Pie Fillings – Fruit

This is a collection of various fruit pie fillings you can make ahead and freeze.  They are all based on the same basic recipe with some tweaks.

I used Clear Jell and it was pretty amazing.  It is a modified corn starch and is available online.  You can substitute it 1:1 for corn starch in recipes you need to stay stable between freezing and reheating.

Apple Pie Filling

I used my apple peeler/slicer to make this recipe because I was putting the filling in very small pies.  If you are making larger pies, you probably want to slice the apples manually to get thicker (approximately 3/8″) slices.

INGREDIENTS:

• 4 Cups of sliced, peeled and cored apples (about 3 medium Granny Smith).
• 1 Tablespoon of lemon juice
• 3 cups water
• 1 1/3 cups granulated sugar
• 1/3 cup Clear Jell
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Peel and cut the apples and place in a large bowl.
2. Sprinkle the lemon juice over the apples and toss to mix.
3. Set the apples aside.
4. Bring the remaining ingredients to a boil in a medium stock pot, stirring constantly.
5. Boil the mixture for 2 minutes.  It will change from a white color to clear when it is done.
6. Add the apples to the pot and reduce the heat to simmer.
7. Simmer the mixture for 8 minutes to soften the fruit.
8. Remove from heat and cool the pot in an ice bath.
9. Refrigerate, freeze or use immediately.

Frozen Strawberry Pie Filling

Since frozen berries have a lot more space between them than slices of apples and since they contain a lot of more liquid than apple, we need to increase the volume of the fruit and the Clear Jell.

INGREDIENTS:

• 6 Cups of sliced, frozen strawberries (without sugar added).
• 1 Tablespoon of lemon juice
• 3 cups water
• 1 1/3 cups granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup Clear Jell
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Measure the fruit into a bowl.
2. Sprinkle the lemon juice over the fruit and toss to mix.
3. Set the fruit aside.
4. Bring the remaining ingredients to a boil in a medium stock pot, stirring constantly.
5. Boil the mixture for 2 minutes.  It will change from a white color to clear and become very thick when it is done.
6. Add the frozen fruit to the pot and bring the contents back to a boil.
7. Reduce the heat to simmer.
8. Simmer the mixture for 8 minutes to soften the fruit.
9. Remove from heat and cool the pot in an ice bath.
10. Refrigerate, freeze or use immediately.

Frozen Blueberry Pie Filling

Since frozen berries have a lot more space between them than slices of apples and since they contain a lot of more liquid than apple, we need to increase the volume of the fruit and the Clear Jell.

INGREDIENTS:

• 8 Cups of sliced, frozen blueberries (without sugar added).
• 1.5 Cups Sugar
• 9 Tablespoons Clear Jell (or cornstarch)
• 9 Tablespoons Water
• 2 teaspoons lemon zest (1 large lemon yields about 3 teaspoons of zest)
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• 4 Tablespoon unsalted butter

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Combine the sugar and 2 cups of the blueberries in a large saucepan.
2. Simmer on medium heat until the sugar melts.
3. Mix the Clear Jell and water in a small container.
4. Stir the Clear Jell Mixture into the blueberry sugar mixture.
5. Bring the mixture to a boil and boil  until the mixture is no longer white.
6. Remove the mixture from heat and cool it by transferring it to another bowl or by setting the saucepan in an ice/water bath.
7. Melt the butter for a few seconds in the microwave.
8. Mix the spices, zest, and butter in a small bowl.
9. Fold in the spice/butter mixture and the remaining blueberries.
10. Refrigerate, freeze or use immediately.