Some recipes last for generations and this Rustic Cast Iron Skillet Cherry Pie is one of them. My mother has been making homemade pies ever since I can remember. That’s probably one of the reasons I love them so much. Besides being a truly scrumptious dessert, any pie can also be transformed into a work of art.
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If you recall, throughout this blog I’ve been sharing the fact that I was raised on a farm. Cherry trees were just one of the many fruit trees you could find growing there. Although picking cherries was tedious and somewhat messy, in the end, a yummy homemade cherry pie baked by mom was worth it all.
Another delicious cherry recipe that you may enjoy is Isaac’s Bourbon Cherry Bread Pudding. This recipe is great because it can be made on the grill or in the oven and can easily be modified to be gluten-free.
I don’t know if you have heard, but both whole cherries and tart cherry juice have some pretty amazing health benefits such as:
- contains powerful antioxidants
- plays a role in cancer prevention
- helps lower inflammation and levels of uric acid
- contains natural melatonin
- lowers your risk of stroke and heart disease
- reduces post-exercise muscle pain
Okay, now let’s move on to making a Rustic Cast Iron Skillet Cherry Pie!
First, you’ll need 1 quart of fresh or frozen cherries. If using frozen cherries, you’ll need to thaw them first. Next, place the cherries into a mixing bowl and add minute tapioca, cornstarch, sugar, and a pinch of salt. Gently stir all of the ingredients together and set aside.
The pie crust recipe mom taught me how to make at an early age was Speedy Homemade Pie Crust. It’s pretty much fail-proof and very forgiving. Another great recipe that my daughter-in-law, Becky, shared with me a while back is her Amish grandmother’s pie crust recipe. Her grandmother, Viola, worked in a pie pastry shop for nearly 5 years so you know it’s a great recipe. You can find it by clicking on this link > Viola’s Never Fail Pie Crust. Either pie crust recipe works beautifully when making cast iron skillet pies.
Gluten-Free Option: use premade store-bought gluten-free pie dough or make your favorite gluten-free pie dough recipe. All other ingredients are naturally gluten-free.
Next, grab a well-seasoned 8-inch cast iron skillet. Flip your cast iron skillet over on top of the pie dough (as seen in the picture above), then carefully flip both the skillet and dough over together. Gently position the dough to cover the bottom and sides of the skillet. Trim the excess dough from around the edge of the skillet. Form this dough into a ball and set it aside for a moment.
Place the cherry filling inside of the pie dough.
Now roll out the remaining ball of dough just like you did before. Although you can make a lattice or solid top crust with the dough, for my pie I thought I would be artistic and use a flower shaped cookie cutter to cut out little “cherry blossoms.”
Spread softened butter and a light sprinkle of sugar over the top crust. This helps the crust turn a golden brown color and adds a hint of sweetness and sparkle to the top of a fruit pie.
Since the cherry mixture may ooze out during the baking process, I always place any skillet pie onto a baking sheet with sides. It’s so much easier washing an extra pan rather than cleaning my oven. Finally, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Bake 1 hour 25 minutes, or until the center is set and the top crust is golden brown.
Rustic Cast Iron Skillet Cherry Pie
A delicious cherry pie recipe that can easily be modified to be gluten-free.
Ingredients
- For Pie Dough:
- 2 cups flour
- 1/2 cup canola oil
- 1/4 cup milk
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- (GF Option - use store-bought gluten free pie dough or make your favorite gluten-free pie dough recipe)
- Filling:
- 1 quart cherries
- 3 tablespoons minute tapioca (uncooked)
- 1 heaping tablespoon cornstarch
- 1 cup sugar
- pinch of salt
- 2 tablespoons butter, softened
- 2 tablespoons sugar for topping
Instructions
- In a mixing bowl combine flour, canola oil, milk and salt, (if you feel the dough is a little on the dry side simply add a little more oil until it's the consistency you want).
- Divide the dough in half. Set half of the dough off to the side and form the other half of the dough into ball shape. Place the ball of dough between two large sheets of waxed paper. Roll out to approx. 1/4-inch thickness; making it large enough to completely cover the bottom and sides of an 8-inch cast iron skillet. With a knife, trim excess dough from around the top rim of the skillet; add it to the remaining dough. Form another ball.
- In a separate bowl combine cherries, minute tapioca, cornstarch, sugar and salt; gently stir all ingredients together. Carefully pour mixture into the dough in the skillet.
- Place the remaining ball of dough between waxed paper and roll it out to approx. 1/4-inch thickness. Using a small flower-shaped cookie cutter, cut flower shapes out of the dough and place them on top of the pie.
- Smear softened butter on top of the flowered-shape dough and sprinkle with sugar.
- Place skillet on top of a baking sheet with sides. Bake in a preheated 350-degree oven for approximately 1 hour 25 minutes, or until the center is set and the top crust is golden brown.
- Remove from the oven and allow pie to cool for 15 minutes before slicing.
- Serve warm with scoops of vanilla bean ice cream.
Notes
To make this recipe gluten-free simply use gluten-free pie dough. All other ingredients are naturally gluten-free.
Okay, now I’m going to brag about my mother. Mom always made her own homemade pie crust and made filling from fresh, organic produce grown on our farm. She made just about every kind of pie you can imagine too. Along with cherry pie, few other favorites were her apple pie, rhubarb pie, pecan pie, peach pie, pumpkin pie, and pecan pumpkin pie. I assure you that each one was delicious in its own right.
Personally, I think that serving a yummy fruit pie in a cast iron skillet adds a certain cozy rustic charm. Mmm Mmm good!
Enjoy!
Linda
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