This is THE most fresh strawberry pie that you’ll ever taste where the fresh strawberry base is cooked down and thickened with cornstarch and then mixed with more whole fresh strawberries! No strawberry jello, just the sweet, fruity flavor of fresh strawberries.
All encased in a super flaky, all butter homemade pie crust! Tastes like the very best of summer in the form of a buttery fruit pie!
What makes this the best fresh strawberry pie for me
- A great fresh strawberry pie should taste like… well, fresh strawberry! Like summer in a delicious buttery bite of pie, in other words. That’s why this fresh strawberry pie is my absolute favorite.
- This is a recipe for fresh strawberry pie, without strawberry jello in the filling.
- The strawberry base that holds the filling together is made with fresh strawberries cooked down and thickened with cornstarch. So it tastes like strawberry jam, that’s made with very little sugar!
- While the cornstarch thickens the filling enough to set, you have the option of adding gelatin to help the filling set more.
- My homemade pie crust is delicious on its own! Buttery, flaky, and perfect! But you also have the option of using a store-bought pie crust or cookie crust too!
- I share tips on how to choose the right strawberries for this pie AND where you can use frozen strawberries, and how to add more strawberry flavor to the pie filling too!
Ingredients for strawberry pie
Pie crust
- Flour
- Salt
- Sugar (optional)
- Unsalted butter, chilled
- Chilled water (and vodka, optional)
Strawberry filling
- Fresh strawberries
- Fresh or frozen strawberries (for the base)
- Sugar
- Lemon juice
- Vanilla extract
- Cornstarch
- Gelatin (optional)
Topping
- More fresh strawberries (only if needed)
- Whipped cream (optional)
How to make strawberry pie
Pie crust
The pie crust for this strawberry pie is fully blind-baked. You can absolutely use store-bought pie shell, but if you do have the time, I highly recommend making my all butter flaky pie crust recipe.
That recipe includes beginner-friendly step by step, detailed instructions to make amazing pie crust dough. Plus, I share tips on how to ensure you have a perfect, golden brown blind baked flaky crust that does not shrink, does not burn, or slide down the sides of the pie dish!
Cut the chilled butter into the flour. The butter lumps should be about the size of hazelnuts, or larger, flatter pieces (image 1).
Then, add the chilled water while mixing the flour and butter mixture (image 2). I like to add chilled vodka with the water, as vodka helps to prevent excess gluten formation.
Add only just enough liquid so that the dough sticks together when squeezed while still having some dry spots (image 3). Too much moisture in the dough will lead to over-worked gluten that can shrink or slip down in the pie dish.
Bring the dough together without overworking the dough (image 4). Then form the dough into discs, and then let the dough chill in the fridge (images 5 – 6).
Roll out the chilled dough (images 7 – 8) and carefully line your pie plate with the thin pie crust, without stretching the dough to fit.
Trim the excess (images 9 – 10) and form the pie crust border by rolling the excess dough under, and making a thick smooth edge (images 11 – 12). Create a fluted edge or crimped edge, so that your pie crust looks neat and pretty (images 13 – 14).
Then blind bake the pie crust in a preheated oven. As mentioned in my pie crust recipe post, I prefer to line my crust with foil, and fill it with sugar or rice as pie weights, instead of ceramic pie weights (images 15 – 16).
To ensure that your pie crust does not shrink or lose its shape, we blind bake at a low oven temperature for a longer time, rather than at a high temperature for a short time.
Once par-baked, remove the pie weights and bake the crust until light golden brown (image 17). Brush the inside with an egg wash (image 17) and bake for a further 5 – 7 minutes until it has a deep golden brown color and a lovely sheen (image 18). Let it cool down until you get the strawberry filling ready.
Strawberry filling
Instead of using a packaged strawberry jello as the base, here I make the strawberry base from scratch. This means the strawberry flavor will taste so much more natural than from a jello packet.
The final strawberry pie filling tastes like fresh strawberry jam that’s not too sweet, mixed with fresh juicy strawberries. Absolutely divine!
Step one – Prepare the strawberries
The fresh berries for the filling must be the best strawberries you can find! Any strawberries that might be bruised are used for the filling base instead.
I keep the really ripe, bright red, sweet strawberries whole in the filling. If the strawberries are too expensive, then you can buy enough for the fresh strawberry portion, and use frozen strawberries for the base.
Halve the fresh strawberries that will be used in the filling and topping (image 19). Smaller strawberries hold up better in the filling than larger strawberries, so keep small strawberries whole, and cut the larger ones into slices or cubes, so that they are all fairly similar in size (image 20).
Step two – Cook the strawberry base
Cook the frozen strawberries with sugar and lemon juice (image 21) until the strawberries are softened and mashed, and the mixture has a thick texture (image 22). This can take between 20 – 25 minutes.
To this, add the cornstarch to thicken the mixture (image 23). Regular cornstarch can be dissolved with the water, and instant clearjel must be whisked with at least an equal amount of sugar before adding it to the mixture.
Once you add the cornstarch, immediately whisk it in and bring to a boil. Cook for a further 5 minutes after the mixture starts to boil, until the filling looks shiny and thick (image 24).
While the cornstarch mixture will be enough to create a stiff filling, you do have the option of adding gelatin too. The gelatin will make the filling a little more stable if you prefer that.
However, please note that the larger the fresh strawberries, the more the filling will be wobbly and unstable. The smaller the berries, the more cohesive it will be. But I don’t care either way because the flavor is incredible!
Once the strawberry mixture is cooked and still hot, add bloomed gelatin (if using). To enhance the strawberry flavor even more, add some freeze dried strawberry powder too! This will help with the color and the flavor.
Step three – Fold in fresh strawberries
While the mixture is still warm, add the fresh strawberries (image 25), and fold them in gently until the strawberry base is mixed well with the fresh strawberries (image 26).
Step four – Fill the pie crust
Fill the blind baked, golden brown, flaky pie crust with the strawberry filling (image 27), and use a spatula to evenly spread the strawberry filling so that it’s level (image 28). If you want to create a pattern with strawberries, then reserve some of the filling with halved fresh strawberries before filling the pie crust.
Use the reserved strawberries to create a pattern on top of the pie, and spread the leftover strawberry base on top to keep the strawberries coated with the shiny base (image 29).
Refrigerate for about 4 hours until the filling is set and completely chilled.
Step five – Final step before serving is topping the pie
Make freshly whipped cream and pipe or spread it on top if you like. To make the whipped cream stable, add instant clearjel or instant vanilla pudding while whisking.
Make sure to only whip the cream until you just start to have stiff peaks, or mid-peaks. It’s so easy to go from stiff peaks to curdled, so be very careful!
Pipe or spread the whipped cream over the top of the pie, and then serve (image 30).
My best recipe tips for success!
There are only 3 components in this recipe. And each component is easy to make. Here are some simple tips to guarantee the absolute best results!
- Pie crust
- Strawberry base
- Fresh strawberries in the filling
- When making the all butter pie crust, make sure the dough is cold throughout the whole process, so that the butter stays firm. If the butter starts to soften, the dough will get sticky and that can lead to many pie crust issues. So, keep the dough in the fridge whenever the butter softens too much.
- Blind bake the pie crust at a low oven temperature, for a longer time. You might be tempted to blind bake at a higher temperature for a shorter time, but my method here is failproof and foolproof!
- Brushing the crust with egg wash and baking it will create somewhat of a barrier between the pie crust and the filling which will keep the crust crisp for longer. So, no soggy crust! If you don’t want to use an egg wash, you can use melted cocoa butter as a barrier too.
- I find that when the strawberries are very large, the filling doesn’t gel together as well as I would like. So, I prefer to use smaller strawberries for this recipe when I can. If I do have larger strawberries, I cut them to 1 – 1.5 inch sized pieces for best results.
- When making the strawberry filling, you have two options.
- Use less fresh strawberries, so that the filling can “set” better and hold fewer strawberries in place.
- Follow the recipe as directed and use more fresh strawberries in the pie. But because it’s more crowded this way, the filling won’t be as stable and a few of the fresh strawberries may fall off as you cut slices. I obviously add as many fresh strawberries as possible because I want to taste more fresh fruits.
- Adding freeze dried strawberry powder will make the flavor of strawberry even stronger! This is an optional step of course, and I don’t add it to mine if I use super ripe in-season strawberries.
- Eat the pie on the day that you make it, if possible. I usually make the crust the day before, and make the filling the day of (serving). The pie CAN be stored in the fridge overnight (12 hours), but the longer you keep it in the fridge, the more soggy the fresh strawberries will become, and the pie crust can also taste a tad stale.
- Choose your fresh strawberries wisely! Since this pie contains fresh strawberries, it’s absolutely imperative to use sweet, fresh strawberries. While you can use frozen strawberries for the base, the filling should contain fresh, sweet strawberries. So, this pie is best made during strawberry season!
Recipe variations
This fresh strawberry pie is ideal if made during strawberry season (i.e. summer!). Off season strawberry may not taste as sweet, and will directly impact the flavor of the pie. BUT, to make this pie even more interesting, you can absolutely switch up the flavors and textures.
Switch up the pie crust
You can swap out regular pie crust with my graham flour pie crust, which has the flavor of graham crackers, but the flakiness of regular butter pie crust!
Fresh strawberry tart
Or make a fresh strawberry tart by using this pate sucree tart crust!
Instead of pie crust, you can also use crushed cookie crusts. It’s so easy to make a no bake fresh strawberry pie by using a cookie crust! However, for extra strength and structure, I would still recommend baking the crust to “set” the crushed cookie crumbs.
- Oreo cookie crust for a chocolate and fresh strawberry pie.
- Graham cracker crust
- Pretzel crust to make a pretzel strawberry pie.
Gluten free strawberry pie
Use a gluten free pie crust to make this recipe. The filling is already gluten free, so a GF crust will make this dessert fully gluten free.
For another flavor variation, you can even make a rhubarb and fresh strawberry pie if you like! Make the base of the pie with rhubarb instead of strawberries (with some extra sugar), and then fold the rhubarb base with fresh strawberries.
But if you like a more classic, baked rhubarb strawberry pie, then you have to check out my classic rhubarb strawberry pie recipe!
Storage tips
I have stored leftovers in an airtight container for another day, and the pie was still absolutely delicious 24 hours later! But any longer will make the fruits and the crust taste stale.
This is a pie that unfortunately is best served within 24 hours of making the filling. The reason is the fresh strawberries in the filling.
The fresh strawberries in the pie become soft the longer the pie is stored. This results in the strawberries releasing their juices as they soften and the filling becoming watery and making the pie crust soggy as well.
This pie is also not suitable for freezing because frozen strawberries will also release juices as they thaw out, and you will lose that crisp, firm texture of fresh strawberries as well.
Make ahead tips
While the filling must be made and served within 24 hours, the pie crust can be made ahead of time!
The pie dough can be made up to 3 days ahead of time (longer in the freezer).
The pie crust can be blind baked up to 2 days ahead and stored in the fridge, and longer in the freezer. But “refresh” the crust by warming the pie crust (without the filling) in an oven preheated to 200 F. This will make the crust crisp and flaky again.
You can also make the strawberry base the day before, and keep it in the fridge. Gently warm it up over a low heat setting until the texture of the base becomes soft. Then fold in the fresh strawberries and fill the pie crust.
Commonly asked questions
Unfortunately, you cannot substitute all the fresh strawberries with frozen strawberries.
Frozen strawberries are soggy and have no structure when they thaw out. So, the filling will also be too wet and have no structure.
You can absolutely use frozen strawberries to make the strawberry base however.
If you used frozen and thawed strawberries, the filling can release liquid as the thawed strawberries break down in the filling.
But if you used fresh strawberries, then the filling can be runny if you didn’t add enough cornstarch to thicken the strawberry base. OR, the strawberry base wasn’t cooked properly to remove excess water, and the cornstarch wasn’t enough to thicken up the base.
With this recipe, the cornstarch is enough to create a lovely set base, but you also have the option of adding gelatin to make the base more stiff and stable.
Make sure the filling isn’t runny! A runny filling will soak the pie crust faster.
Another way to prevent the pie crust from getting soggy is to apply a protective layer between the pie crust and the filling.
In this recipe I use the egg wash that is baked into the crust to seal the crust.
A better option to “seal” the crust would be to brush on melted cocoa butter or melted chocolate on the inside of the pie crust.
Absolutely! Instead of the strawberry base here, you can use strawberry jello. But this will of course change the results from the recipe I have created and shared here.
The base will taste like strawberry jello instead of like fresh strawberry jam.
More pie recipes you’ll love
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Fresh Strawberry Pie
Yield: 1 – 9 inch strawberry pie that will serve 8 generously and up to 10 – 12 smaller slices
Cuisine: American, North American
Prep: 1 hour 40 minutes
Inactive chilling time: 4 hours 30 minutes
Cook: 1 hour 40 minutes
Total Time: 7 hours 50 minutes
Servings: slices
Prevent your screen from going dark
Instructions:
Pie crust
-
For this recipe you will need 1 pie crust, blind baked in a 9 inch pie plate. Follow my flaky pie crust recipe to make 1 crust. The recipe is for 2 crusts, but you can halve the recipe to make 1 OR make 2 and freeze the extra portion for later.
1 recipe for all butter flaky pie crust
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When making the pie crust, make sure the butter and liquid are chilled. If the butter in the dough softens at any stage, it can make the dough too sticky to handle. If that happens, return it to the fridge to chill the butter before continuing again.
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Roll out the pie crust dough to a 3 – 4 mm thickness and line your pie dish with the dough. Create the pie crust edge according to the pie crust recipe and crimp or flute the edge for a decorative pie crust border.
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Cover and chill the pie crust for at least 30 minutes until the oven preheats. Preheat oven to 350°F / 180°C. Place the oven rack in the lower third of the oven (I place it just above the lowest rack), and then place a metal baking tray to preheat in the oven. This metal baking tray should preheat for a minimum of 30 minutes, so that it’s able to brown the pie crust well from the bottom too.
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Line the inside of the pie crust with foil and fill with sugar or rice, and blind bake the crust in the preheated oven for about 50 minutes. See my pie crust recipe for detailed information for successful results.
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Remove the pie crust from the oven and then carefully remove the foil with the pie weights. Use a fork to dock the bottom of the crust and return it to the oven to fully blind bake for a further 10 – 15 minutes until it turns dark golden in color.
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To seal the crust and add a sheen – remove the crust just as it turns a light golden color. Then brush the whole inside of the pie crust AND the pie crust border with an egg wash (a beaten egg) and bake for a further 5 – 7 minutes until the crust is a dark golden color and has a shiny finish.
1 egg
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Remove the crust from the oven and let it cool down while you make the filling.
Strawberry filling (make this while the pie crust is baking)
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The strawberries are divided into two portions – 450 g for the filling base (you can also use frozen strawberries for this portion), 900 g for the filling and topping (this portion has to be fresh berries). Halve the strawberries that will be used as the filling and topping and set aside.
900 g fresh strawberries
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Place the 450 g strawberries in a pot with the vanilla, lemon and sugar. Cook the mixture over medium heat while stirring occasionally until the mixture comes to a boil and the strawberries start to soften.
450 g fresh or frozen strawberries, 200 g white sugar, 2 tbsp lemon juice, 1 tsp vanilla extract
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Crush the strawberries in the mixture and continue to cook until the mixture thickens, about 20 – 25 minutes.
Adding starch thickener
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If using regular cornstarch, dissolve the remaining cornstarch in water and whisk it into the strawberry base.
80 mL water, 45 g cornstarch
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If using instant clearjel, whisk the starch with sugar. Then stir in the water to help dissolve the starch and then add this mixture to the strawberry base.
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Bring the mixture to a boil while whisking. Lower the heat to a simmer and simmer the mixture while whisking for about 5 minutes, until is reaches a thick, shiny, jammy consistency.
OPTIONAL STEPS
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To make the filling more stiff and stable – bloom the optional gelatin in water while cooking the filling, for at least 10 minutes. Then add the bloomed gelatin to the hot base, just after it’s done cooking.
2 tsp gelatin, 3 tbsp water
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To increase the strawberry flavor – add 1 tbsp of freeze-dried strawberry powder. This will also deepen the color of the filling.
1 tbsp freeze-dried strawberry powder
Adding fresh strawberries
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Add the prepared fresh strawberries (about 900 g) into the remaining hot strawberry base in the pot, and gently fold it in to mix the base with the fresh strawberries.
900 g fresh strawberries
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Immediately scrape out the filling into the baked, slightly cooled crust, but leave some of the halved fresh strawberries in the filling in the pot. The remaining strawberries in the pot can be used to make a decorative pattern on top if you like. If you do not want to create a pattern on top, then just add all the strawberries into the pie crust.
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Spread the filling to make it even and the top smooth.
Topping
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Before the filling sets, use the remaining strawberries in the pot to create a pattern on top of the filling. Use extra fresh strawberries if needed.
Extra strawberries
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Scrape out any remaining filling base in the pot over the top layer of strawberries to create a shiny surface.
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Let the pie set in the fridge for about 4 hours.
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Decorate the top with whipped cream (optional), or serve it on the side with the pie.
Whipped cream
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Place the heavy cream and vanilla extract in a mixing bowl, or any container.
240 mL heavy cream, 1 tsp vanilla extract
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Whisk the sugar, salt, and instant clearjel or instant vanilla pudding together in a separate bowl.
40 – 50 g sugar, 1 tsp instant clear jel, Pinch sea salt
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Whisk the heavy cream on medium high speed, and stream in the sugar mixture as the cream is whipping.
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Once the sugar is added, reduce the speed to medium and whisk the whipped cream until you get soft peaks.
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At this point, manually whisk the whipped cream to get it to slightly stiff peaks. Manually whisking will decrease the chances of over-whisking and curdling the whipped cream.
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Use the whipped cream to decorate the strawberry pie to your liking.
Tips & Tricks
A note about the pie crust recipe
My recipe for pie crust makes 2 crusts for a double pie crust. However, you can halve the recipe and make 1 pie crust. OR make both portions and freeze the other for later.
A note about strawberries
This recipe will require a total of 3 – 3.2 lbs of strawberries, which is about 9.75 – 10.25 cups.
The 450 g of strawberries that are required for the cooked base can be made with frozen strawberries as well. I like to leave the best tasting and best looking strawberries for the filling, and cook down the strawberries that might have a few bruises along with the frozen strawberries.
The cup measurements for strawberries are based on USDA measurements that state,
1 cup of whole strawberries = 144 g approximately.
Nutrition Information:
Serving: 1sliceCalories: 269kcal (13%)Carbohydrates: 45g (15%)Protein: 3g (6%)Fat: 9g (14%)Saturated Fat: 4g (25%)Polyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 3gCholesterol: 14mg (5%)Sodium: 77mg (3%)Potassium: 239mg (7%)Fiber: 3g (13%)Sugar: 29g (32%)Vitamin A: 194IU (4%)Vitamin C: 81mg (98%)Calcium: 34mg (3%)Iron: 1mg (6%)
“This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.”
