Cherry Crumb Pie
Topped with a combination of oats, brown sugar and cinnamon, this Cherry Crumb Pie is a delicious treat on a warm summer evening!
Before we get to this delicious cherry crumb pie recipe, a little background….As I’ve noted in the past, Laura and I are foodie travelers. When it comes to vacations, we pick a spot that we’d like to visit…and then we let our taste buds take over.
Sometimes we pull up the Yelp app on our phones to see what’s in the area. As long as the ratings are high with a lot of reviews, we’re rarely disappointed. Sometimes we just wander the side streets and read menus until we find something interesting.
This has been a bit more hit-or-miss. We’ve found some real hidden gems, but we’ve also regretted a few choices. And then sometimes you just stumble across a giant sign that says “Pies – 300 feet.”
I took this photo down in Brooklyn when we were heading to a famous butcher shop. (This was the commercial production facility for the butcher shop in a warehouse district…not the pretty market location.) There was very little foot traffic in this part of town, so you can imagine my thoughts when I looked up and saw this sign.
Pies – 300 feet. I’d like to point out the fact that the sign is handwritten – er, hand painted. I’d also like to point out the ‘dead end’ sign in the background. What do you think? Run the other way? Or head off and get some pie?
Upon further inspection, I believe this sign was pointing to a well-respected bakery that makes excellent key lime pies. But I dunno. Something about that sign just sets off alerts in my mind. Like I half expect the pie to be served by Freddy Krueger.
Speaking of pie, I was in the frozen fruit section of the grocery store the other day, and I noticed a huge bag of sour cherries. I immediately knew that a cherry pie was in my future. Heck, the cherries were already pitted…that’s one of my biggest pet peeves about making homemade cherry pies!
Crumb Topping for Cherry Pie
Instead of going with a traditional double-crusted pie, I whipped up a crumble topping using
- oats
- brown sugar
- cinnamon
- flour
- vanilla
- butter
You’ll mix the crumb topping ingredients (all but the butter) together and then cut in the butter using two knives or a pastry cutter! It’s the most delicious crumb topping for this pie!
As they bake, the oats on top of this Cherry Crumb Pie get deliciously crispy and flavorful. Of course, the brown sugar and cinnamon help in the flavor department, too!
Tips for Cherry Crumb Pie:
- You can make your own homemade pie crust OR use store-bought.
- After you thaw your frozen cherries, be sure to drain off any excess liquid.
- If your cherry pie begins to brown too much while baking, then loosely cover it with aluminum foil.
- You can skip the pie crust base if you would prefer, you’ll just have more of a crumble/crisp instead!
This Cherry Crumb Pie couldn’t be easier to make. The hardest part is waiting a couple of hours for the cherry filling to set. If you dig in too soon, you’ll be scooping the filling out with a spoon rather than a pie server. Been there, done that.
Can you Freeze Cherry Crumb Pie?
You can! That’s assuming you have any left to freeze. But yes, you can! Allow to cool completely, place in a freezer bag, seal and freeze for up to 4 months. Thaw and reheat to enjoy!
I mean a bowl of Cherry Crumb Pie isn’t the worst thing in the world, but the slices do look nicer, right? Either way, the scoop of vanilla ice cream on top is a must! Happy baking!
Did you make this Cherry Crumb Pie at home? Leave a comment. Or snap a photo and tag me on Instagram (@Spicedblog)!
Looking for more tasty pie recipes? Check out these other favorites:
Chocolate Cream Pie
Strawberry Pretzel Pie
Atlantic Beach Pie
No Bake Chocolate Almond Pie
No Bake Peanut Butter Pie
Cherry Crumb Pie
Ingredients
For the Crumb Topping
- ½ cup old fashioned oats
- ½ cup brown sugar
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- ¼ cup cold unsalted butter cut into ½” cubes
For the Cherry Pie
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- 3 Tbsp cornstarch
- 6 cups frozen cherries thawed
- 2 Tbsp lemon juice
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- ¼ tsp nutmeg
- 1 unbaked pie crust store-bought or homemade
- {optional} vanilla ice cream for serving
Instructions
For the Crumb Topping
- Using a medium bowl, add oats, brown sugar, flour, cinnamon and vanilla; stir until well combined.
- Using two knives or a pastry cutter, cut the cold butter into the oat mixture until butter is the size of peas. Set oat topping aside.
For the Pie
- Preheat oven to 375°F.
- Using a medium bowl, add sugar, brown sugar and cornstarch; stir until well combined.
- Add cherries, lemon juice, vanilla, cinnamon and nutmeg; stir until well combined. Set cherry filling aside.
- On a well-floured surface, roll pie crust into a 12” circle. Carefully press dough into a 9” pie pan. Fold excess pie dough over and use two fingers to crimp edges.
- Spread cherry filling into prepared pan (see note). Sprinkle oat topping evenly over cherry filling.
- Bake for 45-50 minutes, or until crust and oat topping are golden brown.
- Let pie cool for at least 2-3 hours so filling can set.
- Serve warm or at room temperature with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
Notes
Crumb topping on pies is the only way to go! (OK maybe not the only way but definitely my preferred way.) This looks delicious! I could definitely go for a slice with my tea right now!
So you corrected yourself there, Kelsie, which is a good thing. There are indeed a lot of ways to go with pie…but a good crumb topping really is difficult to beat! I’m thinking I could use a slice of this pie right now myself. Too bad it’s all gone. 🙂
I love pie. I love crumble. I love sour cherries. Done! (I find sour cherries in a jar at Trader Joe’s and Aldi and they are fabulous. I stock up when they have them)
Done and done! This recipe checks everything off the list, Kim! 🙂 It really is a good one, too. Perfect for summer nights spent with friends. Thanks so much!!
Definitely a foodie traveller too! 🙂
And this Cherry Crumb Pie is beautiful to look at, David, and I have no doubt it will taste amazing too. I love the great texture a crumb topping gives a pie, and cherry is one of my favourite fruits!
We most definitely let our stomachs help guide us on vacation…which is probably why we keep ending up back in Italy. 🙂 A good cherry pie is hard to beat, and I especially love the crumb topping on this version. Thanks so much, Alexandra!
Hi David! I would never turn down any piece of pie, double crust or crumb topped, but crumb topped is my favorite! I have a friend in MI and his wife doesn’t cook, let alone bake. Every spring he would bring me rhubarb and in the fall cherries to make pies for him. I will look for cherries in the frozen fruit section next time I go to the store. My son is visiting next week so I have to make your blueberry coffee cake for him 🙂 He will thank me (and you)!
Hey Dorothy! I’m with ya. I’ll never turn down a slice of pie. However, truth be told, I’ll probably always gravitate towards a pie with a crumb topping. I should make an apple version of this one in the Fall! I was surprised to find frozen sour cherries. They made this pie super easy!
I hope you enjoy the visit with your son…and I hope you enjoy that blueberry coffee cake, too. It seriously is one of my favorites!
That pie looks so good, David! What an amazing color. I love cherry pie. Hey, I have a trick for pitting cherries: you place a cherry stem-side-down on top of the opening of an empty beer bottle (so yes, I guess the first step is “drink a beer”), so that the stem is hanging into the bottle’s neck. Then you use a chopstick to poke down on the dimple that’s on the bottom of the cherry. You poke right through until the pit and stem come dislodged. Usually, they’ll fall right into the bottle; sometimes the pit and stem hang onto the cherry by the thinnest thread and you have to pluck them away. In any case, very easy and virtually no mess or lost juice. So, now that you know this trick, I’ll be looking for my cherry pie to arrive Fed-Ex overnight. 🙂
Ok, so that trick is pretty darned awesome, Jeff. First of all, it involves drinking beer. Second of all, it saves time. Who knew drinking beer could help me save time?? 🙂 Seriously, though, thank you for sharing that one. I’ll save that tip for next time I need to pit cherries!
What’s not to like on this delicious looking pie. I love traveling for food.
Yes! Traveling for food is part of the fun for us. It breaks us out of the routine when we come across different ideas and flavors. 🙂 Thanks, Gerlinde!
The timing of this pie is perfect – I’m knee deep in cherries right now! I’m picking, eating, pitting, baking and I need more recipes! This crumb top pie looks like just what I need! It looks so good and who can resist cherry pie!
No way! Well I totally got lucky with the timing here, Kathy. If you need help with those cherries, then send ’em my way. I’ll make them disappear! 🙂 Seriously, though, I hope you get a chance to make this pie. It’s a good one!
That’s a fun story about the pie sign 😀 and just like you guys we too are foodie travelers. First eat outs then touristy spots! The cherry pie looks absolutely lovely.
Yes! Whenever we travel, we try to avoid the touristy spots. They usually mean mediocre food at high prices. We like to use Yelp, and we also like to wander a couple blocks off the main street. We’ve been lucky enough to find some real gems over the years! Thanks so much, Kankana!
Saw this on Pinterest yesterday and knew I would enjoy reading about it today! What’s not to love about this Cherry Crumb Pie? Lynne and I do love wandering the streets of places we’re visiting too, checking out the menu’s. We generally choose some of the places we’ve liked then check out the reviews before deciding where to go. I know if I saw there was a cherry crumb pie like this for dessert on a menu it would be a deciding factor to try the place out! Ha ha!
Thanks so much, Neil! Wandering streets following your stomach is seriously one of our favorite parts about vacation. It’s easy to get into a rut or routine in your hometown, but once you get out traveling it forces you to find new places!
Love cherries and love this pie and the crumb topping looks amazing — but, what about the bakery? Did you go inside? Or pause at the thought of Freddy Krueger?
Like you and Laura, I also let my taste buds lead me when I travel. We’re heading to Spain next week and I can’t wait to do just that. 🙂 ~Valentina
So I never made it to that bakery, Valentina. I guess I’ll just have to go back. (After we left, I googled it to try to figure out what the bakery was…and that’s when I discovered it was actually pretty famous. Who would’ve guessed it based on that sign!?)
Oh my gosh, have fun in Spain! We’ve talked about going to Spain, but just haven’t made our way there yet. I can’t wait to hear about your trip after you get back!
oh how delicious does this look david. yep i think that sign to the pies and dead end would give me the creeps:) i have pitted cherries for a cold soup once or twice – not my fave task so frozen are my cheat’s way out. cherry season is so short and we must wait till november for it… cheers sherry
I mean sometimes you can’t help but just stop and laugh. That sign + the dead end sign were just too perfect together. (Who would’ve known that the bakery was actually quite famous…) So I definitely say keep this recipe in mind for November. It’ll be here before we know it, and then you’ll be nibbling away at a slice of cherry crumb pie! 🙂
Oooh, so jealous you have sour cherries in your area. We don’t have any here, unless of course, everyone else gets to them first, But I’ve never seen them here. I love them so much, and this pie looks amazing! Love that crumb topping!
Sour cherries are definitely a rare delicacy around here, too, Laura! That’s why I was shocked when I saw the bag of frozen sour cherries. It took all of 1.4 seconds for that bag to land in my cart! (Maybe they have sour cherries all the time in the frozen section and I just now realized it??) Either way, I’m all about the crumb topping here! 🙂
So you didn’t go in? Not even to see if Freddy Krueger was in there? I don’t think I would have, but I sure am curious now!
David, this is cherry pie perfection! Love the crumb topping and I’m so drooling over those juicy cherries!
Haha! I mean as tempting as it was to see Freddy Krueger wearing a baker’s apron, I didn’t make my way in. Jokes on me since that turned out to be a pretty highly rated pie shop! You would never have known from that sign. Either way, it seems like we’re channeling cherry pie thoughts lately…I love it! 🙂
I saw this on social and I’m so glad to finally be able to feast my eyes on these photos, David! I love pie – gosh, waiting for that filling to set with that aroma perfuming the kitchen would be torture!
Genius idea to use frozen pitted cherries – I abhor pitting cherries myself so thank you for that tidbit! BTW – Lil S and I just might have to head to Brooklyn and search for that pie sign this weekend! 🙂
You totally nailed it! The aroma of cherry pie baking in the kitchen is one of the best things ever. 🙂 Also, heading to Brooklyn? You should totally check out that pie shop! I didn’t make my way there, but it looks like they have a killer key lime pie! The place is out in Red Hook, and it’s called Steve’s Authentic Key Lime Pies. (Original name…haha!) Have a great trip!
Pies at 300 feet up? I guess they’re so good that they’re ‘heavenly.’ Ha!! It’s been a while since I’ve had a cherry pie and this one is totally calling my name. Since I don’t like pitting cherries either why don’t ya send me a slice or two 😉 ?? Seriously delish, my friend 🙂
Haha! I didn’t even catch the ‘up’ part here, Dawn. Hilarious. A good cherry pie really is hard to beat, and I can personally say that this cherry pie is darned good! I’d send you a slice, but, uh, well….it might all be gone. 🙂
i LOVE CHERRY PIE AND so does. my daughter. Can’t find frozen cherries. Could I possibly use the kinda can?
Hey Cecelia! This cherry pie is SO good. You could absolutely use canned version, however make sure it’s just canned cherries and not ‘cherry pie filling.’ If you do use ‘cherry pie filling,’ then you’d just want to skip all of the other ingredients used to make the filling. I hope this makes sense! Let me know if you get a chance to bake this pie! 🙂
You’re recipes look amazing! I shared a couple in my pie roundup. I couldn’t resist! LOL
Thank you so much for including me in your roundup, Marti! 🙂