These sweet little pies are flexible: top them with the crumble or opt to use the pie crust scraps to make darling little lattice tops. Either way, they will be adorable and delicious. You aren’t limited to cherries, of course—this recipe will be tasty with berries as well.
INGREDIENTS
PIES:
1/4 cup evaporated cane sugar
1-1/2 teaspoons cornstarch
2 cups pitted cherries (fresh or frozen), coarsely chopped
2 tablespoons water
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 recipe Flaky Pastry Crust (page 45)
CRUMBLE TOPPING:
2 tablespoons unbleached all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon oats (quick-cooking or old-fashioned)
1 tablespoon evaporated cane sugar
1 tablespoon cold non-dairy margarine
Makes 6 pies
DIRECTIONS
Set aside six 4-ounce canning jars.
Starting with the pie filling, combine the sugar and cornstarch in the bottom of a medium saucepan. Over medium heat, whisk until combined. Add the cherries and water and cook, stirring often, until the sugar mixture is dissolved and the filling starts to thicken and coats the back of a spoon. Remove from the heat and stir in the lemon juice. Let the filling cool.
Meanwhile, make the crumble topping by combining the flour, oats, and sugar in a bowl. Mix in the margarine by hand, moving quickly to keep from melting the margarine, until it makes a coarse meal. Refrigerate until ready to use.
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Remove the crust from the fridge and divide into 6 equally sized pieces. Gently roll out the disks on a floured surface until they are 5 to 6 inches across. Press the dough into each jar, creating a 1/4-inch-thick crust that covers the bottoms and comes all the way up the sides of the jar. Be sure to work quickly so you don’t get the dough too warm. If that happens, just finish putting the crust in the jars and then chill them for 15 minutes before proceeding. If you have remaining crust, you can roll it out and cut it into 1/8-inch strips to create lattice tops for some of the pies. Otherwise, discard any leftover crust.
Place the jars on a rimmed baking sheet and fill each crust just to the top with pie filling and either top with the crumble or with pie crust. Bake for 23 to 28 minutes, until the topping is golden. Let the pies cool on a wire rack for 30 minutes before serving.