at some point this past summer, I'd bought so many delicious cherries that they went overripe before we could eat them all. so I suggested we pit & freeze them. for the winter. & today they came out of the freezer. (so did some blueberries, for the pie & muffins)
my boyfriend loves pie. it makes him so very happy. so I made a batch of basic butter pie crust (using a recipe from here), with some very cold butter & ice water, and let it chill in the fridge while the fruit softened.
after the berries defrosted, I squeezed in fresh lemon juice, about 1/2 cup of sugar and a teaspoon of strong, sweet cinnamon. and then I let it all sit for awhile.
in my cold, winter kitchen, I didn't worry too much about the crust becoming too warm as I rolled it out. (cold crust = flaky crust).
the mixture became deep red & dark purple.
it baked for about 50 minutes. and even after an hour out of the oven, the juices had not set. spilling into the space left by a piece of pie. (some more cornstarch next time.) but the crust is divinely flaky. it crumbles & then melts in your mouth. so thank goodness I'd baked the scraps of crust too (with a little egg wash & sprinkles of cinnamon & sugar.
fruit pies are not my favorite, they are his. but I love the smell as they bake. and I popped a few of the sweet buttery baked cherries in my mouth, and they reminded me of summertime. and as the kitchen grew darker in the late afternoon, I fixed myself a cup of black tea to enjoy as he ate his pie. a pie dark like winter, but tasting like a summer day.
this just makes me yearn for summer and the sweet, fresh blueberries i can get from the farmers market on the square...i await you warm weather :)
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