This homemade cherry crumb pie is the perfect combination of sweet, tart, juicy cherries and a buttery, golden brown crumb topping, all baked into a flaky, all-butter pie crust. It's a simple, classic dessert that tastes like summer and comes together with just a few basic ingredients. Serve it warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and watch it disappear!
Y'all, I absolutely love cherries, they're up there with passion fruit as my all-time favorites, and there's nothing quite like the flavor of fresh, ripe cherries in a dessert. Now when I say cherry pie, I'm not talking about that canned, syrupy pie filling you can grab off the grocery store shelf. I'm talking about using real, whole cherries, with all their juicy sweetness and tartness, combined with a handful of simple ingredients to create a pie that's as fresh as it gets. The pièce de résistance? A buttery, sweet crumble topping that perfectly complements the fruit and adds a little extra texture and sweetness. Trust me, this cherry crumb pie is pure heaven on earth.
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Why you will love this cherry crumb pie.
What makes this version stand out is how it allows the natural flavor of the cherries to shine through, unlike store-bought fillings that can taste overly processed. Plus, the crumb topping adds that irresistible crunch that turns each bite into something a little more special. It's seriously so simple, but the end result is so much more satisfying than anything you could pick up at the store. This pie is a celebration of cherries at their finest, and I hope you enjoy it as much as we do!
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Equipment
- 9 inch pie dish: This Le Creuset 9 inch pie dish is my personal favorite!
- Mixing bowls
- Measuring cups and spoons
Ingredients
- Cherries: You can use fresh or thawed frozen cherries for this recipe.
- Vanilla extract
- Almond extract
- White granulated sugar
- Light brown sugar
- Salt
- Corn starch
- Unsalted butter
- All-purpose flour
- Pie crust: You can use a store bought or homemade pie crust for this recipe.
Recipe FAQs
Absolutely! Your favorite pre-made refrigerated pie crust works great for this pie.
For this recipe I used a mixture of frozen sweet Bing cherries and fresh sour cherries. But you can really mix it up with whatever you have on hand, fresh or frozen. If frozen you'll want to let it thaw for at least an hour before adding the other ingredients. This helps to release the juices. I do not recommend using canned cherries for this recipe.
This pie will stay fresh for 3-4 days on the counter top and about 5 days in the fridge.
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Made this Cherry Crumb Pie recipe? Let me know what you think in the comments!
Recipe
Cherry Crumb Pie
Equipment
- 1 9 inch pie dish
- Mixing bowls
- Measuring cups and spoons
Ingredients
- 1 9 inch pie crust store-bought or homemade
For the cherry filling
- 5 cups pitted cherries, whole or cut in half If using frozen allow them to thaw at room temperature for at least an hour until softened.
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon almond extract
- ⅔ cup white granulated sugar
- ¼ cup corn starch
For the streusel topping
- ⅔ cup all purpose flour
- ¼ cup white granulated sugar
- ⅓ cup light brown sugar
- 4 tablespoon unsalted butter
- pinch of salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
- In a mixing bowl combine all cherry filling ingredients and stir to combine. Set aside for 5-10 minutes to let the juices release.
- In a separate mixing bowl combine ⅔rd cups flour, ¼th cup white granulated sugar and ⅓rd cup brown sugar and mix to combine. Then add 4 tablespoon of butter and use your hands to pinch the fat into the flour sugar mixture until you get a sandy texture.
- Use a slotted spoon to transfer the cherry mixture to a chilled pie crust, leaving extra liquid in the mixing bowl. Then sprinkle the crumble mixture evenly over the top of the pie.
- Place the pie in the oven and bake at 425 degrees F for about 20 minutes. Then turn the heat down to 375 degrees F and bake for an additional 35-40 minutes until the cherries are bubbly and the top is golden brown. *Note* If at any point for feel the crust is over browning you can place on a pie crust shield or use some foil to make a shield to cover the edges of the pie.
- Remove the pie from the oven and allow to cool for at least 20-30 minutes before serving. Enjoy!
Heather Daman
This pie was amazing!!!
Samantha
Can I sub almond extract for more vanilla? Also, do I thaw the frozen cherries? Thank you!
Destiny
Love this recipe but What cherries did you use? I used frozen and it did not turn out at all sadly. Thank you!
jamjarkitchen
So sorry it didn't turn out! I typically use black cherries. If frozen then I let them thaw a little at room temp until they're softened enough that when mixed with the flour and sugar the juices release.
R. Lewis
I followed this recipe, using a ready made storebought walnut crust. I used frozen cherries and as indicated in another comment response, I did not thaw them or cook them. Unfortunately, the result was a watery pie and a crumb crust that burnt within the first 15 minutes. I was able to scrape off the burnt crumbs and it still tasted good, but I'm a bit disappointed with the lack of detail in the instructions. Frozen cherries did not thaw at all after 10 mins so no juices were released prior to placing it in the pie crust.
jamjarkitchen
Hi there- I’m sorry that the pie didn’t turn out! I’ve used frozen cherries to make this pie and it’s turned out fine. However I know some types of cherries are firmer than others. And then it probably makes a difference if the cherries were in a deep freeze or not. My cherries were probably on the counter for about 30 minutes total and they thaw enough to release juices. I’ll go back and specify all of this in the recipe. Hope you were able to salvage it enough to enjoy it.
Sue
Can this recipe be fully prepared up to before baking and then frozen to bake a week later?
jamjarkitchen
Hi Sue- To be honest I have not frozen it before baking so I don't know if this would work or not. You can freeze it after baking and then thaw and reheat if that's an option. Hope this helps!
Marci Gordon
I made this for our Christmas Eve dinner. I used frozen sweet cherries (2 different kinds) that had been in my freezer for a while. I dumped them out into a colander and rinsed them in cool water, then left them to drain about 30 minutes. Once I saw that they had started to drain bright cherry, I put them in a bowl and added the remaining ingredients and stirred.
I also didn’t drain away the bright red juice. The pie came out perfectly! I can’t say that I ate the pie, but I don’t usually like cherries. Granddaughters loved it.
Marci Gordon
I have to admit that cherry isn’t a favorite of mine, but the family loves them. I made this pie for Christmas Eve, and it was a hit with the family. I’d read about many having too much liquid, but went for it anyway, using frozen cherries. There wasn’t runny at all. Thanks!
jamjarkitchen
Hi Marci- So glad your family enjoyed it!
Sue Richard
The streusel topping will now be my favorite fruit pie topping. Used both store bought frozen and home froze cherries in the recipe which put the pie over the top. Filling itself was not running at all. Family loved the pie.
jamjarkitchen
Hi Sue- So glad y'all enjoyed it! 🙂
Deborah
Best damned cherry pie I have ever eaten, much less made!! Making it again and freezing it to enjoy after cherries are out of season.
jamjarkitchen
So glad you enjoyed it!
Dania
It was seriously good! I added pecans to my crumb top and I think it added good flavor depth. One question though, i feeel like the crumb coat sank into my pie, is there a way to aovid it? I'm making it again today and want the crumbs to be golden crispy on top. Thanks!
jamjarkitchen
So glad you enjoyed it! The pecans sound like a delicious addition. For the crumb topping, try leaving some larger chunks and avoid pressing it down into the filling. That should help it stay more golden and crisp on top instead of sinking in.
Benji
I wish I had read the comments before baking, I used thawed cherries and the result is a wet mess, except for the top of the crust which burned to a crisp in the first 15 minutes.
jamjarkitchen
I’m so sorry to hear it didn’t turn out for you, that’s always such a letdown. I’ve actually made this with frozen cherries myself (the photos for the recipe were done that way!) by letting them sit out for about an hour so they’re just softened, and it’s worked well for me and many others. That said, it’s possible there’s some variation between different brands or types of frozen cherries that’s affecting the results. I’ll do some testing and update the recipe with more guidance on that. I really appreciate you sharing your experience.