Cranberry pie is probably not the first pie you think to bake for your Thanksgiving table. Cranberries are tart which is why when they do appear in pies you usually find them paired with apples, pears, and/or blueberries. Just not this time.
This is a pie for the cranberry lover. Sugar and Lyle’s Golden Syrup tone down the bracing tartness of the cranberries, but don’t get rid of it completely making this a pie that isn’t as saccharine as others you might have on your table.
The filling, which fresh orange zest brightens, cooks down to a beautiful ruby color for one of the most exquisite pies you can bake. However you decide to make the crust, with a lattice or decoratively covered with leaves (instructions for both are in the recipe), be sure that the filling peeks out for a stained-glass effect.
It might seem like there isn’t that much filling for this pie and that is intentional. Don’t worry. The filling to pie crust ratio is just right and paired with a scoop of ice cream this festive pie will be gone in no time.
This recipe is part of the menu for Minced Thanksgiving 2015. For even more turkey day preparation, follow me on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest; I’ll be using the hashtag #mincedthanksgiving and hope you’ll use it as well to share any Minced blog creations, your favorite dishes, and your best holiday memories with me.
Additional dessert ideas for sweet endings to your Thanksgiving:
Homemade Apple Pie with Cheddar Cheese Crust
Baked Apples with Cider Syrup
Bourbon-Pecan Tartlets
Rum Cake
Apple and Almond Bread Pudding
Poached Pears with Creme Anglaise
Cranberry Pie – Printer Friendly Recipe
Makes 1 (9-inch) pie
I used a fall piecrust cutter to create the leaf pattern for this pie, but I also detail how to make a lattice crust in the recipe below. However you decide to decorate your pie allow the filling to peek out. It’s too beautiful to hide.
2 recipes of pastry dough (see recipe below)
12 ounces fresh cranberries, rinsed and drained
1 cup granulated sugar, more for dusting the crust
3 tablespoons Lyle’s Golden Syrup
1 packed tablespoon fresh orange zest
1 tablespoon cornstarch
Pinch of salt
Egg wash (1 egg lightly beaten with a little water or milk)
Special equipment: pastry brush, 9-inch pie plate, pastry wheel
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Combine the cranberries, sugar, Lyle’s Golden Syrup, orange zest, cornstarch, and salt in a small saucepan. Gently heat the mixture, stirring constantly, over medium-low heat. Cook, stirring constantly, just until the sugar dissolves; the mixture will be sauce-like, but the cranberries will not have cooked down. Remove from the heat and let cool to room temperature; to speed this process up, scrape the filling out of the saucepan and into a bowl.
On a lightly floured surface, roll out the chilled pastry dough for the bottom crust to a large 14-inch round approximately ¼-inch thick. Using your rolling pin, transfer the dough from the counter to the 9-inch pie plate. Trim around the edges as needed and patch up any holes. Place in the freezer for at least 15 minutes.
On a lightly floured surface, roll out the pastry dough for the top crust to a large 14-inch round approximately ¼-inch thick.
For a decorative leaf crust, use fall piecrust cutters or a small leaf cookie cutter to cut out about 2 dozen small leaves. Place the leaves on a small-parchment lined baking sheet and place in the freezer for at least 15 minutes.
For a lattice crust, use a pastry wheel to cut ¾-inch wide long strips of dough.
Pour the cooled cranberry mixture on top of the pastry dough in the pie plate. Brush the edge with egg wash.
To make the decorative leaf crust, starting on the outside edge, arrange the leaves, overlapping them slightly, in a spiral pattern moving towards the center of the pie. Allow the filling to peek through as you cover the top of the pie. Brush the leaves with egg wash and sprinkle generously with granulated sugar. Chill in the freezer for 20 minutes before baking.
To make the lattice crust, arrange half the strips evenly over the filling. Carefully pull back every other strip a little past the center and place another strip perpendicular on top. Pull the turned back strips over the perpendicular strips and then pull back the strips that weren’t pulled back the first time around. Repeat this process, weaving in new strips perpendicularly, until the pie is covered. For a pie where you can see the filling between the lattice, allow some space between strips. For a pie with a tight lattice, do not leave any space between the strips. Brush the lattice with the egg wash and sprinkle with granulated sugar. Chill in the freezer for 20 minutes before baking.
After chilling, bake the pie at 400 degrees for 45 minutes or until the cranberry filling is slowly bubbling. Carefully remove the pie from the oven and allow it to cool before serving. Serve this pie with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
Pastry Dough
Makes one 9” pie crust (double for pies with a top and bottom crust)
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
8 tablespoons cold unsalted butter
5 tablespoons ice cold water
In a large bowl, whisk together the flour and salt. Use two forks or a pastry blender to cut the butter into the flour mixture until the fat is in small lumps. Sprinkle the ice-cold water over the flour mixture and use a fork to pull the mixture together. Add up to 1 more tablespoon of water, in teaspoonfuls, if the dough is not coming together.
Turn the dough out on the counter and, working quickly, mold it into a large ball. Press the ball into a 5-inch disc. Wrap the dough with plastic wrap and refrigerate it for at least thirty minutes and up to one day. Use according to the recipe.
