Rustic Cherry Almond Pie

Why This Rustic Cherry Almond Pie Works

In the oven, the cherries heat up and start to burst and leak their juices. Sugar pulls out even more juice, so at first the filling looks very wet. As it keeps baking, the cornstarch swells in all that hot cherry liquid and turns it from runny to thick and glossy. That thickened juice holds the cherries in place, so the slices stand up instead of spilling all over the plate.

While the filling is changing, the crust is doing its own thing. Butter in the crust melts and creates little pockets, so the crust bakes up flaky instead of tough. The egg wash on top dries into a thin, shiny shell that keeps the crust from getting soggy too fast. Steam escapes through the slits, so the top doesn’t puff and crack. During the long cooling time, the hot filling settles and firms up as the cornstarch finishes setting, so the pie cuts cleanly and the cherries stay in neat, jammy pieces.

Mistakes To Avoid

Letting the pie bake until the crust is deeply brown but the filling isn’t clearly bubbling can leave the center runny. The cornstarch only thickens fully once the juices are boiling hot, so a pale, quiet filling means the pie will slice into a wet pool instead of clean wedges.

Pouring the cherry mixture into the crust without mixing again right before filling the pan often leaves a layer of dry sugar and cornstarch at the bottom of the bowl. That leftover starch never makes it into the pie, so the baked filling stays loose and leaks out when cut.

Skipping the slits in the top crust traps steam inside. As the filling boils, the pressure pushes up on the crust, making it puff, crack in random spots, and sometimes spill sticky juice over the edges and onto the oven floor.

Cutting into the pie while it is still hot keeps the filling from setting. The thickened juices are still very fluid, so the first slices collapse and the fruit and syrup slide out, leaving soggy crust and messy portions.