Cherry Pie Filling

This cherry pie filling recipe is a scrumptious recipe that utilizes fresh, canned, or frozen cherries to create a delicious cherry sauce that can be used in a multitude of recipes. It’s a wonderful “from scratch” recipe that can be used in place of canned cherry pie filling often called for in popular recipes.

If using fresh cherries, wash them, remove the stems, and remove the pits. There are several different types of cherry pitters available.

Fresh Cherry Cobbler

To make a fresh cherry cobbler, pour the cherry pie filling in the bottom of a 9″x13″ baking dish and top with dollops of drop biscuit dough.

Usually, when we make shortcake drop biscuits for desserts, we add one to two tablespoons of brown sugar to the dough and a drop of vanilla extract.

Bake for 18-20 minutes at 350°F.

This cherry pie filling freezes very well, just thaw completely, and stir thoroughly before using.

Alternatively, it can be spooned into jars and placed in the fridge for several days to use as topping on toasted biscuits, shortcake, pound cake slices, ice cream and so much more.

If you’d prefer to make a turnover filling, finely chop the cherries first and use one extra tablespoon of cornstarch in the recipe. This will create a thicker filling.

Add thin slices of apple and a touch of cinnamon to the recipe if you’d like to make a cherry-apple crepe filling.

Another delectable cherry pie filling recipe we adore is this cherry cloud dessert. Layers of fluffy angel food cake, sweetened whipped cream, and luscious cherry sauce. Topped with toasted pecans for the perfect amount of crunch, this dessert is crowd-pleaser.

So grab some cherries, canned, frozen or fresh, a bit of sugar, a squeeze of fresh lemon and a few drops of almond extract and whip up a delectable batch of cherry pie filling.

Cherry Pie Filling

This recipe for cherry pie filling utilizes fresh pitted sweet cherries such as Bing cherries. If you choose to use sour cherries, you’ll want to adjust the amount of sugar. I’d recommend starting with 3/4 of a cup, taste, and go from there.

You’ll Need:
5 to 6 cups fresh or frozen pitted cherries (thawed & drained), about 2 1/2 to 3 pounds
1/2 cup water
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
2/3 cup granulated sugar
4 tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon almond extract, optional

In a small bowl combine water and cornstarch, stirring to dissolve. Set the mixture aside until needed.

In a saucepan over medium heat, combine cherries, lemon juice, and sugar.
Bring to a boil; stir in the water/cornstarch mix, stirring constantly until the mixture returns to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and cook, stirring frequently, for about 6-8 minutes.

Remove from heat, and stir in the almond extract. Cool before using.

Cherry Pie Filling from Canned Cherries

2 (14 1/2 ounce) cans tart cherries, drain & juice reserved
1 cup cherry juice liquid, reserved
2/3 cup sugar
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1 tablespoon butter
1 tsp lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon almond extract, optional

In a small bowl combine reserved cherry juice and cornstarch, stirring to dissolve. Set the mixture aside until needed.

In a saucepan over medium heat, combine cherries, lemon juice, and sugar.
Bring to a boil; stir in the cherry juice/cornstarch mix, stirring constantly until the mixture returns to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and cook, stirring frequently, for about 6-8 minutes.

Remove from heat, and stir in the butter and almond extract. Cool before using.