Cherry Apple Pie

Desserts centered around fruit are always healthier than those heavy in chocolate and sugar. Baking pies without a top crust also cuts down the fat and calories. Bake this juicy sweet treat to woo your Valentine or simply bake it because it tastes great and is healthy, too.

Cherry Apple Pie

Serves 8

Ingredients:

1 (16-ounce) bag frozen, unsweetened cherries

3 cups chopped Fuji or Golden Delicious apples

2/3 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

1/3 cup apple cider

1/4 cup chopped walnuts                                           

4 teaspoons cornstarch

1 (9-inch) refrigerated or frozen pie crust

1 egg, beaten

1 tablespoon sugar

Directions:

Combine cherries, apples, brown sugar, cinnamon and cloves in a deep saucepan with a tight-fitting lid. Add 1/3 cup of apple cider. Cover pan and bring to a boil over medium heat. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook until mixture is moist and bubbling, about 5 minutes. Mix in walnuts. Whisk together cornstarch with remaining 2 tablespoons of cider in a small cup. Stir into hot filling and cook until thickened, stirring constantly, about 2 minutes. Filling can be made ahead, covered with plastic wrap and refrigerated for 24 hours. If filling has been chilled, bring it to room temperature before baking.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Fit pie crust into the bottom of a 9-inch pie plate and crimp the edges to make a border along rim of pie plate. Pour filling over pie crust and brush crust with beaten egg. Sprinkle sugar on crust and place pie on a baking sheet. Bake 10 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees F. and continue to bake for 30 minutes or until filling is bubbly. If crust begins to brown, cover with strips of foil. Remove from oven and let rest for 20 minutes. Serve warm with a modest scoop of lowfat vanilla ice cream.