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The Sweet Melissa Baking Book: Sour Cherry Pie with Pistachio Crumble

Posted by Emily Koh, April 3, 2008 at 2:30 PM

Today's Cook the Book recipe, adapted from The Sweet Melissa Baking Book, is one that Melissa Murphy says is her favorite—Sour Cherry Pie with Pistachio Crumble. Developed by her friend and one-time pasty chef at Sweet Melissa Patisserie, it's also one of the most popular pies at the shop.

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Sour Cherry Pie with Pistachio Crumble

- makes one 10-inch pie -
Adapted from The Sweet Melissa Baking Book, by Melissa Murphy.

Ingredients

For the pie crust:
1/2 recipe Flaky Pie Dough (see recipe below)

For the pistachio crumble:
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2/3 cup whole oats, ground to a flour in a food processor (yielding 1/2 cup oat flour)
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
3/4 cup shelled unsalted whole pistachios, coarsely ground in a food processor or chopped medium fine by hand
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled

For the sour cherry filling:
3/4 cup sugar
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
2 1/4 pounds fresh sour cherries, pitted, or 2 pounds frozen sour cherries, partially thawed

Procedure

To prepare the pie crust
Roll out the pie dough into a round 14 inches wide and 1/4 inch thick. Gently fit into a 10-inch pie plate. Fold the edges under and crimp. Refrigerate until firm, about 30 minutes.

To make the pistachio crumble
1. In a medium bowl, combine the all-purpose flour, oat flour, sugar, cinnamon, salt, and pistachios.

2. Stir in the melted butter and mix gently to combine.

Before you make the filling
Place a rack in the bottom third of your oven. Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or aluminum foil.

To make the cherry filling
1. in a small bowl, whisk together the sugar, cornstarch, and salt.

2. In a medium bowl, place the cherries and sprinkle the flour mixture over the top; mix gently to combine. (If you are using fresh cherries, the natural sweetness can vary. Taste the mixture to see if you need more sugar than is called for.)

3. Pour the cherries into the unbaked pie shell.

To complete the pie
1. Sprinkle the pistachio crumble evenly over the top of the cherries.

2. Place the pie plate on the prepared cookie sheet. Bake for about 1 hour and 10 minutes, or until the juices are bubbling and thick. Remove to a rack to cool to room temperature before serving.

Fruit pies are best eaten the day they are baked.

===

Flaky Pie Dough

- makes enough for 1 double-crust or 2 single-crust 10-inch pies -

Ingredients
2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
5 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons cold vegetable shortening
6 to 8 tablespoons ice water

Procedure

To make the dough
1. Take the flour/salt bowl from the freezer. Whisk together. Take the butter from the freezer and, using your hands, quickly drop each piece separately into the flour mixture (don't hold a lot of them in your hand at one time or you'll melt them). Every now and then using your fingers toss the butter pieces into the flour so that each piece of cold butter is covered with flour.

2. Using a pastry blender, cut the butter into the flour until the butter is the size of large peas. (Using a pastry blender is easy. Just put it into the shortening and push through while slightly rotating the blender a quarter spin, which cuts and blends in the same operation. Repeat as needed to obtain a good blend or crumbly mixture. You do occasionally have to clear or remove ingredients that stick to the side of the pastry blender and a butter knife works well for this.)

3. Now take the shortening from the freezer and, using your fingertips, scoop out little pieces and toss them into the flour with your fingers as you go (just like you did with the butter chunks).

4. Using the pastry blender, cut the shortening into the flour mixture until the shortening and the butter are the size of medium to small peas.

5. Now, the water. If you added any ice cubes to the water, pull them out now. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture with your fingers. Pour half of the ice-cold water into the well. Use a fork to gently pull the flour from the sides of the bowl into the well. Keep turning the bowl and pulling the flour in. The dough should start to come together. Now, add half of the remaining water and continue to pull toward the middle. When the dough has enough water, it will hold together when you squeeze it in the palm of your hand. If it is holding together, stop. If it is not quite there yet, add the remaining water and toss until it does.

6. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface. Pat it together into one piece. Divide the dough into two equal parts, flatten each into a round disk, and then wrap tightly in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 45 minutes. Put what you will use today in the fridge, and the rest (if there is any) goes into the freezer for another time.

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Tags: cherry pies, desserts, Melissa Murphy, pies, sour cherries, The Sweet Melissa Baking Book