Cranberry Pear Meringue Pie
I love the tartness of cranberries paired with the sweetness of pears. This recipe delivers both tastes and is such a great way to finish a meal. As time passes, I continue to play with pie dough and for this Cranberry Pear Meringue Pie I used a recipe from my mother-in-laws old recipe cards.
The more pies I make, the more confident I become with this delicate, but rather easy to make dough. Once I got the hang of not over working this dough, it’s been pie heaven at our house. Homemade is always better than store-bought and I love controlling the sugar and adding the flavours that I love to these pies.
You can use frozen cranberries for this pie. I bought extra packages of cranberries and they are in my freezer. Love taking them out by the handful and throwing them into smoothies. I also add frozen cranberries to my wine and then they are over-the-moon delicious to eat at the end, and that’s my dessert.
Pie dough ready to roll.
It isn’t perfect, but it will be tasty. Not that hard to roll.
Starting the sauce for the fruit; I use a combination of brown and white sugar.
Loving the red of the cranberries.
Bosc pears are sweet and hold their shape.
The pears go into the sugar and soften for 10 minutes.
The cranberries join the pears.
The cornstarch thickens the fruit and the almond extract gives it flavour.
Crust needs to cool.
Once the fruit cools it meets the pie shell. Looking good!!
See the soft peaks of the egg whites; now the corn syrup can be incorporated.
This is what stiff peaks look like.
Spoon on the meringue and then work from the centre out to spread.
Ready for the oven.
A perfect pie.
Golden slice just for me.
Cranberry Pear Meringue Pie
A sweet and tart pie that adds colour to the table.
Ingredients
Granny's Pie Dough
- 1 1/2 cup cake and pastry flour
- 1/2 cup Crisco shortening
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 egg
- 1 tsp vinegar
- 2 tbsp ice cold water
The Filling
- 1/2 cup each brown sugar and white sugar
- 1/2 cup light corn syrup
- 1/2 cup water
- 4 pears cubed about 3 cups
- 2 cups cranberries
- 4 tbsp corn starch
- 1/4 cup water
- 1/2 tsp cinammon
- 1 tsp almond extract
The Meringue
- 8 tbsp egg whites I use Naturegg simply egg whites
- 1/2 cup corn syrup
Instructions
Granny's Pie Dough
-
Mix flour and salt in a food processor.
Add the shortening and pulse.
Mixture should resemble small peas.
In a small bowl beat the egg, vinegar and water.
Turn the food processor on low and drizzle the liquid in
The dough should pull away from the food processor and form a ball.
Wrap in plastic and let rest in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.
Remove and roll out always from the centre.
Place in a 425 F oven for 12 minutes.
Remove and let cool.
The filling
-
Combine the sugars, corn syrup, water and cinnamon.
Place in a large sauce pan over medium heat.
When it comes to a simmer add the pears and cook for about 15 minutes.
Add the cranberries and almond extract.
Mix the cornstarch and water and add to the pot, just until thickened. Stir constantly.
Remove and let cook completely and room temperature.
The Meringue
-
Beat the egg whites until the form soft peaks. Don't over beat.
Add the corn syrup and continue beating until stiff peaks form.
The assembly
-
Spoon the filling into the prepared and cooked pie crust.
Top with the meringue.
Always pile the meringue in the middle of the pie and work out from the centre.
Place in a preheated 425 F oven for 10 minutes.
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