There’s nothing quite like the vibrant spirit of the 4th of July, a time for celebrating freedom, family, and of course, fantastic food. As barbecues sizzle and fireworks light up the night sky, one dessert stands out as the ultimate showstopper: a homemade cherry pie adorned with stars and stripes. Imagine the delight on your guests’ faces when you present this stunning, patriotic masterpiece! What if we told you this impressive dessert is far easier to create than its intricate appearance suggests? That’s right – thanks to the magic of canned tart cherries, you can whip up this irresistible treat without breaking a sweat, leaving you more time to enjoy the festivities. And trust us, a warm slice served with a generous scoop of vanilla ice cream is pure bliss, a taste of American tradition that everyone will cherish.
Oh, what a beautiful morning! Oh, what a beautiful day! That classic tune from “Oklahoma!” perfectly captures the cheerful spirit that often accompanies the arrival of summer and the anticipation of Independence Day. While I may not have seen the musical (a shameful confession, perhaps!), the feeling of bright optimism is undeniably infectious. It’s the kind of day where the windows are open, a gentle breeze replaces the sweltering heat of previous weeks – a true “Hallelujah!” moment for anyone who appreciates comfortable weather.
This year, my patriotism is soaring higher than usual, perhaps fueled by a recent obsession with Hamilton after seeing it live. The energy, the history, the sheer revolutionary spirit – it’s all incredibly inspiring. So, when it comes to celebrating the 4th of July, I’m all in! And what better way to express that enthusiasm than with a dessert that embodies the very essence of American celebration? Forget throwing away my shot – I’m focused on serving up the most delightful pie of the season. Let’s talk about this festive cherry pie, a true testament to young, scrappy, and hungry American spirit in the kitchen.
Choosing the Perfect Cherries for Your Pie
One of the most common questions when baking a cherry pie is about the cherries themselves. Can you find fresh tart cherries easily at your local grocery store? For many of us, the answer is often no. While farmer’s markets might offer them seasonally, for consistent availability and exceptional flavor, canned tart cherries are your secret weapon. They deliver a reliably tangy punch that perfectly balances the sweetness of the pie filling, resulting in a complex and satisfying taste that fresh sweet cherries simply can’t match.
It’s crucial to use tart cherries for this recipe. Those beautiful, dark red Bing cherries you see piled high at the store are delicious, but they are too sweet for pie filling and are best enjoyed straight from the bowl. For pie, you want a vibrant, tangy flavor that sings through the crust. Morello cherries are particularly excellent if you can find them – look for them at specialty stores like Trader Joe’s or easily order them online. The Oregon brand of tart cherries, found in the canned fruit aisle of most well-stocked grocery stores, also works wonderfully. Simply drain them well before using.
Mastering the Art of Pie Baking: Easier Than You Think
Many bakers, especially beginners, can find pie-making intimidating. Rolling out dough, creating a perfect crust, and ensuring the filling is just right can seem like a daunting task. However, this Stars and Stripes Cherry Pie is designed to be approachable and fun! While it looks incredibly impressive, the process is surprisingly straightforward, making it an excellent choice for any skill level. The key is in breaking down the steps and embracing a little practice. The decorative top, for instance, is far less complicated than a full lattice crust. Instead of lifting an entire intricate design, you simply cut out the individual stripe and star pieces and arrange them. This makes it much more manageable and significantly reduces the stress of pie decoration. When your friends and family see this beautifully crafted pie, they’ll be “oohing and aahing” in admiration, completely unaware of how easy it truly was!
Tips for a Flawless Crust
Even seasoned bakers have their moments of triumph and learning in the kitchen. I’ve made this pie more than once, and in one instance, my crust came out a little too browned. It’s always a little heartbreaking to spend time on dough only to have it overcook. I realized that the jagged edges of the star cutouts, while beautiful, tended to cook faster. To prevent this, a simple trick is to use a foil shield. This ingenious little accessory protects the edges of your crust from over-browning while the rest of the pie bakes to golden perfection. For pies with intricate edge designs, like our star cutouts, this shield is a must-have for even baking. Adjusting the oven temperature as the recipe outlines also plays a crucial role in achieving that ideal golden-brown hue without scorching.
Achieving a perfectly flaky pie crust relies on a few fundamental principles. Firstly, ensure all your ingredients, especially butter and water, are as cold as possible. Cold fats create steam during baking, which separates the dough layers and results in that desirable flakiness. Secondly, avoid overworking the dough. Too much handling develops the gluten, leading to a tough crust instead of a tender one. Combining both butter and shortening, as this recipe does, offers the best of both worlds: butter for its rich flavor and shortening for its superior flakiness. These small details make a big difference in the final texture of your pie.
Crafting the Patriotic Stars and Stripes Design
The beauty of this 4th of July Cherry Pie lies in its iconic stars and stripes top crust, a design that evokes instant festive cheer. While I might have missed capturing every single detailed photo of the top crust cutting process, a closer look at the images provided offers a clear visual guide. You can discern the subtle, swirly lines I created for the stripes using a non-serrated paring knife. The key is to make confident, fluid cuts that create graceful, flowing stripes rather than rigid lines.
For the stars, a small star-shaped cookie cutter is your best friend. This allows you to quickly and uniformly cut out multiple stars from the remaining dough. Don’t worry about them being absolutely perfect or identically placed; a little rustic charm only adds to the homemade appeal. Remember, the goal is to create a delightful, festive design that is both achievable and impressive. Arrange the stars strategically, filling the “blue field” section of your pie, and watch your ordinary pie transform into a culinary flag.
The Essential Crust Shield
To ensure your pie crust bakes beautifully without over-browning, especially around the edges and with delicate cutouts, a homemade crust shield is indispensable. It’s incredibly simple to make: take a square piece of aluminum foil roughly the size of your pie pan. Fold it in half, then in half again, creating quarters. Using scissors, carefully round off the unfolded edges and then cut out a circle from the center. When you unfold it, you’ll have a perfect foil ring. Place this ring over the pie crust, crimping it gently around the edges. This protective barrier allows the filling to cook thoroughly and the center of the top crust to achieve a golden finish, while keeping the delicate edges from burning. It’s a small step that guarantees a professional-looking result every time.
There you have it – all the secrets to creating a stunning and delicious 4th of July Cherry Pie that will be the highlight of your celebration. With its vibrant flavors, patriotic design, and surprising ease of preparation, this pie is sure to become a beloved tradition. So gather your ingredients, put on your favorite celebratory music, and get ready to bake a truly memorable dessert. May your morning be beautiful, and your day even more so!
More Delicious Pie Recipes to Try
- Peach Apricot Slab Pie: A fantastic option for feeding a crowd, packed with juicy summer fruits.
- Chocolate Cherry Hand Pies: Perfect for individual servings, these portable pies are a delightful twist on a classic.
- Blackberry Pie: A timeless favorite, this pie is so good, it’s a staple for every holiday.
- Deep Dish Cherry Pie from Pint Sized Baker
- Favorite Cherry Pie from Comfortably Domestic
- President’s Birthday Cherry Pie from Boulder Locavore
Facebook | Pinterest | Instagram
Cherry Pie for 4th of July!
15 mins
45 mins
1 hr
2 hrs
8
Rate this Recipe
Print Recipe
Cherry pie with the stars and stripes is the perfect dessert to bring for your 4th of July barbecue! It’s a lot easier than it looks, especially since this pie is made from (shh) canned tart cherries! It’s SO delicious with a scoop of ice cream.
Ingredients
For the crust:
For the filling:
For the top:
Instructions
For the filling:
-
Drain the cherries well. Add them to a medium size bowl and stir in sugar, salt, tapioca, almond extract, and vanilla extract. Let sit 15 minutes while you make the crust.
For the crust:
-
Measure out 1/4 cup water into a glass measuring cup and stick it in the freezer.
-
In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, and salt.
-
Use a pastry cutter or fork to cut in the butter and shortening. Cut until it looks like coarse crumbs with pea-size pieces of butter. Don’t overdo it!
-
In a small bowl beat one egg. Pour out half (into the sink or into another container, or heck, into a frying pan. You can also save it to brush the crust later). You can just eyeball it.
-
Add the half beaten egg to the cold water that you put in the freezer. Beat it together, then add it to the shortening mixture. Stir until it is just coming together, then use floured hands to knead it once or twice (only to make it come together). Divide the dough in half. Put half in the fridge.
-
Generously sprinkle flour onto a sheet of parchment paper or pastry cloth. Roll the dough into a circle with a rolling pin, using as much flour as you need so that it doesn’t stick. It should be about 13-14 inches across. Invert the parchment paper onto a 9-inch pie pan and gently peel off the paper. (Or roll the dough onto a rolling pin and unroll into the pan.) Arrange the pie crust and gently tuck the overhanging dough underneath the edges to create a crust. Pinch or crimp the edges with your thumbs or a fork.
-
Preheat your oven to 425 degrees F. (We will lower the temperature later.)
-
Add the cherry filling to the pie crust. Cut 2 tablespoons of butter into chunks and sprinkle it over the top of the filling. Stick the pie in the fridge while you make the top crust.
-
Use a a rolling pin to roll the second half of the pie dough into a (roughly) 12 inch circle. Make sure your surface is well floured!
-
Use a sharp knife to make 5 swirly stripes on the right side of your circle. Look at the photos; the stripes take up about 3/4 of the pie, so measure out how long you want the longest one in the middle to be and make them all that same length. Mine were 6 inches. (You can either trim them or tuck them under your crust; I don’t believe in trimming pie crusts so I tucked.)
-
Arrange the stripes onto the pie, starting with the center stripe and moving out. Tuck into the crust.
-
Use a small star-shaped cookie cutter to make stars out of the rest of the dough (you may not use all of it.) Place the stars in the middle of the pie first and move outward from there. It doesn’t need to be perfect guys. Your friends will be impressed no matter what at this point. 🙂
-
Use a pastry brush to lightly coat the top of the crust with milk. OR you can brush the crust with the leftover half-egg from the dough.
-
Sprinkle the pie with coarse sugar.
-
Create a crust shield by getting a square piece of aluminum foil about the size of your pie. Fold it in half, then in half again (quarters). Use scissors to cut the not-folded edges into a rounded edge. Then cut out the middle. (see photos). Unfold it and you should have a circle of foil with a hole in the middle. Place the foil over the crust of your pie and crimp it down over the edges.
-
Place your pie in the oven; make sure to put it on a baking sheet in case it overflows.
-
Bake at 425 for 15 minutes.
-
Lower the oven temperature to 375 degrees F. Bake for another 30-35 minutes (a total of about 50 minutes). The pie is done when the top and edges are golden brown. I never removed the foil.
-
Remove the pie from the oven and let cool for about 1-3 hours before slicing. Usually after one hour a fruit pie is still liquid-y, but this one does pretty well at being sliced warm (thank you, tapioca!). You can speed this up by sticking it in the fridge or freezer.
-
Serve with vanilla ice cream! Or cream, if you’re a convert.
Notes
*You can use all shortening, or any combination of shortening and butter that you like. This is the combo I like.
**You can buy the Oregon brand tart cherries (14.5 oz) at most nice grocery stores (in the canned fruit section). But Morello cherries are even better; you can find them in 12 ounce jars at Trader Joe’s. Use 3 jars and drain well. I’ve never tried it, but I’ve read you can also use thawed and drained frozen tart cherries. (Just make sure you don’t use sweet cherries)
Recipe from my BFF Sarah, who adapted it from Allrecipes.com. I got the stars and stripes design idea from Land O Lakes.
Nutrition
Serving: 1g | Calories: 557kcal | Carbohydrates: 82g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 25g | Saturated Fat: 12g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 8g | Trans Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 50mg | Potassium: 386mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 49g | Vitamin A: 558IU | Vitamin C: 11mg | Calcium: 32mg | Iron: 2mg
Dessert
American
557
cherry pie
Did you make this? I’d love to see it!
Mention @thefoodcharlatan or tag #thefoodcharlatan!