5 Best Holiday Pie Recipes (2024)

Units Scale

• 8.8 oz Biscoff cookies or similar
• 3 Tbsp butter, melted
• 8oz plain cream cheese, softened
• ⅓ cup granulated sugar
• ½ cup canned pumpkin
• ½ tsp cinnamon
• ¼ tsp nutmeg
• ¼ tsp cloves
• ¼ tsp all spice
• ¼ tsp kosher salt
• ¾ cup heavy whipping cream

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1. Place your Biscoff cookie in the bowl of a food processor and whiz until fine crumbles form.
2. Place crumbs in a small bowl and add in melted butter.
3. Place about ¼ cup of mixture into 6 large ramekins (6oz) and press down using a tamper or glass until flat. Place in fridge while you prepare filling. Reserve any extra for topping.
4. Place your cream cheese, sugar, spices and pumpkin into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment. Mix on high until blended and combined. Set aside.
5. In the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with whisk attachment, place your heavy whipping cream and beat on high until stiff peaks form.
6. Fold the whipped cream into your pumpkin mixture until incorporated.
7. Fill your cups with pumpkin mixture and place in fridge for 4 or more hours until set.
8. Top with vanilla ice cream and extra biscoff mixture.

These simple bars are fuss free and perfect for a casual gathering. Recipe adapted from Smitten Kitchen Raspberry Breakfast Bars

Units Scale

Crumble

• 1 ½ cup all purpose flour
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 ¼ cup old-fashioned rolled oats
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• ¾ tsp baking powder
• ½ tsp baking soda
• zest of 1 orange
• 1 stick butter, cold, cut in cubes
• ¼ cup olive oil

Filing

• 1 package fresh cranberries - 12oz
• ⅓ cup brown sugar
• ¼ cup fresh orange juice
• 2 Tbsp unsalted butter

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Crumble

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Prepare 9x13 pyrex baking pan by spraying with cooking spray and then lining with parchment paper.
3. Next, place all your ingredients for your crumble in the bowl of a food processor.
4. Pulse for a few times until the butter becomes small pebble-sized.
5. Reserve 1 ½ cups of the mixture for the top.
6. Place the remaining mixture in the parchment lined baking pan and press down.
7. Bake in preheated oven for 12-15 minutes until slightly golden brown.
8. Let cool slightly, leave oven on.

Filling

• Place all your filling ingredients in a bowl and mix well.
• Pour into slightly cooled crust, spreading out evenly.
• Top with reserved 1 ½ cup of crumble mixture.
• Bake for 35-45 minutes until golden brown and bubbly.
• Remove and let cool on wire rack, cut and serve. Store in fridge.

Scale

• 12 sheets of phyllo dough
• cooking spray
• 4 large firm pears, cored and diced
• 2 Tbsp butter
• ¼ tsp kosher salt
• 1 tsp cardamom
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 tsp corn starch (mixed with splash of water)

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Phyllo Cups

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Spray standard sized muffin tin with cooking spray.
3. Remove one sheet of phyllo dough at a time and gently fold into muffin cup creating a flat bottom and ruffling the top edges to create a cup.
4. Continue with all 12 muffins. Then spray lightly with cooking spray.
5. Bake for 10-12 minutes until golden brown.

Pears

1. In a large skillet on medium high heat add your butter and diced pears.
2. Add in your spices and finally vanilla and corn starch mixture.
3. Continue to cook on medium high until pears become soft but still slightly firm.
4. Allow pears to cook and fill phyllo cups with pear mixture and top with Tillamook Old Fashioned Vanilla Ice Cream and your favorite caramel. Enjoy right away.

• You can make all components ahead of time, assemble just before eating.

Units Scale

• 1 basic pie dough recipe, I like using Marie Saba's all butter pie crust (store bought is fine too)
• 1 ½ Tbsp semolina (can sub almond flour)
• 1 ½ Tbsp sugar
• 8 oz creme fraiche
• 2 firm Fuyu persimmons
• 3 Tbsp raw sugar, divided
• heavy cream
• 2 tsp apricot jam + splash of water

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1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees
2. Sprinkle a sheet of parchment paper with flour and roll out your pie dough into a round/oval shape about ⅛" thick. You don't want your pie dough to be paper thin where it will seep but also not very thick.
3. Place parchment paper on a heavy sheet pan.
4. Once your dough is rolled out into your desired round or oval shape, mix your semolina and granulated sugar together and sprinkle on your dough, leaving about an inch border to fold over.
5. Spread your creme fraiche over the semolina mixture.
6. Slice your persimmons in circles, about ¼" thick.
7. Begin fanning your persimmons around the edges of the galette, gently overlapping until you find your way to the center.
8. Sprinkle 2 tablespoon of your raw sugar over your persimmons.
9. Fold over your edge to enclose your persimmons and seal everything in.
10. Brush your crust with heavy cream then with your last tablespoon of raw sugar, sprinkle the crust.
11. Bake for 35-45 minutes until crust and persimmons are browned.
12. Remove from oven and mix apricot jam with your water and brush over warm persimmons. Serve warm with ice cream.

Units Scale

• 1 basic pie dough recipe, I like using Marie Saba's all butter pie crust (store bought is fine too)

Apple Filling

• 8 medium sized apples, peeled and sliced ~ Granny Smith are a common variety but any firm apple with do or a mixture
• ⅓ cup brown sugar
• ⅓ cup granulated sugar
• 1 Tbsp flour
• 1 Tbsp corn starch
• 1 Tbsp lemon juice
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• ¼ tsp nutmeg
• ¼ tsp kosher salt

Crumb Topping

• 7 Tbsp unsalted butter
• ¾ cups flour
• ½ cup brown sugar
• ¼ walnuts
• ¼ tsp kosher salt

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1. Roll out your pie dough and place into a metal pie plate, crimp the edges and set in fridge until ready to use.
2. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
3. Peel and slice your apples into thin slices and place in bowl.
4. Add your sugars, flour, corn starch, lemon juice and spices to the apples, set aside.
5. In the bowl of a food processor place all your crumb ingredients together and pulse until fine crumbles form.
6. Remove your pie crust from the fridge and fill with apple filling then top with crumb mixture.
7. Place entire pie on a sheet pan lined with parchment or foil (spillage)
8. Wrap the crust lightly with foil and place in upper rack of oven for 15 minutes at 425 degrees.
9. After 15 minutes, drop temperature to 375 and continue to bake for 30 minutes. Drape a piece of foil over top of the pie if crumb begins to brown too much.
10. After 30 minutes, remove all foil from top and crust and move to the bottom of the oven and continue to bake for another 30 minutes.
11. Remove pie from oven and allow to cool before slicing. Top with vanilla ice cream.

• A metal pie plate really does help ensure to get that nice crispy crust.
• A pie can't be over-baked, it can burn but can't over bake. The longer you bake it the crispier the crust and more the fruit solidifies to ensure no soggy bottom!
• Baking at the top and bottom of the oven ensures even baking.