Cherry Pie Day

Well these so called 'days' more often than not appear to be related to food… what a shame! Today is cherry pie day, an excuse to make (or buy) a nice cherry pie! Originating from North America, cherry pie has now spread across the globe and it is now popular in many countries!

A nice change to all of those apple pies you may have been eating as they've been falling from the trees, cherry pie has that lovely sweet taste to it, great with cream or ice cream or custard…mmm! Apparently, the ability to make a good cherry pie was once the test of an American girl's suitability as a wife, so I'm guessing it must taste pretty good if done right! Don't worry if you're not the baking type though, no one here is analysing your American wife abilities, most supermarkets will take that job off your hands and sell a pretty good cherry pie!
If you fancy it, here's a recipe from channel 4 food…

Takes 55 minutes to make, plus chilling

INGREDIENTS

• 300g plain flour, plus extra for dusting
• 150g chilled unsalted butter, cubed, plus extra for greasing
• 100g golden caster sugar
• 1 large egg yolk
• 1 tbsp cornflour
• Pinch of ground cinnamon
• 500g cherries, stoned
• 1 tbsp milk, for brushing
• 2 tbsp golden granulated sugar

METHOD

How to make cherry pie

1. Put the flour, butter and 75g golden caster sugar into a food processor and pulse until the mixture resembles crumbs. Add the egg yolk and 2-3 tablespoons cold water. Pulse until the mixture comes together to form a ball. Turn out, wrap in cling film and chill for 30 minutes.

2. Mix the cornflour, remaining golden caster sugar and cinnamon together, then gently toss with the cherries in a bowl. Put a baking sheet into the oven and preheat it to 220°C/fan200°C/gas 7.

3. Grease a 23cm pie dish - ideally one made of enamel or metal. Roll out half the pastry on a lightly floured surface and use to line the dish. Trim the edges, pile the cherry mixture into the centre and spoon over 4 tablespoons water. Brush the pastry edges with water. Roll out the remaining pastry and use to cover the fruit, making a hole in the centre. Press the edges to seal, trim off the excess pastry and crimp the edges with your forefinger and thumb.

4. Brush the pie with milk and sprinkle with the granulated sugar. Put the pie on the baking sheet in the oven and bake for 15 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 180°C/fan160°C/gas 4 and bake for a further 15-20 minutes until the pastry is pale-golden. Serve with cream.

© delicious. magazine (http://www.channel4.com/4food/recipes/baking/cakes/cherry-pie-recipe)