Recipe: Cherry Pie

This week I bought 20 pounds of cherries.  ($1.75/pound -- what's the best price in your area right now?) With all that wealth on hand, I decided to try my hand at fresh cherry pie, instead of using canned cherry pie filling.  My kids helped me pit the cherries, which sped the process tremendously.  Since I didn't have the patience or skill for a lattice-work top, but wanted to see the lovely color of the filling, I used a cookie cutter to cut a pattern of circles into the top crust before I laid it on the filling.  I was pretty pleased with the results.  My 20 year old daughter took one bite and said, "Wow!  This tastes like real cherries, not fake candy cherries."

I agree.

Preparation time: 1-1/2 hours  (30 minutes of prep, not counting making pie crust)

Makes 1 pieIngredients

• 5 cups cherries, pitted
• 1-1/4 cups sugar
• 1/4 cup flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• pastry for one double-crust pie

Pit cherries.  Mix all ingredients for filling in a large bowl or a zip-top bag. Stir or shake until well combined.  Place ingredients in a pastry-lined pie pan. Lay on top crust and pinch two crusts together.  Cut vent slits in top crust, and flute edges. Bake at 350°F for 55-60 minutes.