Sour Cream Peach Pie

My mom is the queen of homemade pies. Her true summer specialty is the strawberry pie – made with enormous berries fresh from a generous neighbor’s patch – but this sour cream peach pie is a close second. Yes, sour cream is a somewhat untraditional pie ingredient, but once baked in the filling it brings a “peaches and cream” flavor to this pie, with only the barest hint of sour cream tang. This pie is also delicately flavored with cinnamon and nutmeg, adding just a hint of spice without making it taste too autumnal. Because flour is only used as a thickener, this pie can be made gluten-free with no negative impact on the flavor or texture.

I love preparing this pie because it is so darn easy. You don’t need to bother with weaving or venting an upper crust, because we instead use the simplest of crumble toppings. It also doesn’t require any blind baking of the pie crust – any unbaked crust should work fine. If you don’t feel like peeling & slicing peaches, you can easily use the canned or frozen variety for this pie and still have a wonderful result. Really, this pie is truly low risk (or should I say, “Low whisk”?) and worth your time. Your friends and family will be glad you made it!

While this pie recipe is inspired by one my mom made when I was a kid, this specific method was adapted from a recipe I found over at Oh Sweet Basil. She does a few things differently, so be sure to check out her methodology, too.

As always, let’s talk about the various ingredients you’ll need for this recipe. First and foremost, you need a pie crust. It doesn’t matter whether you use a store-bought crust or make your own as long as you keep in mind you only need enough for a single-crust pie. (And obviously, if you are serving this for gluten-free friends, make sure you use a gluten-free crust.) We will be making a Dutch crumble topping, and you will only need enough dough for the bottom half of the pie (i.e. half as much as most homemade dough recipes make). The crust does not need to be blind-baked. I’ve only ever used unbaked pie dough for this recipe. You are welcome to try a pre-baked graham cracker or shortbread crust from the dry baking goods aisle; it will probably work well, but I can’t guarantee its stability in this recipe.

For the pie filling, you will need full-fat sour cream, vanilla bean paste, cinnamon, brown sugar, all-purpose flour, egg yolks, and, of course, peaches. Because we are using the flour primarily as a thickener in this recipe, gluten-free flour would absolutely work well for this bake.

For the topping, you will need all-purpose flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, brown sugar, and cold butter. Again, gluten-free flour would be a perfectly acceptable option for the topping, as its primary purpose is to lend texture to the crumble.

As far as the peaches go, there is a question you must face: to peel or not to peel? I elected to blanch and peel my peaches (click here for a tutorial), but if you don’t mind a little bit of extra fiber in your pie, I’d call that an optional step. As long as your peaches are ripe and sliced, they should still be palatable in this recipe even with the skins still attached.

If you don’t want to bother with fresh peaches at all – or if you’re making these when peaches are out of season – frozen or canned peaches would also work fine in this recipe. The two most important caveats to remember if using either of those methods? First, make sure your peaches have thawed to room temperature, and second, drain all excess juices before using them in this pie. Frozen peaches hold on to extra water that will make your pie soggy during baking, preventing it from ever setting. Juices from a can of peaches will do the same thing…and nobody wants a soggy bottom.

Let’s get this pie party started! Drape your unbaked dough into a pie pan, pressing into the edges of the pan and crimping along the pan’s edge. Set aside and preheat your oven to 400 degrees F.

The Filling

To make your pie filling, beat together the egg yolks, cinnamon, and vanilla bean paste. Mix in flour and sugar before stirring in the sour cream.

Fold the sliced peaches into your sour cream mixture and pour into your prepared pie dough. Place the pie on a large baking sheet (in case things overflow during baking) and set aside.

The Topping

Combine the brown sugar, flour, cinnamon, and nutmeg in a large bowl. Use a pastry blender to mix in the cold butter. Set aside; this will eventually go on top of the pie, but not before we first bake it for a little while.

Move the pie-topped baking sheet into your oven and bake for 25 minutes at 400 degrees F. Add the topping before baking for an additional 20 minutes. You may need to cover the edges of your pie crust with foil to prevent them from becoming extra crispy.

After your pie has baked, allow it to set completely (cooling for about 2 hours) before slicing and serving with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

Voila! I hope you’ve enjoyed this classic summer pie! Had you ever made a sour cream pie before? How did your family like this dessert? Feel free to tag @WhiskAverseBaking on social media or leave a message in the comments below.

Sour Cream Peach Pie

This lush pie offers lightly spiced flavors and a rich crumble topping – perfect for your next summer gathering.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 40 minutes mins

Cooling time 2 hours hrs

Total Time 3 hours hrs

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Servings 8 slices

Equipment

• 8” pie plate
• Baking sheet (optional)

Ingredients

  

• 1 unbaked pie crust store bought or homemade

Filling

• 3 ½ cups peaches peeled and sliced*
• 3 egg yolks
• 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour can substitute gluten free flour
• ¾ cup brown sugar
• ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ¾ cup full-fat sour cream

Topping

• ⅓ cup all-purpose flour can substitute gluten free flour
• ⅓ cup packed brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon nutmeg
• 3 tablespoons butter cubed

Instructions

 

• Drape your unbaked dough into a pie pan, pressing into the edges of the pan and crimping along the pan’s edge. Set aside.
• Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F.
• Beat together egg yolks, cinnamon, and vanilla bean paste. Mix in flour and sugar before stirring in sour cream.
• Fold peaches into your sour cream mixture and transfer to your prepared pie dough. Place on a large baking sheet (in case things overflow during baking) and set aside.
• For the topping, combine brown sugar, flour, cinnamon, and nutmeg in a large bowl. Use a pastry blender to mix in the butter. Set aside.
• Move your pie-topped baking sheet into your oven and bake for 25 minutes at 400 degrees F. Add the topping before baking for an additional 20 minutes.
• Allow to set completely (cooling for about 3 hours) before slicing and serving

Notes

If using frozen peaches, make sure they are at room temperature before preparing this pie. If using canned or frozen peaches, make sure you drain all of the excess juice and only utilize the peach pieces themselves!

Keyword dessert, fruit, peach, peach pie, peaches and cream, pie, vegetarian