National Pie Championship: Best of Show in the Professional division
Linda Hundt, owner of the Sweetie-licious Pie Pantry in DeWitt, Michigan
Crust:
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- • 1 ½ cups of flour
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- • ¼ tsp baking powder
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- • ½ tsp salt
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- • 1 tsp sugar
- • ½ cup Crisco shortening
Mix all ingredients in a stand mixer on medium speed swiftly until crust appears “pea like.” Carefully sprinkle ice cold water in crust mix until it just starts to be fully moistened and gathers together. Pat into disc, wrap and refrigerate for at least one half hour. Roll out on floured surface and make and crimp piecrust. Freeze until ready to use.
Filling:
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- • 4 ½ cups Montmorency tart cherries –frozen*
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- • 1 cup sugar
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- • ¼ cup cornstarch
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- • ½ tsp real almond extract
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- • 1 tsp fresh squeezed lemon juice
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- • ½ tsp orange zest
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- • ½ cup
- • 1 ½ cups of frozen blueberries
Combine frozen cherries, dried cherries, sugar, cornstarch. Stir constantly on med-hi heat until boiling. Boil for one minute or until thickened. Add almond extract, lemon juice and zest. Pour blueberries in bottom of pie shell and pour cherry mixture over them.
Crumb Topping
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- • 1 cup sugar
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- • 1 cup all purpose flour
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- • ¼ tsp salt
- • 1 stick butter softened
Mix together all crumb topping ingredients by hand or a pastry blender until crumbly.
Cover filling with crumb topping. Bake in preheated 400 degree oven for 45 minutes to one hour or until filling is bubbling over crust.
*Note: We ship IQF (individually quick frozen) tart cherries during the winter months. Please call 1-877-937-5464 if you’d like information. If you can’t get the frozen cherries, canned tart cherries packed in water make an excellent and affordable substitute.