A holiday cranberry pie that’s both sweet and tart is perfect for Thanksgiving or Christmas. This cherry cranberry pie has a homemade flaky buttery crust, juicy cherry cranberry filling and pie crust trees for decoration.
You might also love these recipes for cranberry raspberry sauce, chocolate cranberry upside down cake, and cranberry cream cheese pie.
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Why You’ll Love This Recipe
Not Too Sweet. Although I use a little more sugar than usual in today’s cranberry pie since cranberries are so tart, their sourness balances the sugar so the pie isn’t too sweet.
Perfect for the Holidays. Since it’s pie season (and cranberry season!) it’s the perfect time of year to bake this festive holiday pie.
High Altitude Tested. I develop all the recipes on my site for Denver’s altitude of 5,280 feet. If you’re at a lower or higher elevation, please see my FAQs for guidance on adjusting recipes for your altitude. Today’s recipe will work at any altitude, though.
See the recipe card at the end of the post for the full ingredients list and instructions.
Ingredients
- Pie Dough. For my pie dough, I always make an all-butter pie dough without shortening. It always bakes up flaky, flavorful and golden brown, and is perfect for all types of pie fillings.
- Cherries and Cranberries. Since it’s winter, you’ll need frozen pitted cherries, as well as fresh or frozen cranberries. For the cherries, I like to buy the bags that contain a mixture of both sweet and tart cherries.
- Sugar. Sweetens the filling and adds moisture.
- Corn Starch. My preferred thickener for fruit pies. Cranberries do contain a good amount of pectin already, which helps to thicken the filling, but corn starch will ensure it’s perfectly set.
- Spices. A little salt, allspice and vanilla extract add flavor.
- Butter. A touch of butter in the filling adds more flavor and richness.
Instructions
Crust
- Make 1 recipe Pie Dough for a double pie crust. Or, if you’re making your pie with a crumb topping, you’ll only need 1/2 the recipe for a single pie crust.
- Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate until needed. You can refrigerate the dough up to 1 week in advance, or freeze it for up to 3-6 months.
Filling
- If using frozen, pitted cherries, I recommend using a bag of mixed cherries that contains both sweet and tart cherries. If using fresh cherries, you’ll need to pit them first, then weigh out one pound.
- In a large stock pot, toss the cherries and cranberries with the sugar, corn starch, salt and allspice. Stir in the water.
- Over medium heat, bring the fruit to a simmer, stirring frequently. As it heats up, some of the cranberries will begin to pop. Once the liquid starts to boil and thicken, stir constantly and cook for 1 minute. Remove from the heat, and stir in the vanilla and butter. Taste the filling, and add 1-2 tbsp more sugar, if it’s not sweet enough for your taste.
- Set aside to cool to room temperature, or make up to 3 days in advance and refrigerate until needed. Let refrigerated pie filling warm up to room temperature for an hour before filling and baking your pie.
Assembly
- Preheat the oven to 375 F, and position a rack in the lower third of the oven. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, and set a 9 inch metal pie pie or tart pan on the baking sheet. Baker’s Note: A metal pan will conduct heat much better than a ceramic pie pan, and I strongly urge you to use a metal pan to ensure the bottom crust is baked through and not doughy.
- On a floured surface, roll out half the pie dough into a circle large enough to fit into the pie pan with an inch or two hanging over the edge. Fold the edge under and crimp it between your fingers. Set the pie in the refrigerator while you work on the top crust.
- For the decorations on top, roll out the other half of the dough to between 1/4 – 1/8 inch thick. Use a small cookie cutter to cut mini trees and stars. Brush the pie dough decorations with the egg wash (egg white lightly beaten with the milk), then sprinkle them with 1 tbsp granulated sugar.
- Spread the room-temperature cherry cranberry filling into dough, and arrange the pie dough decorations on top of the filling.
Bake
- Bake your pie for about 50-60 minutes, until the filling is thickened with slow, thick bubbles rising to the surface. If needed, cover the edge of the crust with a pie crust shield to keep it from over-browning.
- Set the pie on a cooling rack and cool for at least 3-4 hours before cutting and serving.
Be sure to read all of my BAKING FAQs where I discuss ingredients, substitutions and common baking questions, so that you can be successful in your own baking!
Frequently Asked Questions
You can keep your pie at room temperature for up to 24 hours, and I always thing fruit pies are best the day they’re baked. After that, cover it loosely and keep it refrigerated for up to 3 days.
This pie would be wonderful with crumb topping, and you can use my recipe from my cherry crumb pie.
You can see how I make my lattice crust on this blueberry lattice pie and peach lattice pie.
It certainly will still work, although you will likely need to add a little more sugar to sweeten the cranberries.
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Cherry Cranberry Pie
All recipes on Curly Girl Kitchen are developed for high altitude at 5,280 feet. See FAQs for adjusting to higher or lower elevations.
Equipment
- 9-inch Round Tart Pan with Removable Bottom or Metal Pie Pan
Ingredients
Crust
- 1 recipe Pie Dough (double pie crust)
Filling
- 1 lb fresh or frozen pitted cherries (preferably a mix of sweet and tart cherries)
- 1 lb fresh or frozen cranberries
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 3 tbsp corn starch
- ¼ tsp coarse Kosher salt (if using table salt, use half the amount)
- ¼ tsp ground allspice
- 1 tbsp water
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter
Egg Wash
- 1 large egg white
- 1 tbsp milk
- 1 tbsp granulated sugar
Instructions
Crust
- Make 1 recipe Pie Dough for a double pie crust. Or, if you're making your pie with a crumb topping, you'll only need 1/2 the recipe for a single pie crust.
- Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate until needed. You can refrigerate the dough up to 1 week in advance, or freeze it for up to 3-6 months.
Filling
- If using frozen, pitted cherries, I recommend using a bag of mixed cherries that contains both sweet and tart cherries. If using fresh cherries, you'll need to pit them first, then weigh out one pound.
- In a large stock pot, toss the cherries and cranberries with the sugar, corn starch, salt and allspice. Stir in the water.
- Over medium heat, bring the fruit to a simmer, stirring frequently. As it heats up, some of the cranberries will begin to pop. Once the liquid starts to boil and thicken, stir constantly and cook for 1 minute. Remove from the heat, and stir in the vanilla and butter. Taste the filling, and add 1-2 tbsp more sugar, if it's not sweet enough for your taste.
- Set aside to cool to room temperature, or make up to 3 days in advance and refrigerate until needed. Let refrigerated pie filling warm up to room temperature for an hour before filling and baking your pie.
Assembly
- Preheat the oven to 375 F, and position a rack in the lower third of the oven. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, and set a 9 inch metal pie pie or tart pan on the baking sheet. Baker's Note: A metal pan will conduct heat much better than a ceramic pie pan, and I strongly urge you to use a metal pan to ensure the bottom crust is baked through and not doughy.
- On a floured surface, roll out half the pie dough into a circle large enough to fit into the pie pan with an inch or two hanging over the edge. Fold the edge under and crimp it between your fingers. Set the pie in the refrigerator while you work on the top crust.
- For the decorations on top, roll out the other half of the dough to between 1/4 – 1/8 inch thick. Use a small cookie cutter to cut mini trees and stars. Brush the pie dough decorations with the egg wash (egg white lightly beaten with the milk), then sprinkle them with 1 tbsp granulated sugar.
- Spread the room-temperature cherry cranberry filling into dough, and arrange the pie dough decorations on top of the filling.
Bake
- Bake your pie for about 50-60 minutes, until the filling is thickened with slow, thick bubbles rising to the surface. If needed, cover the edge of the crust with a pie crust shield to keep it from over-browning.
- Set the pie on a cooling rack and cool for at least 3-4 hours before cutting and serving.
Notes
- Fruit pie is best eaten the first day it’s baked.
- You can keep your pie at room temperature for up to 24 hours. After that, cover it loosely and keep it refrigerated for up to 3 days.
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