This year we held our annual sisters week at the new home of Carolyn in Salem, Oregon. It was the peak of cherry season, and we discovered that Salem is known as “Cherry City.” We did not waste any time in setting out to find a fabulous cherry pie.
We started at the Salem Farmers’ Market, where we saw a sign for “pie cherries.” I learned that pie 
cherries are tart, or sour, red cherries. Ten-year old Zack, the purveyor from his family farm, told us that these cherries are not so sweet, but agreed, with a knowing grin when we asked if it was possible to make them sweeter by adding sugar. He knows this because he makes cherry pies with his mother and grandmother.
Our next stop was at Acme Café– a “neighborhood restaurant serving up well-crafted, made from scratch, versions of classic American cuisine from the regions of America in our very own neighborhood.” In the shade on the garden patio, we ended up having a pie “twofer.”
We started with a tomato pie. The menu told us, as is the current fashion of giving the diner a lot of 
information about ingredients, that the filling included spinach, basil, onions, eggs, cheddar and mozzarella cheeses and, of course, tomatoes. The crust (which was not described in detail on the menu) was exceptionally rich, and tops my list of pie crusts eaten at a restaurant.
For dessert, we ordered the special —the Cherry City Hand Pie, served with a boule of house-made vanilla bean ice cream. Jesse and Megan, our servers 
regaled us with information about this pie made from a prize-winning recipe at the 1999 National Pie Contest. The crust was as rich as the crust for the tomato pie, and was filled with a fresh cherry reduction. It was a good thing to have three forks as this pie, too, was rich, in part because of the crust, but also because using the reduction of the cherries imparts the full flavor of the Oregon “pie cherries.”
People: Farmers with cherry orchards and children who know how to sell the produce.
Places: ACME Café. This is a charming restaurant in the center of Cherry City and the perfect place for a lunch with sisters, on a patio, under an umbrella, enjoying pies. ACME Café, 110 Hansen Avenue South, Salem, OR. http://www.acmecafe.net/about-us.html
Pies: Cherry hand pie. Hand pies are usually made by folding the crust in half over the filling, and baked to be eaten by hand. The Cherry City hand pie at ACME was folded like a tart, which made topping it with ice cream a bit easier. We used a fork!
- 1 all butter crust for a single crust pie (double crust pie if making 3-6 hand pies or 2 rustic tarts)
- For the cherry pie reduction for filling
- 4 cups pitted “pie cherries” (tart, red cherries)
- 1 cup (more or less depending on taste) white sugar
- 1 Tbsp white sugar to sprinkle on top
- ¼ cup corn starch
- 1 egg white, plus 1 Tbsp water for egg wash
- For the cherry reduction
- Place cherries in covered saucepan, and over medium heat, heat cherries until they release their juice and come to a simmer, about 10 to 15 minutes stirring often.
- In a bowl, whisk sugar and cornstarch until smooth, pour into the hot cherries and stir to combine. Over low heat, bring to a simmer and cook until the filling is thickened, about 2 minutes. Let cool.
- For a rustic tart, roll dough for a single crust pie into a 14 inch circle and place on a parchment- lined sheet pan. Place filling into the center of the crust and leave a 3 to 4 inch border. Fold the edges up and over the filling, leaving an air vent in the center. Chill in freezer for 30 minutes until dough is firm. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Brush the tart edges with egg white wash and sprinkle with 1 Tbsp sugar. Bake for 10 minutes at 425 degrees, and reduce the heat to 375 degrees and bake for 30 minutes until golden.
- If making a “hand pie”, roll dough into small circles and fill with 1 to 3 Tsp of filling, depending on the size of the “pie”. Fold the filled dough in half and crimp the edges with a fork. Make slits to vent the pie. Chill the “pies” until ready to bake. Preheat oven to 400 degrees, brush the pies with the egg wash and sprinkle with sugar. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes.
