By / Last Modified On January 15, 2023
With a light flaky crust and tart cherry filling, this bright and flavorful gluten-free cherry pie will be a new favorite at your dinner table this holiday season. Or any time of the year, for that matter. This gluten-free cherry pie recipe is popular all year round.
If you don't want to make a whole cherry pie you might want to check out my Gluten-Free Cherry Pie Dessert Shots. If you like cherry desserts you might also like my Gluten-Free Cherry Cobbler.
If you're looking for a pie crust recipe check out my Gluten-Free Pie Crust recipe.
My gluten-free cherry pie recipe was shared in the 2017 holiday addition of Gluten Free & More Magazine.
Gluten-Free Cherry Pie
I have two favorite pies, the first is key lime pie. I love the sweet mixed with the tart, which is probably why you can guess my other favorite - gluten-free cherry pie.
Having a gluten-free cherry pie in my house is dangerous. I will eat it until it's gone and I won't share a bite. You'll see my doing drive-by bites with a fork (you've done this, admit it!), eating it for breakfast, snack, lunch, and afternoon snack. You get the idea.
You're going to appreciate how straight forward this gluten-free cherry pie recipe is. You can following the recipe as is, or use canned cherry pie filling. Also, if you don't keep the flours called for on hand you can use a gluten-free flour mix.
Bobs Red Mill 1-to-1 Gluten-Free Flour Blend (not their all purpose gf flour blend) works best in my gluten-free pie crust recipe, just omit the xanthan gum called for in the gluten-free pie crust recipe as Bob's Red Mill 1-to-1 gluten-free flour blend already has it included.
If you're still interested in baking up this stunning gluten-free cherry pie, read on. I have some tips and tricks to set you up for success.
Gluten-Free Cherry Pie Recipe
Gluten-free cherry pie can be intimidating. If you're not interested in making gluten-free pie crust from scratch you can purchase pre-made pie shells from the store and still use this gluten-free cherry pie filling recipe. I encourage you to make your own gluten-free pie crust though as it's less expensive to make and you know exactly what's going into the crust.
Tips for making a great pie:
- Read the recipe steps and make sure you have all ingredients on hand before you begin.
- Make sure all ingredients are cold before you begin.
- If you use a flour blend with xanthan gum, omit it from the recipe
- Don’t overwork the crust dough, it will toughen and cause cracks when you transfer it to the pie pan.
- If the pie crust dough is too soft, chill for 30 minutes before rolling it out.
- For a decorative top - cut out lattice strips and weave over the top of the pie, or use cookie cutters for fun shapes.
- Save time by making a streusel topping instead of a crust for the top.
- To help prevent a mess in the oven, place a baking sheet under the pie pan while it cooks.
- Let the pie cool completely before slicing.
Now that you know what you're doing, you can dive right into baking!
How do you make pastry roses?
Honestly, the roses on top of this pie were an accident. A fun accident, but still an accident. When I put the pie plate on top of the pie crust to cut around the edges for a clean look there was dough left over. Instead of brushing it to the side, I rolled it out of the way and discovered a cute little swirly rose.
I then rolled the rest of the dough into more roses and placed them on top. I had a cookie cutter for the leaves already and added those in for aesthetics. No dough was wasted and my pie had a lovely little feature to it.
Here are the exact leaf cutters I used. They are called Leaf Set Plunger and Cutters (affiliate link to amazon).
One thing I hope you'll understand is that a gluten-free cherry pie doesn't have to be perfect to be pretty (life lesson, here). A golden crust with a juicy filling is enough to feature a gluten-free pie as a center piece.
Do you have to egg wash pie crust?
Some people use an egg wash on the crust to give it a glossy coating or to help it brown. I don't. When I bake pies I start with foil over the crust for about half the baking time, then I remove the foil and let the gluten-free pie crust brown while it finishes baking. The crust will cook and start to brown under the foil, but it's this process of keeping it covered upfront that helps keep it from darkening too much while the filling bakes up.
If you use pre-made filling with this gluten-free pie crust recipe you can leave the foil off. The filling will already be soft so you're mostly baking the pie crust.
Have questions about this recipe, or other recipes on my site? Leave a comment and I will get back to you.
Looking for more cherry recipes? Check out these Cherry Brownies from Texanerin. For another pie recipe, you'll want to make my Gluten Free Apple Pie.
Did you make this gluten-free cherry pie? Please leave a starred review and a comment below letting me know what you thought.
Gluten-Free Cherry Pie
With a light flaky crust and tart cherry filling, this bright and flavorful gluten-free cherry pie will be a new favorite at your dinner table this holiday season.
Ingredients
For the cherry filling:
- 5 cups sour cherries, washed and pitted
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice (fresh or bottled)
- 1 teaspoon gluten-free vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 3 tablespoons cornstarch (or tapioca starch)
For the pie crust:
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375°F. Place a baking sheet on the rack in the center of oven.
- For the cherry filling: Heat cherries in a medium saucepan over low heat until they start to soften. Add sugar, lemon juice, vanilla, and salt.
- Boil for 2-3 minutes or until the juices are released. Add cornstarch and continue to cook until the cherry mixture begins to thicken. Remove from the heat and let cool for 10 minutes.
- For the pie crust: In a medium mixing bowl, combine rice flour, tapioca starch, potato starch, salt, and xanthan gum.
- With a pastry cutter, cut butter into flour mixture until the butter is small, no larger than the size of a pea.
- Add milk and combine. Use your hands to work the milk into the dough. Add additional milk if needed.
- Knead dough until it comes together. Form a ball with the dough.
- Place the dough ball onto a large piece of parchment paper and shape into a disc. Cover with a second piece of parchment and roll out into a 10-inch circle.
- Peel the top piece of parchment paper off, and invert into a greased pie pan. Flute the edges. Use your fingers to repair any tears in the crust, if needed.
- Once the filling is cool, pour into the crust.
- Top with the second pie crust, or lattice (crust cut into strips and woven).
- Cover the top of the pie with aluminum foil, to prevent the top from browning too soon.
- Place pie on the baking sheet and bake for 40-50 minutes or until the crust is cooked, removing the foil after 25 minutes to allow the top to brown.
- Remove the pie from the oven and cool before cutting.
Notes
If you can’t find sour cherries, use sweet cherries + ¼ cup fresh lemon juice, or replace the filling with 60oz. of pre-made allergy-friendly cherry pie filling.
If you don't have the flours on hand, replace the rice flour, tapioca and potato starch with 1 ½ cups Bobs Red Mill 1-to-1 Gluten-Free Flour.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
16Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 198Total Fat: 6gSaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 2gCholesterol: 16mgSodium: 149mgCarbohydrates: 36gFiber: 1gSugar: 16gProtein: 1g
This nutrition info is based on the exact ingredients and brands that I used a the time. It may not be 100% accurate. Please check your ingredients nutrition labels.
Natalie
I love cherry pie! Looks so delicious and perfect for Christmas!
chrystal
Thank you Natalie! Happy Thanksgiving.
Best,
Chrystal
Maggie Gautz
So for sweet cherries, use just 1/4 cup lemon juice? No sugar? Or is it the sugar, the 1 teaspoon, AND the 1/4 cup lemon juice? Also, do frozen cherries work? Just cook them longer? I've never made a cherry pie (or any fruit pie) from scratch, and cherries are not in season, but I don't want to use a premade filling. Thank you!
chrystal
Hi Maggie,
I would start with 1/4 cup sugar and possible increase it 1/2 cup depending on how sweet the cherries are. You can use fresh or frozen. Follow the rest of the directions and ingredients, with using 1/4 of lemon juice.
Best,
Chrystal
Maggie
Chrystal!! This is an outstanding recipe! Thank you so much.
chrystal
Hi Maggie,
I am so glad you like it. Thank you for stopping by to let me know.
Best,
Chrystal
Ben
Hi! I have access to Bob's 1 to 1 gf flour. Do I just use a cup of that instead of the rice flour, potato starch etc? Thanks!
chrystal
Yes, use bob's instead.
Best,
Chrystal
Christina
Almond extract is a great alternative to vanilla with the cherries. My mom always made it that way and it’s a fantastic flavor!
I used to love making pies but stopped after I developed gluten sensitivity. Your recipes are allowing me to get back to baking— thank you! I’ll be bringing this to Thanksgiving dinner!
chrystal
Hi Christina,
I'm so glad you are enjoying my recipes. Happy Thanksgiving.
Best,
Chrystal
Sarah
Hi! If I have a deep dish pie plate, should I double the filling for this recipe?
chrystal
Hi Sarah,
That's up to you 🙂 It might be a tad too much filling for the pan.
Best,
Chrystal
Deborah Lupton
Thanks. Made this with my wonderful gluten free grandgirls after picking the cooking cherries from the tree. It was easy to make and was spectacularly good. Great for ages 68 and 5 and 3.
Wish I could post a photo!!
chrystal
I am so glad everyone loved it. Thank you for letting me know.
Best,
Chrystal
Toni
Hi
Loving this recipe. Have made it a few time now I would like to make it for an upcoming dinner party we are hosting and wondering if it can be made ahead of time and then baked when required. As the pastry is not blind baked I was unsure if it would get soggy?
Thanks for your wonderful site.
Toni
chrystal
Hi Toni,
I haven't personally made it ahead of time and then baked it. You could bake it, let it cool, then freeze it and defrost it and reheat it it the oven.
Best,
Chrystal
Fil
Hello. Is it possible to substitute the potato starch for corn starch..?
chrystal
Yes, you can use corn starch in place of the potato starch.
Best,
Chrystal
Kay
This is my first time making this GF pie crust; is the crust recipe for one crust? So, would I make another crust recipe if I were covering the pie with a crust or lattice top?
chrystal
Yes, double the curst portion of the recipe for a double crust.
Best,
Chrystal
Liz
Hi. Do I need to do anything different if I'm using frozen sour cherries considering frozen fruit releases more liquid when thawed? Thank you for your time and recipe. I'm excited to try it.
chrystal
After you thaw the cherries, drain any extra liquid out before using.
Best,
Chrystal
Ann
Would love to make this pie for my son (unfortunately my daughters hate pies) with bob's 1 to 1 gf flour. Was wondering if I need to add the extra xanthan gum as the blend already has it.I don't see this mentioned anywhere.
Thank you.
chrystal
You don't need to add the extra xanthan but I tend to. It doesn't hurt to add it and it will ensure that the crust stays together.
Best,
Chrystal
Kelly
Hi! I know you kind of already answered this, but I just wanted to be 100% sure. If I'm using Bob's 1-to-1 flour, I use that in place of the rice flour and xantham gum in the crust recipe, but still use tapioca starch and potato starch, correct? I just know gf pie crusts can be finicky, so I want to be 100% sure.
chrystal
Hi Kelly,
You will use 1 and 1/2 cups of Bob's 1-to-1 in place of the rice, tapioca, and potato starch. I still like to add the xanthan, even if using bob's.
Best,
Chrystal
Terri
Do you have a good G-F streusel topping recipe I can use in place of the top crust? I haven’t made the pie yet but want to try this option - Thanks!
chrystal
The topping for my coffee cake or crumb donuts might work for you. I don't currently have a streusle topping recipe for pies. Sorry!
Best,
Chrystal
Meg
Hi!
I'd like to make this for Christmas Day but would like to make ahead so I don't have to do much on the day. Am I able to make this a day ahead and keep it in the fridge and cook the following day?
If not, am I able to cook it, freeze it and then reheat? How do you recommend freezing it? In a bag or wrapped in cling film/tin foil?
Thanks so much
chrystal
Hi Meg,
I would bake this pie first, and either refrigerate or freeze. You can reheat it in the oven. If you freeze it, let it cool to room temp first, then wrap it with cling film. I would let it thaw before covering the top with foil and re-heating in the oven (at the same temp you cooked it at).
Best,
Chrystal
Darla Grimm
Can you use vinegar in this pie crust? my original family recipe calls for vinegar to make it flaky. Will this work the same with gluten free?
chrystal
Yes, you can add vinegar to this pie crust recipe.
Best,
Chrystal
Sandra
When i added the cornstarch it just clumped into balls and wouldnt thicken, did i do something wrong?
Wendy Stoltz
Hi Sandra,
It seems like there might have been an issue when adding the cornstarch to the cherry filling. When adding cornstarch to a sauce or filling, it's important to mix it with a small amount of liquid first to create a slurry. This helps prevent clumping.
Here's what you can do to ensure the cornstarch incorporates smoothly into the cherry filling:
In a separate small bowl, mix the cornstarch with a small amount of cold water or cherry juice from the saucepan. Stir well until the cornstarch is fully dissolved and no lumps remain. This creates a slurry.
Gradually add the slurry to the cherry mixture in the saucepan, stirring continuously. Make sure the heat is still on low to prevent burning.
Continue cooking the cherry mixture while stirring until it thickens to your desired consistency. The cornstarch should help thicken the filling.
Let me know if this helps.