Hello Friends, Happy National Pie Day! Let's make a double strawberry pie inspired by our sweet friend My Melody.
Meet Jessica
Hi, I’m Jessica, and I’m the Food Artist, Stylist, and Founder of Luxe and the Lady. I’m a fan of fluffy animals, cute characters (especially Sanrio), and all things food! On my blog, I create a mix of sweets and healthy treats that are as fun to look at, as they are delicious. Life is too short for boring food! You can find even more cute creations and recipes at luxeandthelady and on my Instagram @luxeandthelady.
Pie is one of my favorite treats to make and share with friends and family. It’s comforting, cozy, and so much fun to decorate for any occasion. This National Pie Day I partnered with my friends at Sanrio to bake up a double strawberry pie that’s as sweet as the character that inspired it. My Melody loves strawberries, baking, and gifting to her own friends, and I can imagine her creating this pie to share with them. To create the extra special strawberry crust, we will be making our own pie dough (based on my grandma’s piecrust recipe). It smells heavenly when baked and adds an extra pop of pink that pairs beautifully with My Melody’s signature shades. To simplify, you can feel free to use all premade piecrust (see the tips for options to add color). Download the template, grab a friend, and get ready to bake your day a little happier!
My Melody Strawberry Pie
Makes 1 9-inch pie
Ingredients
Strawberry Piecrust:
- ¼ cup freeze dried strawberry powder (from about 1 1.2oz bag)
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour (300 grams)
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2/3 cup shortening, cold
- 5 tablespoons unsalted butter, very cold (cut into small cubes)
- 6-8 tablespoons ice water
- 2-3 drops pink food coloring gel* (optional, to enhance the color)
- Pink sparkling sugar or coarse sugar
Strawberry Pie Filling:
- 6 cups strawberries (about 2 pounds)
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup cornstarch
- Large pinch of salt
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
Egg Wash:
- 1 large egg white
- 1 tablespoon water
My Melody Pie Decorations:
- Pink, blue, yellow, green, and red icing gel colors (I used rose, sky blue, lemon yellow, Kelly green and super red)
- Store bought refrigerated pie crust (2 pieces of pastry)
- Egg wash
- ¼ cup dark chocolate chips (or melting wafers)
- ¼ teaspoon coconut oil (optional, to smooth the chocolate)
- Coarse sparkling sugar (optional, for sprinkling on the cutouts)
Tools
- 9-inch pie dish
- My Melody template
- 1 piece card stock
- Parchment paper
- Heart and strawberry cookie cutters/cookie stamps, or Sanrio template
- Pastry brush (or clean paper towel)
- Pastry cutter (you can use 2 forks or clean hands instead)
- Rolling pin
- Sharp kitchen knife or clean xacto knife
- Toothpicks
- Waxed paper
Helpful Tips:
- It is easiest to read all the directions once through, before beginning, as some parts of the recipe will need to set or chill while you work on other things.
- Piecrust is easiest to work with when it is very cold, so if it starts to tear or become sticky return it to the refrigerator for 10-15 minutes and then continue working. It is also helpful to chill the shortening for at least an hour before you begin.
- The freeze-dried strawberries can oxidize when baked, browning the color. To prevent this, I added a few drops of pink icing gel into the dough and covered the piecrust edges in foil, while baking. You can also tent foil over the top of the entire lattice, if you notice it is starting to brown too quickly
- To fix pie dough that’s oxidized, or to amplify the pink tone, sprinkle the top of the freshly baked pie with pink sparkling sugar. Or you can wait until the pie cools (after 3 hours) and paint the crust with a little color dust/pink icing gel mixed into a clear extract (you want to be very careful not to saturate the pie crust or it will break/become soggy).
- If you’d like to skip the strawberry piecrust, you can replace it with an extra double crust of the premade pie crust.
- Rolling the piecrust out between 2 pieces of parchment paper prevents the need for extra flour and keeps the dough from sticking to your table.
- Brushing the bottom piecrust, with egg wash, before filling and baking helps to prevent a soggy bottom (this is also why we bake the pie on the lowest oven rack).
- You can add the border decorations, to the pie, before baking if you prefer. I added mine after to keep the colors vibrant.
Method
1. Transfer the freeze-dried strawberries to a food processor and grind until they become a fine powder. I like to sift through a metal sieve to remove some of the seeds (this is optional).
2. Whisk together the strawberry powder, flour, sugar, and salt in a large mixing bowl. Cut the shortening into small chunks and add it and the butter cubes to the bowl.
3. Use a pastry cutter or 2 forks to cut the fats into the flour until the dough becomes coarse and clumps into large pea-sized pieces.
4. Add the ice water, one tablespoon at a time, folding it in with a fork or spatula until the dough begins to come together. After adding at least 5 tablespoons of the water, test the dough by grabbing a piece and seeing if it’ll hold when you squeeze. You don’t want to add too much water, or the dough will be tough, but you want enough to prevent it from crumbling.
5. Roll the dough into a ball and cut in half. Shape each half into a disk, wrap and refrigerate for at least 45 minutes.
6. Once the dough is chilled, roll one disk out (between 2 lightly floured pieces of parchment paper), into a 12-inch circle. Use the parchment paper to carefully invert the bottom crust into your pie pan. Press it into the bottom and up the sides of the pan. Return the pie crust to the refrigerator while preparing the filling.
7. Hull and halve the strawberries and transfer them to a large mixing bowl. Add the sugar, cornstarch, salt, and lemon juice, and gently toss to coat. Set aside for 15 minutes.
8. While you wait, you can prep the lattice top. Roll the second ball of pie crust into a 12-inch circle and cut out 12, 1” strips. To add variety, I like to cut 6 of them in half, but you can leave them all thicker if you prefer.
9. Add the filling to your pie pan, and then begin the lattice. Place 6 strips vertically along one side of your pie. Fold back every other strip then add a new strip horizontally under those 3. Unfold them and repeat this process with the other vertical strips – folding alternating strips of pie crust and adding as you go until you have 6 pie crust strips both horizontally and vertically (or more, if you are cutting some in half, like I did). Fold the bottom crust up over the top crust and crimp to seal the sides.
10. Transfer the entire pie to the refrigerator for 45 minutes. Adjust the oven so you can bake on the lowest rack setting and preheat to 400∙
11. Once the pie is ready, place it on a parchment lined baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes.
12. Remove from the oven, lower the temp to 350∙F and carefully cover the edges with foil (you can also tent the foil over the whole top once you are happy with the bake on the lattice). Continue to bake for 45-60 minutes longer, until the filling is thick and bubbling. I like to continue to bake the pie for 10 more minutes after the filling is bubbling to allow the juices to really thicken up. Transfer the pie to a cooling rack and allow it to cool and set for at least 3 hours. You can add the sparkling pink sugar to the top now if you’d like. Keep the oven on to make the decorations.
13. Print the My Melody template onto card stock paper (I printed her sized to 6 inches in height).
14. Divide the premade refrigerated pie dough into 7 pieces and knead in the colors. You want a larger piece for both the bright pink and light pink (I made these by adding increasing amounts of the rose gel coloring), medium pieces for yellow, green and the uncolored dough, and small pieces for the red and green. Keep each colored ball of dough wrapped and refrigerated until you are ready to use it.
15. Roll all the pieces of dough out to 1/8-inch thickness. You can use cookie cutters/stamps or the template for the hearts and strawberries. To make the strawberries, use the pink and red doughs to cut out the berry shapes. Then cut the leaves out of the green dough. Attach to the top of each strawberry using egg wash. Punch the seeds out of the uncolored dough using a small round piping tip (a toothpick helps to transfer the pieces) and attach with more egg wash. Place the strawberries onto a parchment lined baking sheet and transfer to the freezer for 15 minutes. Then bake for 9-10 minutes (until the bottoms are just starting to turn golden). Repeat the chill and bake times with the hearts. You can also brush them with egg wash and add sparkling sugar before baking.
16. Use the template to cut out a piece of uncolored dough in the shape of My Melody’s entire face. Cut her hood out of the bright pink dough and attach over the uncolored dough using a little of the egg wash.
17. Cut her bow and nose out of the yellow piecrust and attach with more egg wash. Freeze for 15 minutes then bake. Since this shape is much larger (and stacked), it’ll take longer to bake. Start at 10 minutes – you may need to increase to 15. Allow the My Melody pie cutouts to cool completely. Then you can use melted chocolate to add her face and the outline.
18. Melt the wafers or chocolate chips (with coconut oil, if using) in a heatproof bowl, in the microwave, in 30-second intervals at 50% power. Stir and continue to melt in 30-second intervals, at 50% power, until smooth.
19. Dip a toothpick into the melted chocolate and draw the eyes and mouth onto wax paper (you can use the template underneath as a guide). Allow to set before you transfer to your pie. Dip the toothpick into the melted chocolate and outline the pie cutout for added definition (you can do this directly on the My Melody cutout).
20. Arrange the piecrust cutouts however you would like, on top of the cooled pie (melted chocolate will help attach the pieces), add your My Melody, and enjoy! Also, delicious served with a scoop of ice cream.
Loosely cover any leftover pie with foil or plastic wrap, and store in the refrigerator. This pie is best eaten within 3-4 days of baking. Enjoy!