She's My Cherry Pie!

She's My Cherry Pie! Forgive my throwback with the title of this yummy cherry pie (admit it the song is in your head now) but every time I would make this when the kids were little I would dance around the kitchen like a fool singing it. Those were the days when the kids were little and I could be a total dork with them and they thought it was great fun. Inevitably the day came when they looked at me, rolled their eyes and walked away. Fortunately they never outgrow the pie itself and I can easily lure them back to the kitchen these days for a piece of it.

Ingredients: 

2 - 9 inch pre-made pie crusts or 1 double crust recipe from scratch
2 pounds (about 5 cups) cherries, pitted
3 Tablespoons cornstarch
2/3 cup granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon Kosher Flake Sea Salt
2 teaspoons Madagascar Bourbon Vanilla Extract
1/2 teaspoon Almond Extract
1 and 1/2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into small cubes
1 large egg
2 teaspoons water
2 Tablespoons Vanilla Bean Sugar, to sprinkle on top

Directions:

Prepare the 2 pie crusts: Whether using scratch or store bought keep chilled until ready to use. Remove the dough from the fridge 10 minutes before you begin rolling.

Lightly flour a rolling pin and your work surface. Roll one crust until the dough is 3 inches larger than the pie dish you are using, and is about 1/8" to a 1/4" in thick.

Lightly butter your pie dish and carefully lay the dough across the pie pan. Use your hands to fit the dough down into the pan, making sure there are no gaps between the dough and the pan. Burst any air bubbles with a fork. Do not pull or stretch the dough. Trim the dough overhang to 1 and 1/2 inches, measuring from the inner rim of the pan.
Cover the crust with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour, or up to 48 hours.

Prepare the lattice strips:
On a lightly floured work surface, roll out the 2nd pie dough into a 12-inch circle. Using a pizza cutter or pastry roller, slice the dough into 10 strips about an inch to an inch and a half wide. Lay the strips on the prepared baking sheet and refrigerate until needed.

For the Cherry Pie Filling:
Combine the cherries, cornstarch, sugar, salt, vanilla, almond extract, and lemon juice in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Simmer, stirring almost constantly, until the mixture starts to thicken – about 8 minutes. Reduce heat to low and cook for another 2 minutes before removing from the heat. Transfer to a heatproof bowl and cool to room temperature.

For the Egg Wash:
In a small bowl, beat together the egg and water until well combined. Set aside until needed.

Into the Oven:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees (F).

Remove the crust and lattice strips from the refrigerator.

Pour the cherry pie filling into the pie crust shell and top with cubes of butter.

Lay 6 of the strips on top of the filling, leaving about 1/2-inch between each strip. Fold back every other strip, then place another strip of dough perpendicular to the strips. Unfold the folded strips so they lay over the perpendicular strip. Continue this layering process, weaving the strips over and under each other.

Trim the edges of the strips, leaving about 1/2 inch overhang. Roll the excess dough up so it's tightly sitting on the edge of the pie plate, then crimp the edges to secure the strips with the bottom pie crust. Brush the edges of the crust with the egg wash and sprinkle with sugar.

Place the pie on a baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees (F) and continue baking for 50 minutes, or until the crust is golden and the filling is bubbling.

Remove from oven and cool on a wire rack for at least 2 hours before slicing.