Celebrate summer with this delicious fresh Strawberry Pie! With a flaky pastry crust and sweet berry filling – it tastes delicious with whipped cream or a scoop of ice cream.
Summer is the perfect season for baking with berries – and this fresh strawberry pie definitely hits the spot. It has a flaky pastry crust, tons of fresh berries, and an easy no-bake filling made with jello. It can be served cold from the fridge, so it’s also perfect for warm weather. Berries just scream “summer!” like in our Strawberry Pound Cake, no bake Blueberry Cheesecake and this beautiful strawberry pie recipe.
The Best Strawberry Pie
This easy strawberry pie recipe starts with a flaky pastry crust. You can make your own or buy one pre-made, but the easiest way to do this is to buy a pre-made crust and bake it without filling according to the box instructions.
The filling is made with fresh strawberries and a jello filling – not the traditional way you make jello, but it creates a sweet gelatin base that binds the strawberries together for the pie filling.
During the late spring and into the summer, strawberries are found in abundance, which may leave you wondering what to do with lots of fresh strawberries. Strawberry Pie is a perfect spring or summer dessert because strawberries are found in abundance! Buy a couple of flats from a local stand and make Strawberry Banana Smoothies, Strawberry Lemonade and Fresh Strawberry Cake, too!
How to Make Strawberry Pie
- Bake the Crust. If using a pre-made crust, you can just follow the package instructions to bake it without filling. If you decide to make your own homemade pie crust, you will need to blind bake the crust first (see instructions below). Let it cool.
- Make the Filling. Boil together some sugar, water, lemon juice, and cornstarch. The cornstarch thickens the mixture, and the lemon juice really helps to bring out the flavor of the berries. I promise it won’t taste like lemon. Once all of the cornstarch and sugar have dissolved, remove the pan from the heat and stir in a package of powdered strawberry jello. Note: Do not make the jello according to the package instructions – simply sprinkle the powder into the sugar and water mixture you’ve boiled up.
- Add the strawberries. Then you’ll mix the sliced berries with the jello mixture, pour the filling into the baked pie crust, and pop the pie in the fridge to set.
How to Blind Bake a Pie Crust
Blind baking your pie crust first will help keep it from getting soggy before you add filling. Because the filling of this pie is no-bake, the crust has to be fully cooked anyway.
- Make and chill the pie dough according to the recipe, then roll out the dough as instructed in the recipe. Chill time is usually around 3 hours so be sure to factor that in to your full strawberry pie recipe time.
- Transfer the dough to a pie plate. Metal pie plates work better for blind-baking pie crusts because the dough is less likely to shrink. Press the dough down to fit into the pie plate (do not stretch the dough), then carefully pinch the edges or press them down with a fork.
- Place a piece of parchment paper into the middle of the pie crust so that the bottom and sides are covered, and fill the pie crust with pie weights or dried beans. Refrigerate the crust for 30 minutes while you preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
- Bake the crust for 15 minutes (with pie weights or beans), then remove from the oven and carefully remove the pie weights (or beans) and parchment paper. Prick the bottom and sides of the pie with a fork and return to the oven.
- Continue baking for 15 minutes or until the bottom is golden. If you see the edges are starting to brown, but the bottom isn’t fully cooked yet – then place aluminum foil around the edges of the pie plate to prevent burning. Cool completely before adding the filling.
Why Use Jello in a Strawberry Pie?
Some recipes for strawberry pie don’t use jello. However, with these recipes the filling doesn’t always become sturdy and set properly. As well – you really need to serve the pie the day you plan to make it because otherwise the berries and the pie crust can become soggy. Using jello makes the recipe much more fool-proof and allows you to make the pie in advance before you plan to serve it.
Top Recipe Tips
- Can I use frozen strawberries? Always use fresh strawberries in your strawberry pie. Frozen strawberries will become watery and your pie won’t set properly.
- How many strawberries is 4 cups? You’ll want about 1.5 pounds of strawberries, or 2 pints, for a total of 4 cups of sliced strawberries.
- Keep your strawberries chunky. I don’t like to slice the berries too thin – because you want them to maintain their texture.
Should you Wash Strawberries?
There are many schools of thought on whether or not to wash your strawberries. You don’t have to wash your berries first, in fact the ideal storage for strawberries is unwashed in the fridge, washing just before eating. However, I prefer to do wash before storing so they are ready for snacking because my kids aren’t exactly rule followers about washing their fruit. Following these tips will keep your berries fresh for up to ten days.
How to Wash Strawberries
First, wash strawberries in a water/vinegar solution to remove any bugs or chemicals.
- Fill a large bowl with 4 parts water to 1 part vinegar. The actual amounts will vary based on how many strawberries need washing.
- Completely submerge the berries in the water and soak for 20 minutes.
- Rinse thoroughly under cold water and lay out on paper towels or pat with towels to dry. Make sure the berries are completely dry and store them in the original container in the fridge.
- Pro tip: If you have a salad spinner, you can use it for drying your strawberries. Line the bottom with a few layers of paper towels, then add the rinsed berries. Give it a few spins, then remove and pat dry any excess. The paper towels in the spinner with keep the strawberries from bouncing around and bruising.
How to Store Strawberries
Strawberries like to be cold and they like to be dry. Any moisture will result in faster decay and mold. Once your berries are completely dry, store them in a paper towel lined container, partially closed.
More Strawberry Desserts
Strawberry Pie
Ingredients
- 1 pre-baked pie crust
- 4 cups sliced strawberries about 2 pints
- 1 cup water
- 1 cup white sugar
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice freshly squeezed
- 3 tablespoons cornstarch
- 4 oz package strawberry jello
Instructions
- Add the sugar, water, cornstarch and lemon juice to a small saucepan over low heat.
- Heat the mixture while gently stirring until the sugar and cornstarch are dissolved and the mixture starts to thicken and boil.
- Remove the mixture from the heat. Sprinkle the jello into the liquid and stir to dissolve the jello.
- Pour the jello mixture over the sliced strawberries to gently coat the berries.
- Pour the mixture into the prebaked pie crust and place in the fridge for 6 hours, or until set.
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