Bellabeat Leaf Unboxing

After watching a Bellabeat Leaf promo video a few months ago, I knew I had to have one!! The smartest piece of jewelry I’d ever own? The first wearable designed with women in mind? I was definitely supporting that! I immediately put in my preorder and have been anxiously awaiting my Leaf since then. Well, today my wait was over and I wanted to share with you what was in the box!

Cherry Pie with a Hint of Cinnamon

It’s early July and that means cherry picking up here in Western New York. After going cherry picking for the first time last year, I was blown away by the flavor packed into those fresh cherries! It is shocking what a difference it makes to pick your food straight form the source.

When you come home with sixteen pounds of cherries, though, you can’t possibly expect to eat them all raw and in our house that can only mean one thing: it’s time to make pie!  And make pie we did. Four full size and fourteen mini pies this week alone. So you can trust me when I say this is THE recipe. And not to fear – we obviously can’t always get fresh cherries from the farm. This recipe is still amazing with frozen cherries!

For some reason, I have never quite come around to making my own pie crusts. I know what I am going to get with Pillsbury, and what I am going to get is a perfect and delicious crust! I will admit, a goal of mine is to make my own perfect crust, but that will have to wait for another day…

This pie varies from your standard cherry pie in two primary ways. First, it uses 1/2 brown sugar and 1/2 regular white sugar, giving it a richer flavor. Second, building on that flavor, is the addition of your “fall” spices: primarily cinnamon, but also a bit of mace and nutmeg, too. Why? Because it is delicious! Try it once and I bet you’ll try it again.

Note on mini pies: Whew!! I thought it would be fun to make mini pie for a (Rolling Stones concert) tailgate. Well, it wasn’t! And let me save you some trouble – just don’t even THINK about trying to make a miniature lattice top. It will take forever and come out looking like frankenstein! I mean SCARY! But, if you simplify it a bit, and find the right size round cutters in your kitchen (Pyrex lid is a legitimate crust cutter, right?), then by all means – this was a treat that pleased! The half of them that were presentable enough to share were a hit!

• Servings: 8
• Time: 1.5 hours
• Difficulty: Easy
• Print

Ingredients

• 1 box Pillsbury pie crust (2 crusts) or homemade crust of your choosing
• 4-5 cups pitted tart cherries (or a mix of tart and sweet)
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 4 tablespoons cornstarch
• 1/2 tablespoon cinnamon
• pinch of nutmeg
• pinch of mace
• 1/4 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1 tablespoon of butter
• egg white (to brush crust)

Directions

1. Set out pie crusts to allow them to come to room temperature.
2. Heat cherries over medium heat in covered saucepan until the bottom of the pan is filling with their juice.
3. Meanwhile, mix brown sugar, white sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon, nutmeg, and mace in a separate bowl. Add this mixture to the cherries and mix well.
4. Add vanilla extract to heating cherries.
5. Cook over low heat. Stir frequently. Continue cooking until the cherry mixture has thickened up a bit.
6. Remove mixture from heat and let cool.
7. Preheat oven to 375 degrees (F).
8. Line bottom of pan with crust.  Pour in cherry mixture.
9. Place pats of butter on top of the cherry mixture.
10. Add top crust.  Cut slits in top of crust for steam to escape if using crust whole. Fold over edges or use fork to create edge.
11. Brush crust with egg white. Sprinkle with sugar, if desired.
12. Bake for 50 minutes.

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