Homemade cherry pie stuffed with slightly sweetened fresh cherries, vanilla and almond extract is a great treat for tea.
In addition, the recipe for this dessert is so simple that all you need to do is mix the ingredients and bake the cake. For it you will need the following products:
- 1 pack of shortcrust pastry;
- 4-5 glasses of fresh seedless cherries;
- A quarter cup (30 grams) of corn starch;
- From 2/3 to ¾ cup (134 to 150 grams) of sugar, the amount depends on the sweetness of the cherry;
- vanilla extract 1 teaspoon;
- 1/4 teaspoon almond extract;
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice;
- 1/8 teaspoon of tea salt;
- 1 tablespoon of cold butter, cut into small squares;
- 1 egg yolk;
- 1 tablespoon of fat cream.
Where to start?
The hardest part is peeling the cherries. To avoid this, you can purchase a ready-made cherry filling for baking. However, it is recommended that you use fresh, natural berries. Rinse it well and seedless.
In a large container, mix sugar, corn starch, vanilla and almond extract , lemon juice and salt. Mix gently to combine the toppings you will add to the cake.
Cherry Pie - the foundation recipe
Preheat the oven to a temperature of 200 degrees. Remove half a packet of dough from the refrigerator and leave it at room temperature for 5 minutes. On a slightly floured surface, roll out the dough into a large circle no more than 5 mm thick. Check from time to time to see if it sticks to the surface - if so, add a small amount of flour.
Give the rolled dough the shape of a plate by lifting its edges about 2 cm around the entire circumference. Make tight sides. Fill the dough with the filling to the very top of the edges made. You must place it so that the liquid from the cherry collects at the bottom and does not leak. Put slices of butter on top.
Roll out the second half of the dough, and then cover it with the cake on top. Use a sharp knife or kitchen scissors to trim the excess edges. Fold the edges of the top layer under the edges of the bottom. You must seal the cherry pie so that a noticeable border is formed between the two halves of the dough. Then fasten both edges with your fingers around the entire circumference.
How to bake a pie
Beat the egg yolk and cream in a small bowl just before baking. Use a brush to apply the mixture to the surface of the cake. Then sprinkle it with one tablespoon of sugar. Cut 3 to 4 holes at the top of the dessert.
Bake a cherry pie for 20 minutes, after which you should lower the cooking temperature to 177 degrees and then bake an additional 30-40 minutes.
What is helpful to keep in mind?
It is advisable to bake a cake on a baking sheet covered with aluminum foil.
After baking, the pie should be cooled for at least 2 hours (preferably three) before slicing, so that the filling thickens. Instead of fresh berries, canned or frozen cherries can be used.
This pie is so easy to make. A cherry pie can be prepared from scratch, if there is a desire and opportunity. It is prepared very simply.
How to make dough for a pie
Ingredients:
- 2.5 cups (315 g) of flour;
- 1 teaspoon of salt;
- 6 tablespoons of chilled butter (90 g);
- 3/4 cup margarine (148 g);
- 0.5 cups (120 ml) of ice water.
Cherry pie - recipe
Stir flour and salt in a large bowl. Add butter and margarine. Using a cookie cutter or two forks, chop both products and mix them with salted flour to a coarse mass (peas should form).
Measure out 0.5 cups (approximately 120 ml) of water, add ice. As soon as the ice begins to melt, start adding water to the dough with a spoon. Do not add it more than you need. Stop adding water when the dough begins to form large lumps. Usually, 1/3 (75 ml) to 0.5 cup (120 ml) of water is sufficient.
Transfer the cake dough onto a flour-flaked work surface. It should stick together easily and not be too sticky. Rub it in your hands until the flour is completely pounded with butter and margarine. Form a ball, cut the dough in half. Make a ball from each part, wrap each of them tightly in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours (can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 5 days).
In addition, you can freeze the dough for up to 3 months. If desired, it can be thawed overnight in the refrigerator before using it in a pie recipe.
What features do you need to know?
Use all products chilled. Cold fats are key to making shortcrust pastry. On a hot day, you can even cool your flour before starting cooking. When you take out the dough from the refrigerator to roll and fill it, the filling should be completely ready.
It is necessary to preheat the oven so that the cold dough is immediately exposed to high temperature.
Make sure you use enough water when preparing the dough. Too small of it will make it crumbling and non-sticky. The formation of a hard baked crust on the pie can occur as a result of a lack of butter in the dough, as well as due to its too long kneading. Therefore, follow the above recipe as much as possible to avoid problems.
You can lay out the second layer of dough on the filling in the form of a grid. This is very easy to do if desired. A cherry share, a photo of which can be seen in this article, turns out to be especially attractive when its filling remains partially open.
How to make a beautiful top
On a surface lightly covered with a layer of flour, roll the second half of your dough to the same thickness as the first part. Remember that it is easier to work with the dough when it is chilled.
Cut it into even strips, 1-2 cm wide, depending on what thickness you want to make a trellised covering of a pie. You can use a sharp knife or pizza cutter or cookie cutter.
Fill the pie with the filling. Lay out 4 to 7 parallel strips of dough on top of the filling, depending on how thick your strips are. The space between them should be approximately 1-2 cm. Lay one long strip of dough perpendicular to parallel. Fold the rest of the pieces like this - so that you get a lattice crosswise. Cherry pie from shortcrust pastry should be with a half-open filling.
Varieties of filling
You can cook a treat with a filling prepared in a slightly different way. To do this, you need to take the cherry, peeled, and cook it for 10-15 minutes with starch, a small amount of butter and sugar, as well as spices. Cinnamon and cloves are best combined with this berry, but you can add whatever you like - cardamom, mint and so on. A cherry pie in this case will be more fragrant, as well as more dense. In this case, you do not have to worry about the filling spreading.
Serve this dessert preferably with vanilla ice cream. It is ideal as a treat for tea, and as a product for a picnic. And to prepare it, as you have already seen, is not difficult at all. A little zeal - and the delicious pastries are ready!