Having worked another 12-hour day, the last thing I want to do this evening is composition. Here’s how to make a sour cherry crumble pie:
Late Summer Sour Cherry Pie
You will need:
Pie pan (glass, metal, or disposable)
One pie dough crust (ideally, make your own)
For the crumble (makes 2 cups, enough for one 9-inch pie):
½ cup (40 g) rolled oats
½ cup (62 g) all purpose flour
½ cup (96 g) sugar
½ tsp ground cinnamon
¼ tsp salt
6 tbsp (85 g) unsalted butter
1 tsp lemon zest
½ cup (35 g) sliced toasted almonds
For the filling (for one 9-inch pie):
2 pounds (906 g) fresh sour cherries, pitted; or, 1 ¾ pounds frozen cherries, pitted and mostly thawed
1 tsp fresh lemon juice
1 tsp almond extract
½ cup (96 g) sugar (if you’re using sweet cherries, feel free to use less sugar or omit altogether)
3 tbsp tapioca flour
¼ tsp salt
Prepare the crust. Roll out the bottom pie crust into a 12 in. circle. Place gently inside pie pan. Trim edges to approx ½ inch beyond rim of pie pan. Refrigerate while preparing the rest of the pie.
Preheat the oven to 375º.
Prepare the crumble. Use a food processor to grind the oats to a texture like fine cornmeal or brown sugar. Whisk the ground oats, flour, sugar, cinnamon, and salt together in a bowl. Melt the butter and add it, along with the lemon zest, and mix until butter is incorporated and batter forms clumps. Add almonds and toss until they are incorporated. Chill crumb until ready to use for pie topping. (It’ll keep in an airtight container, refrigerated, for several days.)
Prepare the filling. Pit the cherries. In a large bowl, toss pitted cherries with lemon juice and almond extract. In a smaller bowl, whisk the sugar, tapioca flour, and salt. Sprinkle over the cherries and toss to coat. Let sit 10 minutes to draw the juices out of the fruit. After resting, stir to ensure juices and sugar are incorporated.
Fill the pie. Cover a baking sheet with parchment paper, Retrieve your pie crust from the fridge. Pour filling into crust. Top with almond crumb, spreading evenly to cover all of the fruit. Place pie pan on baking sheet.
Bake the pie. Bake the pie atop the baking sheet for 25 minutes, then rotate the baking sheet, lower over temperature to 350º, and bake 25-30 minutes more. WAtch for the juices to bubble up through the crumb. (If your crust starts to burn, tent tinfoil atop it.)
Cool the pie. Transfer the pan to a rack and let pie cool uncovered, at room temperature, overnight before slicing and serving.