Years ago MarkdownMom planted two cherry trees with the underlying reasoning that if you want to add ornamental design to your landscape, you might as well go for a twofer and produce something edible. Well, this past year both trees produced a bountiful harvest, so MarkdownMom put on her Martha Stewart apron and decided to make cherry pie from scratch. I mean this is really a moment in history, well MarkdownMom’s history anyway, that may never come again. So, in keeping with this once in a lifetime moment, here is MarkdownMom’s recipe for cherry pie from scratch including the preparation of homegrown cherries that was shared with family members to rave reviews.
First of all, you don’t have to grow your own cherries–you can purchase them as a summer seasonal item. Many cherry producers are located in Michigan and other states and they ship their product. To pit cherries, you can either use a cherry pitter, a bobbypin, or a toothpick. By going into the center of the cherry from the stem, you can remove the pit easily. To prevent getting your hands stained red, if you pit a number of cherries, you can use rubber gloves, not the thick ones for cleaning, but thin surgical type ones.
Fresh Cherry Pie Filling
This pie filling can be made ahead and frozen for future use.
4 Cups Cherries
1 Cup Sugar
1/4 Cup Lemon Juice
4 Tbspns. Cornstarch
1/2 tspn. Almond Extract
Method: Combine pitted cherries, sugar, lemon juice. Stir and let sit 6 hours, stirring occasionally. Drain and reserve cherry juice. Set drained cherries aside.
Take the juice from cherries and combine small amount syrup with cornstarch in a separate measuring bowl to make paste. Put syrup into pan over medium heat and cook, slowly adding the cornstarch and juice paste slowly to thicken syrup. Remove from stove and let cool.
Add drained cherries to cooled syrup and pour into unbaked shell. Cover with another pie shell or weave pie strips to cover top of pie. Sprinkle with sugar. Put pie dish onto pan to catch the juices that may bubble over during baking. Bake at 350 for about 25-45 minutes depending upon your oven, until filling is bubbling. Remove from oven and let cool.
Click Here To View Slideshow→MarkdownMom’s Cherry Amour Pie Filling
This year’s 
what’s cooking inside unless you put it in there? Or for that matter, that a new smell is being emitted from the unit that makes you wonder if the mac’n cheese you put in to warm-up is burning along with an old sock? Or that even though you’re sure you put saran wrap over the bowl, something is sputtering inside and spewing unrecognizable blobs at the window? Well, if you don’t care then maybe it’s time to call the ladies from How Clean Is Your House because you may be living at ground zero for disasters!
MarkDownMom