Starting with Sour Cherry

I wanted to start this blog with apple pie, my most practiced recipe. However, I do not have any appetizing pictures of an apple pie right now, so my first post is sour cherry pie. This is a fitting first recipe because cherry pie was my favorite dessert growing up (narrowly beating out ice cream cake...mmmmm).  

On Monday, a generous friend and former co-worker gave me 14 cups of beautiful sour cherries that he picked at his farm. This gave me an excuse to buy a cherry pitter - a seemingly frivolous expense for an unemployed person - but it was worth it.

This was by far the most time-consuming pie I've ever made. A friend and I spent two hours pitting the cherries, a hypnotically repetitive task that allowed us to enjoy good conversation and music (Dreamboat Annie, Astral Weeks).  

14 cups of cherries made three shallow pies and would have easily filled two deep dish pie pans. The recipe below is for one pie.

I'm still figuring out how to take beautiful pictures. Perhaps I should start by being a less messy baker. But the mess is half the fun!

The pies were almost perfect (save the one cherry pit I let slip through the cracks). They were tart and slightly sweet. The cherries were soft but not mushy, and the filling set up properly so it didn't run when I cut a slice. My mom said it was the best pie she's ever had, which is my favorite compliment. It was so yummy, I forgot to take a picture of a piece a la mode!  

The only downside is that these cherries ripen once a year, so I won't be able to make this again until next year!

Sour Cherry Pie (adapted from the Fresh Cherry Pie Recipe in the Joy of Cooking):

Crust (makes 3 single crusts):

2 cups flour

1/4 teaspoon salt 

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

1 cup vegetable shortening

1 egg

Add salt and baking powder to flour, mix

Cut in shortening until mixture resembles cornmeal or a course meal (I find using my fingers is easier than a pastry cutter or a fork, and it's much more fun!)

Break egg into measuring cup and add cold water until it reaches 1/2 a cup, mix

Add egg and water mixture to flour mixture and mix until it holds together

Chill (best overnight)

Filling:
5 cups pitted sour cherries
1 1/4 cups sugar
3 tablespoons quick-cooking tapioca 
2 tablespoons water 
1/2 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons salted butter (that's right - I use salted butter!)

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  

Combine the first four ingredients in a mixing bowl. Let stand for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, line a pie pan with pie dough (1/3 of the dough should cover a regular pie pan; 1/2 of it will cover a deep dish pan). Pour the filling mixture into the bottom crust and dot with butter. Cover with a pricked or lattice crust. Brush with an egg white and sprinkle with two teaspoons of sugar. Cover the edges of the crust with aluminum foil to avoid burning.  

Bake 30 minutes at 425 degrees. Reduce heat to 350 and bake for an additional 30 minutes, until the filling is bubbling around the edges. Let stand 1 hour before digging in.