Cherry Pie Filling Recipe

If you’ve ever heard the saying, “easy as cherry pie” they were referring to this recipe. This simple Cherry Pie Filling recipe is the last you’ll ever need thanks to its ease and affordability!

Everyone gets excited when you slice into a warm cherry pie. It’s like a sign that bright things are blooming with its sweet and tart cherry flavor. Why buy that in a can when you can make yourself in minutes and you get to lick the spoon!? Try this Cherry Pie Filling Recipe to make your baking bloom with ripe fruit flavor!

Jump to:

• What You’ll Love About This Cherry Pie Filling
• Ingredients
• How to Make Cherry Pie Filling
• FAQs
• Delicious Variations
• How to Use Cherry Pie Filling
• How to Make a Cherry Pie with this Filling
• Cherry Pie Filling Recipe

What You’ll Love About This Cherry Pie Filling

Great Way to Save Fruit

There is nothing worse than throwing out produce. Everyone hates to do it, so it's good to have a few helpful waste-preventive recipes up your sleeve. This fun and fruity Cherry Pie Filling is the perfect way to make use of extra cherries. It can be made with frozen fruit too, but if you’ve gone cherry picking you're probably looking for something great to do with all that fruit!

Better than Store-Bought

Canned fruit pie fillings can be convenient in a pinch but they can’t hold a candle to this homemade pie filling. Often store-bought filling is overly sweet and syrupy, but not this cherry filling! This balanced cherry treat has just the right taste and texture.

The sweet and tart flavors are under your control so master the flavor. If you feel your filling needs a little extra sweetness or tartness it's yours to control. Use it in pies, cheesecakes, cobblers, or whatever your heart desires because anywhere you put this cherry filling, it will taste great!

Great for Giving

If you have dreams of off-grid living or at least making your kitchen a little more sustainable this recipe is a great place to start. With these steps, you can make cherry pie filling for gift-giving, baking, and long-term storage. If you store this recipe properly it will keep for a long time so you can bake it for weeks to come. Give it to someone you love or use it yourself, either way, it’s pure good-feeling food!

Ingredients

Cherries

The cherry flavor is universally loved. It is tart, sweet, and super delicious! For this recipe, you will need plenty of cherries so it's a great recipe to bust out at cherry picking season.

Some of the best types of cherries include Bing, Black, and Rainier. Bing cherries are popular for their tangy sweetness and true red hue. Black cherries have a deeper color and sweeter taste than Bing. Rainier cherries are bright yellow to orange in color and mildly sweet in flavor.

You will need to pit all the cherries before using them in this pie filling. Alternatively, you can opt for frozen pitted cherries but thaw them out in the fridge before cooking.

Water

Liquid helps stop the cherries from overcooking or burning in the cooking process. You will also need cold water to make a cornstarch slurry. Be sure to use cold to avoid a lump slurry.

Sugar

Granulated white sugar is the perfect sweetener for this cherry pie filling. If you want to go sugar-free, try stevia, agave syrup, or erythritol.

Cornstarch

Cornstarch is a thickener that will turn the cherry juice into a delicious syrupy filling. In a pinch, tapioca flour or all-purpose flour would work as a substitute.

Lemon Juice

Lemon juice brings an excellent tart flavor to the filling and it acts as a preservative. With a little citrus, your filling will last longer, look brighter, and taste fresher. Use freshly squeezed lemon juice or opt for store-bought lemon juice.

How to Make Cherry Pie Filling

1. Be sure to pit the cherries and then place them in a medium saucepan, and top with water.
2. Place the saucepan over medium-low heat, cover, and cook.
3. Bring the cherry mixture to a boil, stirring often. Continue cooking until the cherries release their juices or about 10 to 15 minutes.
4. While the cherry mixture cooks, make a cornstarch slurry. Combine the cornstarch with about ¼ cup of cold water and mix. Set this aside.
5. Return to the cherry mixture and stir in the lemon and sugar.
6. Add the cornstarch slurry to the cherries and stir constantly. Continue cooking and stirring until the mixture is nicely thickened.
7. Once thickened, remove the mixture from heat and allow it to cool.

Expert Tips

• Turn the heat down if the cherries seem to be cooking too quickly.
• Keep a lid on the pot when possible and wear an apron. The cherries can splash and cover you with bright red stickiness!
• If you like things extra tart, add a little lemon zest into the mix for a more pronounced citrus flavor.
• Use cold water in the cornstarch slurry. It is more effective and less likely to become lumpy.
• You can pour the hot pie filling into a large jar and allow it to cool. When it’s fully cooled it will already be ready to store!

FAQs

How to Store Cherry Pie Filling

Storing this pie filling is as easy as pie! Just allow the pie filling to cool completely. Move it to an airtight food storage container or jar. Store it in the fridge for up to 4 days before using or discarding it.

Can I Freeze Extra Cherry Pie Filling?

Yes! This pie filling can be frozen. This Cherry Pie Filling will last up to 3 months in the freezer.

Allow it to cool completely and then transfer it to a freezer-safe bag. Press out all the excess air and seal. Label the bag with the date and the contents and store them in the freezer.

To thaw, place the bag of pie filling on a paper towel in the fridge overnight. Once thawed, use the filling within 4 days.

Delicious Variations

Cherry Berry

Cherries and berries are perfect together. Add another layer of flavor to this pie filling by substituting strawberries for half of the cherries in this recipe.

Just Peachy

Peach and cherry have very different fruit flavors, yet when they come together it just works! Swap half your cherries for fresh peaches to make an unexpectedly delicious medley!

Cherry Limeade

If you cannot get enough of the sweet and tart combination of cherry and limes, try this fresh take! Instead of using lemon juice, swap in lime juice and a little extra lime zest to make this filling funky and fresh!

Nuts About Cherries

Cherry and coconut are a decadent flavor combination that takes you to summertime with every bite. Add some chunks of frozen coconut meat to the cherries and cook as directed. Add extra water or sugar if needed.

How to Use Cherry Pie Filling

This pie filling is so sweet and loaded with cherry goodness that the delicious opportunities are endless. It works in cherry pies, crumbles, cobblers, cheesecakes, and beyond! Plus, it's fully cooked so you can use it as is!

If you’re not sure what to do with this sweet filling, here are a few sweet ideas for this Cherry Pie Filling:

• Cherry cobbler
• New York-style cheesecake with cherry pie topping
• Cherry pie blondies
• White chocolate cherry cheesecake cookies
• And of course, cherry pie!

How to Make a Cherry Pie with this Filling

If you are dying to make the perfect cherry pie follow these simple steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400°F and grab a 9-inch pie pan.
• Roll out two of your favorite pie crusts. Cut slits in one and reserve it as the top crust.
• Gently press one pie crust into the pan with your fingers and press it into the edges.
• Use a fork to dock the crust.
• Cover the bottom crust completely with cherry pie filling.
• Center the top crust over the pie pan and lay it down. Use your fingers or a fork to crimp the edges closed.
• Optionally brush the pie with egg wash and sprinkle it with coarse sugar.
• Bake the pie for about 10 minutes and then lower the temperature to 350°F and continue baking for another 40 minutes or until the crust is perfectly golden.

Enjoy cherry pie plain or topped with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream. Pair it with a hot cup of coffee for the perfect nostalgic treat!

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