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Slice of Gooseberry Pie topped with vanilla ice cream sits in front of basket of gooseberries and the pie in the pie plate

Gooseberry Pie

This made-from-scratch old-fashioned Gooseberry Pie is a lovely summer treat served plain or with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
Course Dessert
Cuisine Canadian
Keyword double-crusted fruit pie, gooseberries, Gooseberry Pie, pie, pie pastry
Servings 6
My Island Bistro Kitchen Barbara - My Island Bistro Kitchen

Ingredients

  • Pastry for a double-crusted pie to fit deep dish 8” round pie plate
  • 1 pound (454g) fresh gooseberries, stemmed and tailed
  • 1¼ - 1 1/3 cups granulated sugar (depending on ripeness of berries and taste preference)
  • ¼ cup + ½ tbsp cornstarch
  • pinch salt
  • 1½ - 2 tsp freshly squeezed and strained lemon juice
  • 1 tsp finely grated lemon zest
  • ½ tsp cardamom
  • ½ tsp nutmeg
  • 1½ tsp pure vanilla extract
  • 1 – 1½ tbsp butter, diced into small cubes
  • 1 large egg, lightly beaten
  • 1 tbsp cream or whole milk

Instructions

  1. Rinse gooseberries in cold water. Dry in tea towel. Using the tip of a sharp paring knife, remove stem and tail ends from berries.
  2. Mix sugar, cornstarch, and salt together in a small bowl. Set aside. Place 2/3 cup of the prepared gooseberries in medium-sized heavy-bottomed saucepan and stir in about half of the sugar and cornstarch mixture. Sprinkle with lemon juice. Let mixture sit for about 5 minutes then stir in the remaining sugar and cornstarch mixture. Let stand for about 5 minutes longer, stirring once or twice, to allow gooseberries to start to release their juice and the sugar to dissolve.
  3. Cook gooseberry filling over medium heat, stirring frequently, just until mixture barely comes to the boiling point then immediately reduce the heat to low and cook, stirring occasionally to prevent scorching, for approximately 2 minutes. Add remaining whole gooseberries and increase heat to medium low. Cook for 4-6 minutes longer until mixture is slightly thickened (it will thicken more as it cools and when the pie goes in the oven). Remove saucepan from heat and stir in lemon zest, spices, and vanilla. Cool filling completely to room temperature then cover and refrigerate for at least 1½ - 2 hours.
  4. While filling is chilling, prepare double crust pastry, according to pastry recipe directions, for 8” pie plate.
  5. On a lightly floured work surface and using a little more than half the pastry dough, roll pastry about 1/16” - 1/8“ thick into a circle large enough to line the pie plate. Transfer pastry to a lightly greased 8” pie plate, fitting the dough over the bottom and sides of the plate, ensuring there are no air pockets. Trim pastry flush with edge of pie plate. Place pie shell in zippered plastic bag and transfer to refrigerator to chill until ready to assemble pie. Form remaining pie dough into a small disk shape, wrap in plastic wrap, place in zippered plastic bag, and place in refrigerator.
  6. About 10-12 minutes before assembling pie, remove pie dough disk from refrigerator and let rest on counter for a few minutes to allow it to become pliable enough to roll out for top crust. Do not, however, bring the pastry back completely to room temperature.
  7. Roll out pastry for top crust, about 1/16” to 1/8“ thick, into a circle approximately slightly larger than enough to cover top of pie to the pie plate edge.
  8. Transfer the chilled gooseberry filling to the prepared pie plate fitted with the pastry dough. Dot with cubed butter.

  9. Lightly moisten the bottom crust edge all around the pie plate rim edge with a wee bit of water. Place top pie crust over gooseberry filling. Trim excess pastry from the pie plate around the pie plate edge. Finish pie edge as desired (e.g., crimp or press the edge of the pastry all around the pie plate rim with tines of a fork to adhere the top crust to bottom crust). Cut a “X” (or several smaller slits) about 1½“ - 2” long in center of top crust to allow steam to escape as the pie bakes. For additional venting, prick the pie in several places with the tines of a fork and cut smaller "X" patterns around the pie top.

  10. Place pie in refrigerator for 30 minutes (or in freezer for 15-20 minutes) to allow filling to settle and to chill pastry to reduce shrinkage while it bakes.
  11. While pie is chilling, place oven rack on bottom rung position of oven and preheat oven to 425°F. Remove pie from refrigerator. Using a silicone pastry brush, lightly brush egg wash (egg and cream) over top crust of pie. [Note that not all of the egg wash will likely be required; unused portion may either be discarded or, alternatively, frozen in an airtight freezer container for a future similar use, if desired.]
  12. Place pie on tinfoil-lined baking sheet to catch any drips should filling bubble out as pie bakes. Transfer pie to oven. Bake for 15 minutes then reduce oven temperature to 375°F. Bake for about 40-45 minutes or until crust is baked and golden brown and pie shows signs that filling is bubbling. Check pie after it has been in the oven for about 30-35 minutes – if top crust is browning too quickly, loosely tent pie with tin foil or, if it is the pie edge that is quickly browning, apply pie edge shields.
  13. Remove pie from the oven and transfer to wire rack to cool completely (minimum of 4 hours for the filling to set; longer is better) before cutting and serving plain or with a scoop of fine vanilla ice cream.

Recipe Notes

Yield: 1 – 8” double-crusted pie

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