Pineapple Pie made of a delightfully sweet pineapple filling, nestled on the flakiest butter pie crust. This is a certified family favorite!
Hello there bakers! Today we learn how to make a Pineapple Pie. You know how much I love Peach Mango Pies, the pocket pie style, which we already made here. I can eat 2 or more in one sitting, truly.
This Pineapple Pie is like a close cousin of my favorite pastry. The sweet pineapple filling is bright and sweet, and the crust is ultimately flaky and buttery. Needless to say, one slice at a time is not enough for me.
If you are one who loves this type of pastry but have always been dreading the process of making it, fear not my friend. Today we tackle Pineapple pie, making a pie crust and that relatively easy sweet pineapple filling.
And if you love pineapples, also check out Pineapple Loaf Cake and Pineapple Upside Down Cake.
Pointers and Tips
- The butter needs to be cold. Not room temperature, not warm. Cold butter is the key to a flaky pastry.
- Also, during making the pastry, make sure to work swiftly so the butter does not warm up.
- Leave a few clumps in the dough before adding the water. It is also key for a flaky crust.
- Make sure the water that you will add to the pastry is cold. You may need less or just a bit more that is prescribed in the recipe. You are looking for a dough that clings together when pressed. Do not be tempted to add so much water. As this will compromise the texture of your pie crust.
- Do not over knead, over mix, over work the dough. Too much handling can yield a tough crust.
How to Make Pineapple Pie?
Cut the butter into the Dry Ingredients
We start with the crust. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, salt and sugar. Add in the cubed butter. Using a pastry cutter, cut the butter pieces into the powders.
Use a bit of force here. You need to kind of crush the butter pieces and smash it until it is incorporated into the dry ingredients. The end result is a coarse mixture, with some small bits here and there.
Add the Cold Water to the Coarse Mixture
Add the cold water. Continue to use the pastry cutter to distribute the liquid around until the mixture has large pieces of crumbs that cling together when pressed.
With your hands in the bowl, press and gather the dough together to form one mass. It is okay for some crumbs to be loose.
Gather and Shape the Dough into Discs, then Chill.
- Still working inside the bowl, divide the dough into two equal portions. Transfer them onto a floured board. Again, some bits may still be loose. Knead and press for a few seconds to gather.
- Transfer each portion into a large piece of plastic wrap. Seal the plastic around the dough. Use your hands and knuckles to gently apply a massage-like pressure to the dough. This action presses the dough together to allow it to come together more firmly.
- Secure the plastic even tighter around the dough. Pat and shape it into 2-inch thick discs. Refrigerate for 4 hours or up to overnight.
Roll out the Dough and Fit it into the Pie Pan
- After chilling, take out one dough portion and allow to sit at room temperature for about ten minutes. You want it to be a little pliable prior to rolling.
- On a floured surface, roll out the dough into a circle (or something that is close to a circle). The rolled-out dough should be bigger than your 9-inch pie plate.
- Transfer the dough to the pie plate by using the rolling pin as a carrying tool. Here’s how: gently wrap the dough around the rolling pin and lift it towards the pie plate.
- Gently lower it into the pan, centering the dough. Ease the dough into the sides of the pan. Now, it will look sloppy at this point. Just leave it. Chill it in the fridge while you make the filling.
Make the Filling
- In a saucepan, combine cornstarch, sugar, crushed pineapples including the liquid, a cinnamon stick, and lemon juice. Stir until the cornstarch and sugar are dissolved.
- Bring the pan to medium heat. Stir regularly until the mixture thickens, and the liquid is mostly absorbed. The resulting mixture should look like thick, gel-like oatmeal. Allow this to cool completely.
Bake the Pie
Preheat the oven to 350 F. Pour and scrape the filling onto the pie shell. Brush the edges with egg whites. Now take out the remaining pie dough. Roll it out to a circle that is about the same size as the first one.
Using the rolling pin, lift the dough over to the pie, and lower it as you center the dough over the filling. Trim any excess dough around the edges (both upper and lower crust together) but leave about an inch overhang.
Fold the excess dough inwards to reinforce the edges of the pie. Brush the tops of the pie with egg whites and sprinkle the sugar evenly on top.
Using scissors, make 3-4 slits on the top crust to act as steam vents. Bake the Pineapple Pie at 350 F for 50-55 minutes.
The top should be golden. Allow the pie to cool before slicing.
After which you can either serve warm or cold. I prefer mine warm. Best. Thing. Ever.
I hope you enjoy this, my friends. Don’t overthink, get your hands in there and make a mess.
Frequently Asked Questions
The dough shrinks when it it has not been chilled enough after fitting it into the pan. Chilling allow the dough to rest and relax after the rolling process. The dough retracts when it has not rested well.
When the dough has been over stretched or over worked, it will retract during rolling or shrink down the sides of the pan upon baking. This is why it needs to chill and rest.
Although this can be caused by the oven temperature not being hot enough, the most probable cause in this recipe is that the filling may have been hot or warm when it was poured into the pie crust. Make sure to cool the filling completely before pouring it into the pie pan.
More Pies? Got Ya!
More of a Pineapple Lover? Here you go:
Pineapple Pie
A delightfully sweet Pineapple filling nestled in the flakiest and buttery pie crust-you will want a slice of this Pineapple Pie one after another.
Ingredients
For the Pie Crust
- 2 and 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 1 cup butter, cut into cubes and chilled
- 6 tbsp ice water
For the Pineapple Filling
- 3 tbsp cornstarch
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 20 oz can crushed pineapples (do not drain)
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 cinnamon stick or 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
For the Topping
- 1 tbsp sugar
- egg whites for brushing the crust
Instructions
Make the Pie Crust
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together flour, salt and sugar. Add the cubed butter and use a pastry cutter to cut the butter into the dry ingredients.
- Once the mixture looks coarse, with some bits of butter here and there, add the water.
- Continue to mix the mixture using the pastry cutter until it turns from coarse to having long, flattened pieces of crumbled dough. If you pinch the dough with your hands, they should cling together. Using your hands, press the dough together to gather it, divide it into two portions inside the bowl. (Note that the dough may still have loose crumbs. Just try your best to portion it into two).
- Transfer the dough portions into a working surface. Lightly knead each portion for a few seconds just to gather any loose crumbs. Transfer each portion into large pieces of plastic wrap. Seal them well and with the dough wrapped in plastic, gently press the dough together, like massaging it with your fingers and knuckles to make it cling together well. Secure the plastic around the dough even tighter to make the shape firmer. Shape each portion into a disc that is about 1-2 inches thick. Chill them in the fridge for 4 hours or overnight.
- After chilling, Take out one of the dough portions from the fridge. Allow the dough to sit at room temperature for about 10 minutes. On a floured board, use a rolling pin to roll the dough into a circle (not perfect) that is 1/4 inch thick. If you are not sure, just place your 9 inch pie pan on top of the rolled dough, the rolled dough should be bigger than your pan.
- To place the dough in your pie pan, first gently wrap the dough around your rolling pin. We use the rolling pin as your carrying tool. Lift the rolling pin over the pie pan and gently lower it, centering the dough into the plate. Gently unwrap the dough and ease it into to sides of the pan. The crust will look messy with all the excess dough hanging out, leave it there. We will trim it later. Refrigerate the pie shell while you make the filling.
Make the Filling
- In a medium saucepan, combine cornstarch, sugar, crushed pineapples (remember, do not drain), lemon juice and the cinnamon stick. Stir well until the sugar and cornstarch are dissolved.
- Bring the pan to medium heat and stir the mixture regularly until it is thick and most liquid is absorbed. You want a consistency like a thick oatmeal and the look of a rough gel. Remove from heat and let cool completely.
Assemble and Bake
- Pour and scrape the filling into the prepared pie shell. Brush the sides of the crust with egg whites.
- Preheat oven to 350 F. Take the second dough portion out of the fridge and let it rest for 10 minutes or until it is pliable enough to roll. On a floured surface, roll it out into a 1/4 inch thick circle. Again, wrap the dough onto the rolling pin. Lift the pin and lower it over the pie, centering the dough. Now merge both the crust together by pressing with your fingers. Trim the excess dough with scissors but leave about an inch overhang. Fold excess dough together inwards to reinforce the edges of the pie. Brush the top of the pie with more egg whites, then sprinkle sugar evenly on top.
- Using scissors, make 3-4 slits on the top crust for steam vents. Bake the pie at 350 F for 50-55 minutes or until the top is golden. Allow the pie to cool completely before cutting. You can serve the pie cold or microwave for a few seconds to warm it up.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 8 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 633Total Fat: 24gSaturated Fat: 15gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 7gCholesterol: 61mgSodium: 415mgCarbohydrates: 109gFiber: 9gSugar: 74gProtein: 6g
Im making this tomorrow! Thanks for the pineapple filling recipe, I didn’t know You can make pie with pineapple.