Halloween Cherry Pies
Halloween Cherry Pies
Ingredients (Store bought version)
2 boxes of store bought Whole Foods Pie Crusts
1 Egg + 1 tsp Water (Egg wash)
1–2 tbsp coarse sugar (optional)
Ingredients (Homemade Cherry Filling)
4 cups pitted cherries (fresh or frozen, tart or sweet)
3/4 cup sugar (adjust to taste—less if cherries are very sweet)
3 tbsp cornstarch
1 tbsp lemon juice
1/4 tsp almond extract (optional, but gives that bakery flavor)
Pinch of salt
Directions
Preheat oven to 425°F. Remove crusts from pouches and let come to room temperature. Using a 3 1/2” or 4” round cookie cutter, cut 12 rounds from each box. (24 total rounds)
Fit one pie round into each of the 12 ungreased muffin cups, pressing down gently.
In a medium saucepan over medium heat, stir cherries, sugar, and salt. If using frozen cherries, no need to thaw first.
In a separate bowl, add cornstarch with 1/4 cup water to make a slurry. Once cherries start releasing juice and bubbling, stir in the slurry. Cook until mixture thickens and cherries are tender, about 5–7 minutes. Stir in lemon juice and almond extract. Taste and adjust sugar if needed.
Spoon about 2 tablespoons of pie filling into each crust-lined cup.
Make faces on the remaining 12 dough rounds using piping bag tips and a knife. Place on top of pie filling. Brush with egg wash and sprinkle with coarse sugar. Bake 18 to 25 minutes or until edges are golden brown and filling is bubbly.
