Christina's Sweet Cherry Pie

adapted from Smitten Kitchen

Dough for a double-crust pie

4 cups pitted fresh cherries (about 2 1/2 pounds unpitted)

4 tablespoons cornstarch (4 teaspoons xanthan gum)

2/3 to 3/4 cup sugar (adjust this according to the sweetness of your cherries)

1/8 teaspoon salt

Juice of half a lemon

1/4 teaspoon almond extract

zest of one orange

1 tablespoon cold unsalted butter, cut into small bits

1 egg, beaten with 2 tablespoons water

Coarse sugar, for decoration

Preheat oven to 400°F.

Stir together the cherries, cornstarch, sugar, salt, lemon, almond extract and orange zest gently together in a large bowl.

Roll out half of chilled dough (use larger piece, if you’ve divided them unevenly) on a floured work surface to 13-inch round. Gently place it in 9-inch pie pan, either by rolling it around the rolling pin and unrolling it over the pan or by folding it into quarters and unfolding it in the pan. Trim edges to a half-inch overhang.

Spoon filling into pie crust, discarding the majority of the liquid that has pooled in the bowl. Dot the filling with the bits of cold butter.

Roll out the remaining dough into a 12-inch round on a lightly floured surface, drape it over the filling, and trim it, leaving a 1-inch overhang. Fold the overhang under the bottom crust, pressing the edge to seal it, and crimp the edge decoratively. Brush the egg wash over over pie crust, then sprinkle with coarse sugar.

Cut slits in the crust with a sharp knife, forming steam vents, and bake the pie in the middle of the oven for 25 minutes. Reduce the temperature to 350°F. and bake the pie for 25 to 30 minutes more, or until the crust is golden. Let the pie cool on a rack.

Christina's Red Velvet Cake with Beets

from Sophistimom


2 large beets (enough for at least 1 1/2 cups puree)
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (juice of one lemon--if your lemon yields slightly too little juice, don't add more!)
1 cup coconut oil (chilled)
1 cup buttermilk
2 2/3 cups sugar
4 eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tsps baking powder
1 1/2 tsps kosher salt
4 TBSPS natural (not dark or dutch processed) cocoa powder


1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place beets in a small baking dish and add a 1/2 cup of water. Cover with parchment paper and foil, and roast until quite tender, about 60-90 minutes. Allow to cool completely.
2. Butter 3 8 inch cake pans (I used 2 9-inch pans and then made some cupcakes with the extra batter). Cut out parchment paper circles and place in the bottoms of the pans. Butter the parchment paper and dust with flour. Set aside. Peel the beets and cut into large chunks. Place in a food processor (or a very good blender) with the lemon juice, and pulse until smooth and pureed.
3. In a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together coconut milk and sugar. Add in eggs, one at a time, mixing well until each is incorporated. Mix in vanilla. Set in refrigerator to chill.
4. While ingredients are mixing, whisk together four, baking powder, salt, and cocoa powder in a separate bowl. Slowly add flour mixture to the wet ingredients. Measure out 1 1/2 cups of the beet puree mixture, and fold into the cake batter. Divide the batter evenly between the cake pans. Tap pans on the counter to remove any air bubbles.
5. Bake at 350 degrees for 20-35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cakes comes out clean. Invert cakes onto cooling racks, and allow to cool completely. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate or freeze until ready to frost.

Cream Cheese Frosting
2 packages cream cheese, at room temperature
2 sticks (16 tablespoons) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 pound (4 cups) confectioner’s (powdered) sugar
2-3 tablespoons heavy cream
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 teaspoon pure almond extract

Combine all ingredients in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Switch to the whisk attachment, and mix until smooth and slightly fluffy.