This delightful sour cherry pie with premade crust uses tart cherries for the perfect mixture of sweet and sour. Using a pie crust cutter gives this dessert great visual appeal too! This recipe is perfect for your next summer picnic!
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The tart cherries in this recipe come courtesy of Mara over at Put on Your Cake Pants. After meeting up for coffee and chatting, she bestowed some tart cherries upon me that she had handpicked herself. These cherries sat in my freezer for a while (because #momlife) before I had a chance to bake with them. After making my pie, I made sure to snap a picture and send it her way before we devoured almost everything in a day.
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What type of cherries should I use for baking?
So let's talk a little bit more about these cherries. Tart cherries are often referred to as "pie cherries" and are best used for baking. They have a sour-sweet flavor and you can find them frozen or canned in the grocery store. Michigan is the Cherry Capital of the World and is famous for its Montmorency tart cherries.
While you can use either a sweet or a tart cherry in a pie, I'm a big fan of using tart cherries because I love the tangy flavor that they bring to a dessert.
I'm also not opposed to using store-bought pie filling when you're in a pinch. My cherry coffee cake is an excellent example of this.
Using premade pie crusts
I'm going to let you in on a little secret. Are you ready? Lean in closely...
I hardly EVER make my own pie crusts.
There, I went ahead and said it. Let the foodies and baking aficionados judge me all they want. For me, a pie is all about what's on the inside. No amount of pie dough preparation will ever change that fact. With that being said, I always save myself time and purchase a pre-made pie dough. And I do it every time without guilt... and so should you!
Related pie recipes
Don't stop baking with this sour cherry pie with premade crust! Be sure to check out some more of our delicious pie recipes!
Recipe
Homemade Tart Cherry Pie
Ingredients
- 2 ½ cups pitted sour cherries (fresh or frozen)
- 1 ¼ cups white sugar
- 3 ½ tablespoons cornstarch
- 2 tablespoons butter
- ¼ teaspoon almond extract
- 2 9 inch prepared pie crusts
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit and place an oven rack in the center of the oven.
- Place the cherries, sugar, and cornstarch in a medium pan. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly. Lower the heat and simmer for 4-5 minutes, until the juices thicken.
- Remove pan from heat, and stir in butter and almond extract. Allow the filling to cool to lukewarm. You can speed this up by placing filling in the refrigerator.
- While pie is cooling remove your pie crusts from the refrigerator and let warm at room temperature for approximately 5 minutes. Carefully unroll pie crusts and line 9 inch pie pan with one crust. Once mixture has cooled, pour cherries into the pie shell. Cover with top crust and crimp the edges to seal. I used a fun cutout for the top, but if you use a plain pie crust, make sure you cut the vents for steam to escape.
- Bake for approximately 45 to 50 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown. Bake on a cookie sheet to catch any juices that may escape. Allow pie to cool completely before slicing and serving. This allows the juices to thicken.
Notes and Tips
Nutrition
Did you make this recipe? First, let me say THANK YOU for giving it a try! Please leave us a rating above and leave any feedback in the comments section at the bottom of this post. I always love to hear your thoughts and ideas on what went well - and what didn't - with a recipe! Be sure to check out some of our other recipes below!
Brian W. says
Can you use canned sour cherries in place of frozen sour cherries ?
Heather says
Hi Brian! If you're using the canned sour cherries in water, you can drain them first and definitely use them in this recipe—no other changes needed! If it's one of the brands that have sugar, etc. added in, you'd need to adjust the sugar in the recipe. I haven't tested this, so I'm not sure the exact adjustments you'd want.
Anthony Rizzuto says
I used your recipe for Thanksgiving '24, and I'm using it again this year! It was a big hit! And that's saying something, because my family are "pie folks", and they can be PICKY!! Thank you so much for sharing. Happy holidays!
Heather says
Hi there, Anthony! I’m so happy to hear that — what a wonderful compliment, especially coming from a family of pie lovers! I’m thrilled the recipe was such a hit last Thanksgiving and that it’s making an encore this year. Thank you so much for taking the time to share, and happy holidays to you and your family!
CakePants says
I am so glad you were able to enjoy the cherries - and even more so that we got a chance to meet in person before I moved! This pie looks incredible, and I love how you decorated it :)
Heather @ Sweet Precision says
Thank you for the thoughtful gesture! You've inspired me to pick some cherries next year. They were AH-mazing. I almost tried to stretch them out for two pies LOL!
Jess says
Pinning for later--tart cherry pies are the best. Thanks Heather :-)
Heather @ Sweet Precision says
Yes! I've always made sweet ones before and I feel like my world was rocked using the tart cherries. Even hubby (who isn't a big pie fan) liked this one! Hope you had a nice weekend Jess!