Fresh peaches not looking so good, or not available? No problem! This easy recipe uses quality, fresh-frozen peaches that are already peeled, pitted, and sliced! And it’s so good, that no one will even know that you didn’t pick them straight from the tree!! Make one this weekend to surprise Dad for Father’s Day!
Though it sure hasn’t felt like it around here, according to the calendar, it’s summer! This has been the most bizarre summer, weather-wise, that I can ever remember!
Cold, rainy, and yet, we’ve already had 5 tornadoes! In New Jersey! I know! Right?? Crazy!
So, when I wanted to make my hubby one of his favorite pies, the peaches looked horrific. But once I mentioned “peach pie”, he wanted one so badly that I decided to try the frozen route. Better than canned peaches, and MILES better than pre-made canned pie filling. (Gross. Goop.)
And this actually worked out extremely well!! And I sure didn’t miss all the mess and time of peeling each and every peach, and pitting stubborn stones!
So, all you have to do to make this, is place the thawed peaches, (be sure to thaw them completely first), into a large mixing bowl. Then sprinkle the whole top evenly with both sugars, and fold them gently to coat.
Then just let them sit in the bowl for one hour. After that, use a slotted spoon to transfer them to a medium bowl, reserving the juice in the original bowl.
Add all of your dry ingredients into a saucepan, and stir in the reserved juice gradually. Then add your peaches.
Then cook them until the peaches are just tender and the sauce thickens. *Let this cool down before you go to make the pie, though, or it will get too hot in the oven and could run over and make a nasty mess in your oven. (Don’t ask me how I have come to know this.)
Once mostly cooled, you can start preheating your oven and make the crumb topping.
Please do use GOOD butter throughout this recipe, as it’s so important! You don’t want to do all this work anticipating a glorious pie and have it turn out “meh”. You know?
You want this to be the pie you’ve been dreaming about for weeks, right? Exactly. This is the brand I rely on, so you can use this, or whatever high quality butter that you’re accustomed to using.
Pour and arrange the peaches and sauce into a pastry-lined 9-inch pie dish, and top with the crumb topping. (*To get a few bigger pieces of the topping, just squeeze some of it in your hand, and then break it back up into different sizes so that it’s not a super fine crumb all over the top. The bigger pieces are always so delicious!!
Do your pie pasty edge any way you choose, then you can cover just the edge with foil if you want to. I didn’t this time, and it was fine. But your oven may burn the edges.
I set the oven for 400º, pop the pie in, close the door, then immediately turn the temp down. This slowly reduces the higher heat to the more moderate temperature gradually, baking the crust perfectly without having to adjust anything halfway though.
Then just let that baby cool down! This will take some time, but WELL worth the wait!! Just don’t slice into a hot pie. EVER. The sweet filling will be lava-hot and just a bit too thin. So….patience! It will set up beautifully, not run all over your plate when you go to slice it, and you don’t want to look like the kid in “A Christmas Story”, who stuck his tongue to a frozen flagpole and had a big bandage wrapped around it.
Not a good look. And quite painful.
So, if you’re looking for a wonderful summer pie, something special to make for Father’s day without hardly any fuss, just make this!
It’s easy, quick to make, doesn’t take too long to bake, and it’s absolutely delicious with minimal work! What’s not to LOVE about that!! So, hope you all enjoy my Best Easy Crumb Top Peach Pie as much as my hubby did! He was one happy man!!
Best Easy Crumb Top Peach Pie
For Pie:
1/2 cup regular sugar
1/2 cup packed brown sugar, light or dark
1 ( 2 lb. bag) peeled and sliced frozen peaches, thawed
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp. nutmeg
1/8 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. lemon juice
1 tsp. vanilla
2 Tbl. Minerva Dairy Butter with Sea Salt
enough pastry for a 9-inch pie dish
For Crumb Top:
1/4 cup cold Minerva Dairy Butter with Sea Salt, cut up into small pieces
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup flour
1/2 – 1 tsp. sugar to sprinkle on top
vanilla bean ice cream, optional
Directions:
In a large bowl, combine sugars; add peaches and toss gently. Cover and let stand for 1 hour. Drain peaches, reserving juice.
In a small saucepan, combine the cornstarch, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt; gradually stir in reserved juice. Fold in thawed peach slices. Bring to a boil; cook and gently stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. (*Add 1 – 2 Tbl. water only if needed when there’s not enough juice to get a sauce. I didn’t need any this time, but some batches of peaches are juicier than others.) Remove from the heat; stir in lemon juice and butter. Set aside and let cool down completely while oven preheats. (*Give it a gentle fold now and then.)
Line a 9-in. pie plate with pastry; trim even with edge. Pour filling into dish and arrange peach slices to fit nicely. Sprinkle whole top with crumb topping and a little sugar. Cover edges loosely with foil if desired. Pop into pre-heated 400º oven, close door, reduce heat to 375º, and bake for about 40 – 45 minutes until it just starts to bubble and crust edge is golden brown. Remove foil. Cool on a wire rack. Serve warm with vanilla bean ice cream, if desired.
Can store, covered, on counter at room temp., or placed into the fridge and chilled.
For Crumb Topping:
Place cut-up butter into medium-sized mixing bowl. Drizzle with vanilla. Add the 1/4 cup sugar and the flour. Cut in butter until crumbs. *I just do this with my fingers, tossing and pinching. Sprinkle over pie. Sprinkle top evenly with 1/2-1 tsp. sugar.
