Table Talk
Fresh Cherry Pie
I was born in Billings, Montana, where my family lived until I was six. I have many fun memories of that place: ice skating with the boys across the street, jumping on the inner tube in the back yard, picking up golf tees around the nearby golf course, and of course, hanging around with our neighbors, the Nieters (sp? help me here, Sherm). My brother Sherman was friends with Danny, and I was friends with Mary Michael. My memories are vague, at this point, about all the things we did, the things we played. But one of my strongest memories from their house was eating fresh cherry pie, made from cherries picked from a tree in their backyard. It is one of my earliest food memories, now that I think about it.The taste of that pie is burned into my brain---it was simply the most amazing thing I'd ever tasted. I thought of that pie this week when I was eating a fresh cherry pie of my own, with cherries picked from my own cherry tree. The fruit is abundant this year. I've already picked enough for half a dozen pies but the tree is still full. The top, which is heavy with untouched fruit, seems to taunt me. I plot and scheme, hoping to figure out a way to get to them. Anyone have a really really tall ladder? I'm offering pie...
Sour Cherry Pie
Crust:
2 1/2 cups unbleached all purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1/2 cup chilled lard, cut into 1/2-in. pieces
6 tablespoons (or more) ice water
Filling:
1 cup sugar
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon salt
5-6 cups whole pitted sour cherries
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice (if using sour cherries)
2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1 tablespoon (about) milk
Turbinado (raw) sugar, for sprinkling
Vanilla ice cream
Preparation
For crust:
Whisk flour, sugar, and salt in large bowl to blend. Using a pastry cutter, cut butter and lard into flour until pea sized. Add 5 tablespoons ice water; mix lightly with fork until dough holds together when small pieces are pressed between fingertips, adding more water by teaspoonfuls if dough is dry. Gather dough together; divide into 2 pieces. Form each piece into ball, then flatten into disk and wrap in plastic. Refrigerate at least 30 minutes.
For filling:
Position rack in lower third of oven and preheat to 425°F. Whisk 1 cup sugar, cornstarch, and salt in medium bowl to blend. In a separate bowl, combine cherries & lemon juice. Pour dry ingredients over cherries and toss gently until completely combined.
Roll out 1 dough disk on floured surface to 14-inch round. Transfer to 9-inch glass pie dish. Trim dough overhang to 1/2 inch. Roll out second dough disk on floured surface to 12-inch round. Pour cherries in prepared crust. Dot the top of the cherries with pieces of butter. Wet the edge of the crust with water. Top the pie with the 2nd crust, trimming to 1" overhang. Fold the top crust edge around the bottom crust; crimp to seal. Make a few slits in the top crust, brush with milk & sprinkle with turbinado sugar.
Place pie on rimmed baking sheet and bake 15 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 375°F. Bake pie until filling is bubbling and crust is golden brown, covering edges with foil collar if browning too quickly, about 1 hour longer. Transfer pie to rack and cool completely before cutting. Serve with vanilla ice cream.
