Peach Pie Recipe

A Foolproof Recipe for a Flaky, Juicy, and Unforgettable Summer Dessert

There are few things more comforting than a slice of homemade peach pie. Imagine a deeply golden, flaky crust that shatters at the touch of a fork, giving way to a bubbling, jammy filling of sweet, peak-season peaches. The air fills with the nostalgic aroma of baked fruit, butter, and warm cinnamon—a scent that instantly signals summer, comfort, and heartfelt gatherings.

While the perfect pie can seem like an elusive goal for many home bakers, this guide is here to change that. We will demystify the process, addressing common pitfalls like runny fillings and soggy bottoms head-on. This is more than just a recipe; it's a masterclass in pie-making, designed to give you the confidence and techniques to create a sliceable, juicy, and utterly unforgettable peach pie every single time.

Why Make This Delicious Recipe & When to Serve It

There is a simple, profound joy that comes from baking a classic dessert from scratch and sharing it with people you care about. Mastering a timeless recipe like peach pie is incredibly rewarding, filling your home with wonderful aromas and your table with a dessert that is pure comfort and love.

This peach pie is the perfect centerpiece for a wide range of occasions, showcasing its versatility as a true crowd-pleaser.

Summertime Gatherings: As the quintessential dessert for barbecues, picnics, and potlucks, it’s the perfect way to celebrate the peak of peach season.
Family Dinners: It serves as a warm, nostalgic treat for a special Sunday dinner or any family get-together, creating sweet memories with every slice.
Cozy Weekends: This recipe makes for a delightful and rewarding baking project for a quiet weekend, offering a delicious reward for your efforts.

This recipe is built on proven, professional techniques and expert tips designed to guarantee your success. Think of it as your new go-to, a reliable and cherished recipe that will become a staple in your baking repertoire for years to come.

Basic Ingredients (Serves 8-10)

The magic of a perfect pie lies not in complex ingredients, but in understanding how a few high-quality staples work in harmony. Every ingredient here is chosen for a specific purpose, from the all-butter crust that provides unparalleled flavor to the blend of sugars and spices that makes the peach filling sing.

For the Flaky All-Butter Pie Crust

2 ½ cups (300g) All-Purpose Flour: This provides the essential structure for our crust. We use all-purpose flour for its ideal balance of protein, creating a pastry that is tender yet strong enough to hold the juicy filling without tearing or becoming tough.
1 cup (227g) Cold Unsalted Butter, cubed: As the star player for both flavor and flakiness, keeping the butter exceptionally cold is crucial. It creates separate layers in the dough that turn to steam in the oven, producing that coveted light, flaky texture.
1 teaspoon Kosher Salt: A critical flavor enhancer, salt sharpens the rich, buttery notes of the crust and provides a necessary balance to the sweetness of the entire pie, making every component taste more vibrant.
1 teaspoon Granulated Sugar: Just a small amount of sugar in the dough aids in achieving a beautiful golden-brown color during baking and adds a subtle hint of sweetness that perfectly complements the fruit filling.
½ cup (120ml) Ice Water: This is the binder that brings our dough together. Using ice-cold water is non-negotiable, as it keeps the butter solid throughout the mixing process, which is the absolute key to achieving a supremely flaky crust.

For the Juicy, Sliceable Peach Filling

3 pounds (about 8 medium) Ripe but Firm Yellow Peaches: The heart of our pie. Using ripe yet firm yellow peaches provides the perfect balance of sweetness, acidity, and texture, ensuring the slices hold their shape during baking instead of turning to mush.
½ cup (100g) Granulated Sugar: This provides the primary sweetness for the filling and, critically, works to draw moisture out of the peaches. This process is essential for managing the filling's final consistency and preventing a soupy result.
¼ cup (50g) Packed Light Brown Sugar: Adding a deeper, more complex molasses flavor than white sugar alone, brown sugar contributes subtle caramel notes that beautifully complement the warm spices and enhance the richness of the peaches.
4 tablespoons (30g) Cornstarch: Our essential thickening agent. Cornstarch creates a clear, glossy gel that thickens the peach juices as they bake, ensuring a perfectly sliceable, not runny, filling without adding any competing flavor or gummy texture.
1 tablespoon Fresh Lemon Juice: This is a non-negotiable flavor-balancing hero. It brightens the natural taste of the peaches, provides a tartness that cuts through the sweetness, and prevents the fruit from browning while you work.
½ teaspoon Ground Cinnamon & ¼ teaspoon Ground Nutmeg: These classic warm spices are the soul of the pie's aroma. They enhance the sweetness of the peaches and add a layer of nostalgic, comforting flavor that makes the pie truly irresistible.
¼ teaspoon Kosher Salt: Just a pinch of salt in the filling makes the peach flavor pop. It is a secret weapon that balances the sugars and intensifies the overall fruitiness of the pie, making it taste more vibrant and complex.
2 tablespoons (28g) Unsalted Butter, cut into small pieces: Dotted over the filling before the top crust is added, this butter melts during baking to add a final touch of richness and a silky, luxurious mouthfeel to the finished pie filling.

For the Bakery-Style Finish

1 large Egg, beaten with 1 tablespoon of milk or cream: This is our egg wash, the secret to a professional finish. Brushing it over the top crust creates a beautiful, glossy, deep golden-brown color and adds a slight crispness to the pastry.
1 tablespoon Coarse Turbinado Sugar: Sprinkled over the egg wash before baking, this coarse sugar adds a delightful crunch and a beautiful, sparkling finish that provides a wonderful textural contrast to the tender crust.

Step-by-Step Preparation

1. Prepare the All-Butter Pie Dough

In a large bowl, whisk together the 2 ½ cups of all-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon of kosher salt, and 1 teaspoon of granulated sugar. Add the 1 cup of cold, cubed unsalted butter and use a pastry blender or your fingertips to quickly cut the butter into the flour until you have a coarse, sandy mixture with visible, pea-sized and even some larger, pecan-sized lumps of butter remaining. These pockets of butter are essential for creating a flaky crust.

2. Hydrate and Chill the Dough (First Chill)

Sprinkle about half of the ½ cup of ice water over the flour mixture and gently toss with a fork to start hydrating the dough. Continue adding the ice water, just a tablespoon at a time, until the dough begins to clump together into a shaggy ball; you may not need all the water. Gently gather the dough, divide it in half, form each half into a 1-inch-thick disk, wrap tightly in plastic, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour to let the gluten relax and the butter firm up.

3. Prepare the Perfect Peaches

To easily peel the 3 pounds of peaches, bring a pot of water to a boil while preparing a separate bowl of ice water. Score a small "X" on the bottom of each peach, then carefully blanch them in the boiling water for 30-60 seconds. Immediately transfer them to the ice bath using a slotted spoon. Once cool, the skins will slip off effortlessly. Pit the peeled peaches and slice them into uniform ½-inch-thick wedges.

4. Create the Flavorful Filling

In a large mixing bowl, combine the sliced peaches with the ½ cup of granulated sugar, ¼ cup of packed light brown sugar, 4 tablespoons of cornstarch, 1 tablespoon of fresh lemon juice, ½ teaspoon of ground cinnamon, ¼ teaspoon of ground nutmeg, and ¼ teaspoon of kosher salt. Toss everything together gently until the peaches are evenly coated. Let this mixture sit at room temperature for at least 30 minutes to allow the sugars to draw out juices, a key step for controlling the filling's consistency.

5. Roll and Fit the Bottom Crust

Place a 9-inch metal pie pan on a large, rimmed baking sheet to catch any potential drips later. On a lightly floured surface, roll one disk of the chilled dough into a 12-inch circle. Carefully transfer the dough to the prepared pie pan, pressing it gently into the bottom and up the sides. Trim the dough so it overhangs the edge by about ½ inch, and place the entire pan in the refrigerator to keep the crust cold.

6. Weave a Beautiful Lattice Top

Roll out the second disk of dough into an 11-inch circle on your floured surface. Using a pizza wheel or a sharp knife, cut the dough into ten even, 1-inch-wide strips. Arrange five strips vertically over the peach filling, leaving a little space between each one. Fold back every other vertical strip, place one horizontal strip across the center, and then unfold the vertical strips back over it. Repeat this weaving process until you have a beautiful lattice top covering the pie.

7. Crimp and Finish the Edges

Trim the ends of the lattice strips so they are even with the bottom crust's overhang. Fold the edge of the bottom crust up and over the ends of the lattice strips, pressing down firmly to create a secure seal all the way around the pie. Crimp the edges decoratively using your thumb and forefingers to create a beautiful border that will hold in all the bubbling juices during baking.

8. Chill the Assembled Pie (Second Chill)

Place the entire assembled pie, still on its baking sheet, back into the refrigerator or freezer for at least 30 minutes. This critical step re-chills the butter in the crust, especially in the delicate lattice and crimped edges. This ensures the pastry holds its shape beautifully when it hits the hot oven, resulting in a much flakier and more defined final product.

9. Apply the Finishing Touches for a Bakery Shine

While the pie chills, preheat your oven to 425°F (220°C) with a rack positioned in the lower third. In a small bowl, beat the 1 large egg with 1 tablespoon of milk to create your egg wash. Just before baking, remove the chilled pie from the fridge and brush the lattice and edges evenly with the egg wash. Finally, sprinkle the 1 tablespoon of coarse turbinado sugar over the top for a sparkling, crunchy finish.

10. Bake to Golden, Bubbling Perfection

Place the pie on its baking sheet onto the lower oven rack. Bake at the high temperature of 425°F for 15 minutes, which helps to quickly set and crisp the bottom crust. Then, reduce the oven temperature to 375°F (190°C) and continue to bake for another 40-50 minutes. The pie is done when the crust is a deep golden brown and the filling is visibly bubbling up through the center of the lattice. If the edges brown too quickly, shield them with a pie shield or strips of aluminum foil.

11. Cool Completely (The Hardest, Most Important Step)

Remove the finished pie from the oven and place it on a wire rack to cool. You must allow the pie to cool completely to room temperature, which will take at least 4 hours, and preferably longer. This crucial resting period allows the cornstarch-thickened juices to cool and set into a perfect, sliceable gel. Cutting into a warm pie will result in a runny filling, no matter how perfectly you followed the other steps.

Tips for the Perfect Recipe

Achieving the Flakiest Crust

Use Frozen Butter: For maximum flakiness, cube your butter and place it in the freezer for 15 minutes before adding it to the flour. Extra-cold butter stays solid longer during mixing, creating larger pockets and a flakier result.
Don't Overwork the Dough: Handle the dough as little as possible. The visible lumps of butter are your friends—they are what create the flaky layers. Mix just until the dough comes together.
Embrace the Chill: Do not skip the chilling times. Chilling relaxes the gluten (for a more tender crust) and solidifies the butter (for flakiness). A cold pie going into a hot oven is the ultimate secret to a great crust.

Preventing a Soggy Bottom

Bake on a Preheated Baking Sheet: Placing your pie pan on a baking sheet that has been preheating in the oven gives the bottom crust an initial blast of intense heat, helping it to set and crisp up quickly before the filling can make it wet.
Use a Metal Pie Pan: Metal, especially aluminum, conducts heat far more effectively and quickly than glass or ceramic. This is crucial for properly browning and crisping the bottom crust of a fruit pie.
Create a Moisture Barrier: Before you pour in the filling, lightly brush the inside of the chilled bottom crust with some of your egg wash. This creates a waterproof seal that prevents the fruit juices from soaking into the dough as it bakes.

Ensuring a Sliceable, Not Soupy, Filling

Choose the Right Peaches: Use ripe peaches for the best flavor, but ensure they are still firm to the touch. Overly soft or mushy peaches will break down too much during baking and create a watery, unstructured filling.
Don't Skip the Cornstarch: Cornstarch is essential for thickening the juices. Ensure your filling bubbles vigorously in the center for a few minutes before you remove the pie from the oven; this indicates the starch has fully activated.
Patience is a Virtue (Cool Completely): This is the most common reason for a runny pie. The filling is a gel that only solidifies as it cools. You must let the pie rest for a minimum of 4 hours at room temperature before slicing into it.

Serving Ideas

The Timeless Classics

Vanilla Bean Ice Cream: A generous scoop of high-quality vanilla ice cream melting into a warm slice of pie is the quintessential pairing, creating a perfect contrast of hot and cold, creamy and fruity.
Freshly Whipped Cream: For a lighter, airier touch, a dollop of freshly whipped cream (either unsweetened or lightly sweetened) allows the bright peach flavor to be the star of the show.

A Touch of Elegance

Salted Caramel Drizzle: A warm drizzle of salted caramel sauce enhances the pie's brown sugar notes and adds a sophisticated layer of sweet-and-salty complexity that is simply divine.
Fresh Mint or Basil: Garnish each slice with a sprig of fresh mint or a fine chiffonade of basil for a surprising, fresh, and aromatic counterpoint to the sweet, baked fruit.

Creative & Savory Pairings

A Slice of Sharp Cheddar: Following a classic American tradition, serve a thin slice of sharp, aged cheddar cheese alongside the pie. The tangy, savory cheese provides a delightful contrast to the sweet filling.
Bourbon-Infused Whipped Cream: Add a splash of good-quality bourbon to your cream as you whip it. The smoky, oaky notes of the bourbon beautifully complement the rich flavor of the peaches.

Tips for Storing and Reheating

Storing Leftovers

At Room Temperature: You can store the completely cooled pie, loosely covered with foil or plastic wrap, at room temperature for up to 2 days. This method is ideal for maintaining the best possible crust texture.
In the Refrigerator: After 2 days, the pie should be wrapped well and moved to the refrigerator, where it will last for up to 4 additional days. Be aware that the humidity of the fridge may soften the crust slightly.
For Freezing: To freeze a baked pie, first let it cool completely. Place it uncovered in the freezer for an hour until solid, then wrap it tightly in a double layer of plastic wrap and a final layer of foil. It can be frozen for up to 3 months.

Reheating Tips

The Best Method (Oven): To revive the flaky crust and warm the filling, reheat individual slices on a baking sheet in a 350°F (175°C) oven for 10-15 minutes. This method works perfectly for both refrigerated and thawed slices.
Reheating a Whole Pie: To reheat a whole refrigerated pie, place it in a 350°F (175°C) oven for about 20-25 minutes. Loosely tent the pie with foil to prevent the crust from getting too dark.
Avoid the Microwave at All Costs: Do not reheat pie in the microwave. It creates steam, which is the enemy of crisp pastry, and will turn the starches in your beautiful, flaky crust into a disappointing, soggy mush.

Conclusion

Baking a peach pie from scratch is a rewarding experience that taps into the heart of comfort and nostalgia. With a perfect balance of flaky, buttery pastry and a sweet, juicy fruit filling, this recipe provides all the tools you need to create a truly spectacular dessert. We encourage you to embrace the process, try these techniques, and create your own delicious memories, one perfect slice at a time.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Why is my peach pie filling runny, and how can I fix it?

A: A runny filling is usually caused by three things: not using enough thickener (like the 4 tablespoons of cornstarch), not baking the pie long enough for the filling to boil and activate the thickener, or slicing it while it's still warm. Ensure the pie cools for at least 4 hours to allow the filling to set completely.

Q: Can I use frozen or canned peaches for this recipe?

A: Yes, though fresh peaches provide the best texture. If using frozen peaches, thaw them completely and drain away any excess liquid to avoid a watery filling. If using canned peaches, drain them very well, pat them dry, and consider slightly reducing the sugar in the recipe, as they are often packed in a sweet syrup.

Q: Do I really have to peel the peaches?

A: While it is an optional step, we highly recommend it for the best possible texture. Peach skins can become slightly tough or bitter after baking and can separate from the fruit. Peeling creates a smoother, more luxurious filling, and the blanching method in Step 3 makes the process quick and easy.

Q: How far in advance can I make this pie?

A: This pie is an excellent make-ahead dessert. The pie dough can be prepared up to 2 days in advance and kept refrigerated. You can also assemble and bake the entire pie 1-2 days ahead of serving; simply store it loosely covered at room temperature. The texture is best within the first 24 hours, but it remains delicious.

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