This vegan cherry pie consists of a sweet cherry filling baked inside a homemade flaky pie crust. The cherry pie filling can be made with fresh or frozen cherries making it perfect for anytime of year, not just summer!
Wash the cherries and remove the pits. I find the recipe works best if the cherries are left whole rather than halved or quartered.
To a medium bowl, add the pitted cherries, sugar, cornstarch, lemon juice, and vanilla extract. Toss to coat the cherries and allow to sit at room temperature for 30 minutes. The cherries will release some of their juices, strain the juice into a large bowl by sitting the cherries into a fine-mesh sieve or strainer. Set the cherries aside.
Add the cherry juices to a saucepan and simmer over medium heat for 5 minutes, stirring frequently with a rubber spatula or whisk. The mixture will thicken. Remove the cherry mixture from the heat and stir in the cherries. Allow to cool to room temperature for 10-15 minutes.
Filling Method 2 (Using frozen cherries)
Add the frozen cherries to a saucepan and gently heat and stir until defrosted over a medium-low heat for 5 minutes. Drain the juices from the cherries by placing them in a fine-mesh sieve or strainer over a large bowl.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the sugar, cornstarch, lemon juice, and vanilla extract, and ¼ cup of the strained cherry juices to form a paste.
Add the cherry juices back to the saucepan along with the cornstarch paste and simmer over medium heat for 5 minutes, stirring frequently with a rubber spatula or whisk. The mixture will thicken. Remove the cherry mixture from the heat and stir in the cherries. Allow to cool to room temperature for 10-15 minutes.
Assembly
Meanwhile, preheat your oven to 200°C (392°F). Lightly grease the tart tin with some oil or vegan butter.
Remove the dough discs from the fridge and allow them to sit at room temperature for 5 minutes before rolling out. On a lightly floured surface, roll out one of the dough discs to a circumference wider than your pie tin. Carefully lift the pastry into the tart tin using your rolling pin.
Gently press the dough into the base and sides of the tin, being careful not to stretch it. Use scissors to trim off the excess pastry around the edges of the pan. To crimp the edges of the dough pinch the edges of the crust with your fingers, or crimp the edges using a fork. Pierce several holes into the base of the pastry using a fork.
Roll out the second disc of dough and either leave it in one whole piece or create a lattice design as shown on Sally's Baking Recipes. Once you have added the top piece(s) of pastry, trim away any excess pastry that hangs over the edge and crimp the edges of the pastry to secure it. If leaving the top piece hole, use a knife to create slits in the pastry to prevent steam from building up underneath it.
Melt the 2 tablespoons of vegan butter and brush it on top of the pastry in an even layer. Sprinkle with granulated sugar.
Bake the pie
Bake in your oven which has been preheated to 200°C (392°F) for 20 minutes. Reduce the temperature to 190°C (374°F) and bake for another 30 minutes until golden brown.
Serving and storage
Once baked, allow the pie to come to room temperature for 30 minutes before chilling in the fridge. The filling will set once chilled making it much easier to slice the pie! I recommend chilling for at least an hour or up to a day before serving.
Cover any leftover pie well with plastic wrap and refrigerate for up to 5 days.
Notes
Note, you can use either fresh or frozen cherries but the cooking methods are different as outlined in the recipe above.
Some white sugar in the US is not vegan, if in doubt use organic sugar.
For the cleanest slices, chill the pie for at least an hour before serving. The filling will firm up in the fridge which means you won't have a runny cherry pie filling!