How to Make a Pie from Home-Canned Filling

I found a hole in the internet, which is the title of this post.  I guess people think that, if you're canning pie filling, you have some idea how to make a pie with it.  That's what the label on the back of a can of filling is for, and home-canned items don't have those.  I had to go to the market and read a can, like an idiot.

In the 1800s, it was common to have some form of a pie at nearly every meal.  Sweet, savory, eggy... everything went into a crust and into the oven.  It was easy, especially when the oven was being kept warm all day to heat the house.  Every woman knew how to make crust at a moment's notice.  Pies were common food.  Nowadays, they are a treat, especially if the crust was both made from scratch and also edible.

Yes, you can use refrigerator pie dough.  The ones that come rolled in a cylinder generally have two for a 2-crust pie.  What I would love to find is a tube of pie dough that you can roll out yourself, like sugar cookie dough.

The main difference between making from store-bought filling versus home-made is the yield.  Store cans are 21 ounces, while home-canned "pints" are more like 14.  Therefore, two pints will get you a decent 8" pie or an under-filled 9".  The peach filling I was using was the odd small jars from the end of the batch, so I actually used a 7" tin saved from the last pie I bought at Sprouts.

But I got my cherry & peach pie, which is kind of what I had in mind all along when I was canning the fillings.

Pie crust for double-crust pie (I used pie crust #2)
*2 pints pie filling (or 1 quart)
*egg wash or milk for brushing, optional

1.  Preheat oven to 375º.  This is half of what I needed to read a can for.  The rest was baking time.

2.  Roll out and prepare your bottom pie crust.

3.  Open jars and pour contents into a bowl first if you need to stir them together or add spices.  I added ginger and cloves to my un-spiced fillings.

4.  Fill bottom crust.

5.  Roll out top crust.  If you're cutting the vents with cookie cutters, this is the better time to do it.  If you're just making a slit pattern on top, you can do it after.  For lattice, cut strips.  Gently transfer the top crust to the pie pan, hopefully centering the holes.

6.  Crimp edges to seal the two crusts.  I had a bit of an explosion on one side in the last ten minutes.  At least then I knew it was done.  Brush with egg wash or milk, if using.  I don't usually egg wash my pies, but I had it on hand for the venison pie.  It really does make for a beautiful, crisp top crust.  Sprinkle top with sanding sugar if desired.  Place on a rimmed baking sheet in case of goo-splosions.

7.  Bake for 50 minutes.  Start checking around 40.  I think I went to about 55.  You're looking for a golden crust, but not dark.  If the rim starts to get too dark, tent it with foil for the last 15 minutes.

8.  Remove pie from oven and allow to cool to room temperature before slicing.  You will enjoy the consistency more than if it's oozing everywhere.

Makes 1 8" pie, 6-8 servings

Difficulty rating  :)