1 pie crust: Homemade Pie Crust, purchased pastry crust, or Vegan Pie Crust
2 pounds fresh strawberries
⅓ cup granulated sugar (or coconut sugar)
⅓ cup honey
½ tablespoon vanilla extract
½ teaspoon cinnamon
1 pinch kosher salt
¼ cup cornstarch
¼ cup water
Homemade whipped cream, to serve
Direction :
Make the crust: Follow the directions in the Homemade Quiche Crust recipe to make the dough and shape it into a 9-inch pie plate. You can do either a fork pressed edge or a fluted edge. Then freeze the crust in the pie pan for 30 minutes (this helps to avoid shrinkage; you can skip the freezing portion for a purchased pastry crust).
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
Blind bake: Remove the dough from the freezer. Crumble a sheet of parchment paper, then place it gently on top of the crust. Fill the dough with pie weights (we used two sets of these), dry beans, or dry rice. Bake for 15 minutes, then carefully remove the parchment and weights and bake an additional 14 to 15 minutes until the bottom is golden brown (note that the timing may vary if you use store-bought pastry dough). Remove from the oven and allow the crust to cool completely before adding the strawberry filling. To cool it quickly, you can very gently slide it into another pie pan of the same size and place it on a cooling rack; this should cool it in about 10 to 15 minutes while you make the filling. (Or, the baked crust can be wrapped in plastic and stored in the refrigerator for 2 days.)
Make strawberry filling: Clean, destem and quarter the strawberries lengthwise, cutting very large berries into smaller pieces. Take 1 cup of the quartered strawberries (reserve the rest), place them in a bowl, and smash them with a fork until each one is mashed. Add the smashed berries and their juices to a large saucepan. Add the sugar, honey, vanilla, cinnamon, and salt. Bring to a simmer over medium-low heat and cook until the sugar is dissolved and the mixture is bubbling, about 2 to 3 minutes.
Then in a small bowl, combine the cornstarch with ¼ cup water and whisk until dissolved. Add the cornstarch mixture to the saucepan and cook, stirring constantly while it bubbles, for 2 to 3 minutes until very thick and glossy. The texture at the end should be incredibly sticky and thick (if not, keep cooking). Turn off the heat. Add the remaining fresh strawberries to the pan and turn with spatula until they are fully coated with the thick sauce.
Immediately scoop the strawberry filling into the cooled pie crust. Use clean fingers to arrange the strawberries in the top layer (you may need to flip some over to make it look nice). Allow to cool in the refrigerator for 2 hours before serving until it sets. Serve topped with homemade whipped cream. Lasts up to 3 days refrigerated.
