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Strawberry Pie

Strawberry pie bursting with fresh, juicy, sweet strawberries coated in a light, luscious strawberry glaze all cocooned in a buttery, flaky pie shell. Add a big dollop of fresh cream and heaven awaits! This strawberry pie is recipe is the perfect addition to pool parties and barbecues (Memorial Day, 4th of July), special occasions (Mother's Day, Father's Day) and is equally sensational at baby showers, bridal showers, birthday parties or just because!  This recipe stands out above the rest because it utilizes both fresh strawberries and a hint of strawberry Jell-O to create an irresistible sweet, fresh strawberry glaze that's thick enough to coat the strawberries, but thin enough to delivers a loose filling. You can load the strawberry pie filling into the buttery homemade pie shell OR use a store-bought pie crust – so there’s no reason not to make this recipe today!  This fresh strawberry pie also earns major points because it can be made 100% ahead of time, including the whipped cream, thanks to my stabilized whipped cream technique, for a stress-free dessert!  I’ve included detailed instructions on how to make strawberry pie so even if you’ve never made pie before, it will be a runaway success – and it’s so much easier than you think!
Prep Time 45 minutes
Cook Time 35 minutes
Servings 8 -10 servings

Ingredients

CRUST

STRAWBERRY FILLING

  • 3 pounds strawberries, hulled, divided
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 2 tablespoons cornstarch
  • 1 pinch salt
  • 3 tablespoons strawberry gelatin (powdered Jell-O)
  • 2 teaspoons lemon juice

WHIPPED CREAM

  • 1 teaspoon unflavored gelatin (optional for stabilized, see notes)
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons water (optional for stabilized, see notes)
  • 1 cup cold heavy whipping cream
  • 3 tablespoons powdered sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions

PIE CRUST

  • Note: You can complete baking the crust up to 3 days ahead of time then cool, cover, and refrigerate until ready to use.
  • Prepare pie dough according to recipe directions and bake following the BLIND BAKE instructions in the recipe (click on "pie crust recipe"). Let the pie shell cool completely before filling.

STRAWBERRY GLAZE

  • Add 1 1/2 cups roughly chopped strawberries (use the least attractive ones) and 1/2 cup water to a blender and puree until smooth, scraping down sides as needed.
  • Add puree to a small saucepan along with cornstarch, sugar and a pinch of salt; whisk to dissolve the cornstarch. Cook over medium high heat, stirring constantly, until reduced and thickened to the consistency of spreadable jam. Transfer to a large bowl and stir in Jell-O and lemon juice. Cool to room temperature. Set aside.

STRAWBERRY FILLING

  • Slice strawberries in half and any extra-large strawberries into quarters. Add all of the strawberries to cooled Strawberry Glaze and stir until evenly coated. Once cool, you can adjust thickness with a tiny touch of water if you would like it thinner. Transfer to the cooled pie shell.
  • Refrigerate for 3 hours or until set, best if overnight. Serve with fresh whipping cream.

WHIPPED CREAM (OPTIONAL)

  • Optional for stabilized whipped cream: Add unflavored gelatin to a microwave safe bowl then pour the cold water over top; let stand for 5 minutes. Microwave for 10 seconds. Stir the mixture, then set aside to cool.
  • Add heavy cream, powdered sugar, and vanilla extract to a large mixing bowl. Whip using an electric hand mixer just until soft peaks form.
  • Turn the mixer to low and slowly pour in the gelatin mixture. Mix until well combined then increase the speed to medium and continue mixing until stiff peaks form.
  • Transfer whipped cream to a piping bag fitted with a large tip. You can pipe the stabilized whipped cream onto the strawberry pie at any point after it’s set and continue to refrigerate. The beauty of stabilized whipped cream is it will hold its shape indefinitely. If using regular whipped cream, top the pie just before serving.

Video

Notes

  • Store-bought pie crust: purchase a 9-inch deep-dish pie crust, a regular pie crust will not work because it is not deep enough. Remove the pie crust from the freezer and thaw for about 10 minutes or until just soft enough to easily prick with a fork.  Prick the bottom and sides all over with a fork (about an inch apart to prevent crust from puffing up) and bake until golden, according to package directions.
  • Stabilized whipped cream:  you can make stabilized whipped cream or omit the water and unflavored gelatin to make regular whipped cream.  Stabilized whipped cream is heavy cream that has been whipped with sugar and gelatin in order to give it structure but it doesn’t alter the flavor – it’s magic!  It can be added to the pie any time after it’s set, then refrigerated until ready to serve.  The whipped cream will hold its shape long after the last bite of pie is gone.  This mean your fresh strawberry pie can be 100% ready to serve without any last-minute hassle or stress.
  • Unflavored gelatin:  is a common baking ingredient and can be found next to the packages of Jell-O and pudding at your grocery store. It is what makes this “stabilized” whipped cream and not just whipped cream.
  • Prep ahead: I suggest making your pie dough or go one step further and blind baking the pie shell a day ahead of time so all you have to do is pull it out of the fridge and fill when ready.
  • Storage:  store strawberry pie covered in the refrigerator. The pie is best if eaten within 24-48 hours of when it was made or the crust can get soggy. The Jell-O in the glaze helps it last longer, but still aim to eat it sooner rather than later.