Champion Cherry Pie
By Judi Harris
Crust
12 tablespoons (1 ½ sticks) very cold margarine
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup very cold Crisco shortening
6 to 8 tablespoons (about ½ cup) ice water
Dice the margarine and return it to the refrigerator while you prepare the flour mixture. Place the flour, salt, and sugar in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade and pulse a few times to mix. Add the butter and shortening. Pulse 8 to 12 times, until the butter is the size of peas. With the machine running, pour the ice water down the feed tube and pulse the machine until the dough begins to form a ball. Dump out on a floured board and roll into a ball. Wrap in plastic wrap refrigerate for 30 minutes.
Cut the dough in half. Roll each piece on a well-floured board into a circle, rolling from the center to the edge, turning and flouring the dough to make sure it doesn't stick to the board. Fold the dough in half, place in a pie pan, and unfold to fit the pan. Repeat with the top crust.
Cherry Filling
4 cups pitted cherries
3 tablespoons Minute Tapioca
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
Mix all ingredients and set aside while making crusts. Spray the bottom pie pan with PAM Bakers and then put first crust in bottom of pan. Sprinkle with 1 tablespoon of flour on bottom of crust. Fill crust with cherry mixture. Put other crust on top of pie. Fold top crust slightly under bottom crust all around the edge of the pie. Add cherry pie crust cutouts to edges of pan. With extra crusts, make some cherry cut-outs and put them in a circle in the middle of the pie. Beat up one egg with 1 tablespoon water and brush mixture over pastry and edges. Sprinkle with sugar. Take a sharp knife and make four slits in the pie to make the let out the steam. Bake for 15 minutes at 400 degrees, then turn down to 350 degrees for remaining 30-45 minutes. Pie is done when golden brown and some filling may be bubbling out.
By Judi Harris
Crust
12 tablespoons (1 ½ sticks) very cold margarine
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup very cold Crisco shortening
6 to 8 tablespoons (about ½ cup) ice water
Dice the margarine and return it to the refrigerator while you prepare the flour mixture. Place the flour, salt, and sugar in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade and pulse a few times to mix. Add the butter and shortening. Pulse 8 to 12 times, until the butter is the size of peas. With the machine running, pour the ice water down the feed tube and pulse the machine until the dough begins to form a ball. Dump out on a floured board and roll into a ball. Wrap in plastic wrap refrigerate for 30 minutes.
Cut the dough in half. Roll each piece on a well-floured board into a circle, rolling from the center to the edge, turning and flouring the dough to make sure it doesn't stick to the board. Fold the dough in half, place in a pie pan, and unfold to fit the pan. Repeat with the top crust.
Cherry Filling
4 cups pitted cherries
3 tablespoons Minute Tapioca
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
Mix all ingredients and set aside while making crusts. Spray the bottom pie pan with PAM Bakers and then put first crust in bottom of pan. Sprinkle with 1 tablespoon of flour on bottom of crust. Fill crust with cherry mixture. Put other crust on top of pie. Fold top crust slightly under bottom crust all around the edge of the pie. Add cherry pie crust cutouts to edges of pan. With extra crusts, make some cherry cut-outs and put them in a circle in the middle of the pie. Beat up one egg with 1 tablespoon water and brush mixture over pastry and edges. Sprinkle with sugar. Take a sharp knife and make four slits in the pie to make the let out the steam. Bake for 15 minutes at 400 degrees, then turn down to 350 degrees for remaining 30-45 minutes. Pie is done when golden brown and some filling may be bubbling out.
