Cheese-Cherry-Pie

This cherry cheese pie is a no-fuss gem. The crust is a press-in oil dough mixed right in the pie plate, no rolling pin, no chilling, no fighting with cold butter. Just mix flour, sugar, salt, oil, and milk together with a fork and press it into shape with your fingers.

The filling is a creamy blend of cottage cheese, sour cream, eggs, sugar, and cornstarch, topped with canned cherry pie filling before baking. The cottage cheese gives it a lighter, tangier texture than a cream cheese-based pie, almost like an Italian ricotta pie but with a more accessible ingredient list.

Cornstarch in the filling is what keeps everything from turning into a runny mess. It thickens the custard as it bakes so the slices hold their shape when you cut them.

Pro Tips

• Press the crust dough evenly up the sides of the plate. Thin spots bake faster and can burn.
• Don’t over-beat the eggs into the filling. You want them blended, not whipped, or the pie puffs up and cracks.
• For a smoother filling, blend the cottage cheese in a food processor before mixing with the other ingredients.
• Let the pie cool completely before slicing. The filling needs time to set or it runs everywhere.

Variations

• Use blueberry or strawberry pie filling instead of cherry for a different fruit topping.
• Swap cottage cheese for ricotta for a denser, more traditional Italian-style cheese pie.
• Add a teaspoon of vanilla extract and a squeeze of lemon juice to the filling for brighter flavor.