumb pie is made with our easy homemade pie crust, fresh, pitted cherries (or frozen! We’ll get to that), a dash of almond extract to give it that kirsch flavor, and a buttery crumb topping. Cherry Pie feels so homey to me. It’s not like we ever had classic cherry pie growing up, it just feels inherently nostalgic and cozy? You feel?

Plus it’s going to be a show stopper for the 4th of July.

whole cherry pie on a cooling rack

Fresh cherries vs frozen cherries for cherry pie

It’s our duty to try everything out and find the very best version of a recipe for you to make. And one of the main questions we had when making this cherry crumble pie, was whether we should use fresh or frozen cherries. You know we are all about using fruits when they’re in season, so generally we would always say fresh. Plus, fresh cherries are SO good (hello fresh cherry waffle parfait).

But…cherries have one of the longest cook times of all time. Like EVER. I mean, I know I’m impatient, but waiting for the fresh cherry pie to be done was absolute torture. The frozen cherry pie was equally delicious, cooked up faster, and you get to skip the whole headache of pitting your cherries.

easy cherry pie with vanilla ice cream

So, what’s the verdict on cherries? Fresh or frozen?

You can use fresh OR frozen cherries in this homemade cherry pie. We found the frozen cherry pie has a more jammy consistency, while the fresh pie preserved the individual cherries. So it’s totally up to you and your preferences….though I will say, both were delicious. If you’re using fresh cherries, use less cornstarch and bake your pie for longer. If you’re using frozen cherries, use more corn starch, and bake your pie for less time! Easy as pie 🙂 This is all outlined in the recipe card, so don’t worry about it.

Introducing our favorite summer pie: Cherry Crumb Pie. A flaky pie crust filled with fresh cherries, and topped with crumble. The perfect cherry pie recipe!

How to easily pit cherries:

Now if you do decide to go with fresh cherries, I gotchu guys. All you need is a straw. We love to use a metal one, because 1) the environment, and 2) it’s more durable, but you can always use a standard plastic straw as well. Simply take your cherry and poke the straw through until it hits the pit, then continue to push through until the pit is pushed out the other side. Congrats–pitted cherries!

Introducing our favorite summer pie: Cherry Crumb Pie. A flaky pie crust filled with fresh cherries, and topped with crumble. The perfect cherry pie recipe!

How to make the perfect flaky pie crust:

The answer is vodka. I’m not kidding. Pour yourself a glass on the rocks (don’t drink it) and I’ll tell you everything you need to know for an easy, buttery pie crust. You can also find our full break down on the flakiest pie crust of all time here!

  1. Use super cold butter: I like to cut my butter into cubes and then pop it in freezer, that way it’s as cold as possible once it’s combined with the dry ingredients. Cold butter will give you the flakiest pie crust!
  2. Invest in a food processorYou can definitely make a good pie crust without a food processor, but it does make it a heck of a lot easier.

Introducing our favorite summer pie: Cherry Crumb Pie. A flaky pie crust filled with fresh cherries, and topped with crumble. The perfect cherry pie recipe!

  1. Use ice cold vodka instead of water: If you’re going to make the best ever cherry pie with crumble topping, you’re going to need a good base, so just trust me on this. Actually, trust Alton Brown, because he’s the one who taught me. Vodka has a high alcohol content, which evaporates faster than water. This means as your crust bakes, the alcohol will evaporate, leaving you with the flakiest crust you’ve ever had. I promise no one will taste the vodka 🙂
  2. Don’t over mix or over work your dough: Overworking your dough can ruin all that hard work you did to keep your butter cold. Flour your surface thoroughly and try to roll out the dough just once. You’ll get a tender pie crust if you work your dough as little as possible!

So go ahead, bookmark this for the 4th of the July for a quintessentially American centerpiece, or whip it up now that cherries are in season.

Introducing our favorite summer pie: Cherry Crumb Pie. A flaky pie crust filled with fresh cherries, and topped with crumble. The perfect cherry pie recipe!

p.s We HIGHLY recommend serving this with a scoop (or two) of vanilla ice cream.

Enjoy the weekend and this delicious cherry pie recipe, lovebugs!

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Cherry Crumb Pie

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 4.8 from 4 reviews

The perfect summer Cherry Pie made with fresh or frozen cherries  and topped with a buttery crumble. Top with a scoop of ice cream and you’ll be in heaven.

The perfect summer Cherry Pie made with fresh or frozen cherries  and topped with a buttery crumble. Top with a scoop of ice cream and you’ll be in heaven.

  • Author: Sofi | Broma Bakery
  • Prep Time: 20 minutes
  • Cook Time: 45 minutes
  • Total Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
  • Yield: 1 9 inch pie
  • Category: dessert
  • Method: oven
  • Cuisine: american
  • Author: Sofi | Broma Bakery
  • Prep Time: 20 minutes
  • Cook Time: 45 minutes
  • Total Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
  • Yield: 1 9 inch pie
  • Category: dessert
  • Method: oven
  • Cuisine: american
Units:

Ingredients

for the pie crust

for the crumb topping

  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 1 cup all purpose flour
  • 3/4 cup brown sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt

for the filling

  • 5 cups fresh or frozen cherries
  • 24 tablespoons corn starch*
  • 2/3 cup white sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon almond extract
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt

Instructions

    for the pie crust

    1. Prepare only bottom pie crust according to directions and form in desired pie dish. Set aside.

    Make the crumb topping

    1. In a small bowl, combine the flour, sugar, and salt. Cut the butter into the flour mixture until it forms clumps and easily holds its shape.

    Make the pie

    1. Once the pie dough has chilled, it’s time to assemble your pie. Preheat oven to 425°F. Grease a standard sized pie pan with butter. Set aside.
    2. In a large bowl, combine all filling ingredients, tossing until the cherries are evenly coated. If you are using fresh cherries, use 2 tablespoons. If you are using frozen, use 4 tablespoons.
    3. Remove pie dough disk from the fridge. On a lightly floured work surface, roll dough out to 1/4 inch thick. Carefully place dough into pie pan, pushing into the pan. Fold the edge of the dough over on itself, and use your fingers to create a crimped edge. Or, if you don’t know how to do this, just leave it be. It will look great regardless!
    4. Use a large slotted spoon to scoop the filling into your pie pan, straining out any extra juices (if you used fresh cherries there won’t be any juice, so just toss it all in). Top with crumble topping so that the crumb evenly distributes around the pie.
    5. Brush your edges of the pie with an egg wash, then sprinkle with turbinado sugar.
    6. Bake for 20 minutes at 425°F, then turn temperature down to 375°F and continue to cook pie for an additional 45-60 minutes (it will be around 45 for a frozen cherry pie, and around an hour for a fresh cherry pie!). If your pie crust looks like it’s cooking too fast, you can lightly tent your pie with aluminum foil. You know your pie is done when the filling is bubbling slightly.
    7. Remove from oven and allow to cool for at least 4 hours before serving.

Notes

  1. If you are using fresh cherries use two tablespoons. If you are using frozen cherries use 4, as the frozen cherries will release more juices and need more thickening!

 

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  1. I’ve made this pie three times now and I’ve gotten pretty consistent results each time using fresh cherries! One thing I did notice (or learn) on the last time though was to either use 3 tablespoons of cornflour with your fresh cherries if you’ve prepared the cherry mix much earlier to counter the juices that release as it sits in your bowl, or only prepare the cherry mix just before you pop it into the pan and use two as per the instructions!

    It’s cherry season in mid-December, so I pick cherries fresh from the farm every new year’s eve, and bake this pie to end the year off with a bang! I get insane compliments every time I make this.






    • Hi Nicole! If you like a tart pie then yes! You could also increase the amount of sugar to make it sweeter!

  2. This recipe is delicious! I was wondering if I could make it and then freeze it for a future date. If so, what’s the best way to wrap it in the freezer to keep it from getting all dried out?

    • Hi Annie–I’ve actually never frozen this pie, but I think it would be okay? I have made the filling before and frozen it for up to 3 months. When you’re ready to make the pie, simply prep the pie dough and fill with the defrosted filling before baking as directed!

  3. It was too runny. Never set up and I used frozen cherries, 4 tbsp cornstarch and baked until dark golden and bubbling! What did I do wrong???






    • Did you strain out the extra juice, as it suggests in step 4? I forgot to do that once, and it didn’t firm up.

    • Hi Karen! That’s very odd! It’s possible your frozen cherries were especially soupy, but I’ve never had this happen before!