Strawberry season only comes once a year, and this fresh strawberry pie recipe is how we celebrate it. This recipe is even better than restaurant pies. It’s juicy, gorgeous, and needs only 3 simple ingredients in the filling. The all-butter crust is flaky amazing for the best summer pie ever! You’ll want to bookmark this one.
In This Article
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Amy’s Notes
Every summer, we bring home baskets of fresh strawberries from the farmers market, and this fresh strawberry pie is my favorite way to use the ripe berries. It beats our favorite restaurant version every time because we get to use the ripest berries and keep the filling wonderfully simple, letting the fruit do all the talking.
- Pure Strawberry Flavor: Just fresh strawberries, sugar, and cornstarch create a filling that lets the fruit truly shine, much like this Fresh Peach Pie with Flaky Butter Crust.
- Flaky Butter Crust: An all-butter crust bakes up crisp, golden, and buttery, rivaling what you’d get at your favorite bakery.
- Slices beautifully: The glossy berry glaze sets up just right after chilling — no soggy mess, no runny filling. Clean, gorgeous slices every time.
- Fresh and Simple: There are no artificial flavors or colors here – just ripe strawberries at their best. Try it alongside my summer Blueberry Pie.
- Stabilized Whipped Cream: I included my stabilized whipped cream in the recipe below; it holds its shape beautifully, does not get runny, and keeps for days.
Key Recipe Ingredients
- Butter Pie Crust Dough – A flaky, all-butter crust forms the base of this pie. It bakes up crisp and golden, perfectly supporting the juicy strawberry filling. You can use homemade or store-bought dough if you’re short on time.
- Fresh Strawberries – Use 6 heaping cups of ripe, sweet strawberries. Two cups are mashed for the cooked filling, and the rest stay whole for that fresh, juicy texture. The quality of your berries makes all the difference here.
- Cornstarch – Thickens the strawberry filling so it sets nicely once chilled. Be sure it’s completely dissolved in cool water before adding to the hot mixture to avoid clumps.
- Stabilized Whipped Cream – Light and creamy topping that holds its shape beautifully. You can make it a day ahead or use regular whipped cream if serving right away.
Substitutions and Variations
Here are some of our favorite substitutions and variations:
- Crust Options: I usually go with my all-butter crust, but a graham cracker crust works great if you want something quicker. You can even use a chocolate cookie crust for a fun change.
- Berry Mix: Try mixing in a cup of fresh blueberries or raspberries with the strawberries. It adds a little color and a nice tart contrast.
- Sweetness Level: If your berries are extra sweet, I cut the sugar down a bit. For tart berries, add an extra tablespoon of sugar to balance things out.
Step-By-Step Recipe Instructions
- Press pie dough into pan.
- Blind bake until golden and cool.
- Mash strawberries with sugar.
- Bring mixture to a boil.
- Stir in dissolved cornstarch and thicken.
- Allow to cool till lukewarm.
- Arrange whole strawberry and pour filling.
- Pipe stabilized whipped cream and serve.
For full list of ingredients and instructions, see recipe card below.
How to Prep Ahead
Take a look at our best prep-ahead strategies for this recipe:
- Prep the Crust Early: You can make the butter pie crust dough up to two days in advance. Keep it tightly wrapped in the fridge until you’re ready to roll and bake. If you’ve made a double batch, freeze half for your next pie.
- Bake the Crust Ahead: Blind bake the crust a day before assembling the pie. Once cooled, cover it tightly with plastic wrap or foil and store it at room temperature. This keeps it crisp and ready for the filling.
- Make the Filling in Advance: The strawberry glaze can be cooked and cooled a day ahead. Store it in an airtight container in the fridge, then let it come to room temperature before assembling the pie.
Pro Tips
- Use the ripest strawberries you can find. This pie is all about fresh berry flavor, so the quality of the strawberries really matters. Look for berries that are deeply red, juicy, sweet-smelling, and ripe all the way through.
- Keep the filling simple. The strawberry glaze is made with just fresh strawberries, sugar, and cornstarch. There are no artificial colors or flavors here, which lets the natural strawberry flavor shine.
- Let the cooked filling cool before adding it to the pie. The filling should be warm or lukewarm, not hot, before you pour it over the fresh berries in the baked pie shell. This helps preserve the fresh texture of the whole strawberries.
- Blind bake the crust first. Since the strawberry filling is added after the crust is baked, the pie shell needs to be fully blind baked. Use pie weights to keep the crust from puffing up, or use dry rice or dry beans if you don’t have pie weights.
- Homemade butter crust is worth it. An all-butter crust gives this pie its flaky, golden, tender base. Store-bought pie dough will work in a pinch, but the flavor and texture won’t be quite the same.
- Finish with stabilized whipped cream. Stabilized whipped cream holds its shape much better than regular whipped cream, so it’s perfect for piping onto the pie before serving. You can make it a day ahead and use it on everything from Strawberry Cake to Cheesecake Bites.
Video: Watch Us Make This Recipe
Fresh Strawberry Pie Recipe
This Fresh Strawberry Pie is even better than our favorite restaurant pie. It’s fresh as can be, juicy, luscious, and stunningly delicious with just 3 simple ingredients in the filling. The all-butter crust is flaky amazing.
Servings 8
Calories 360kcal
Ingredients
- 1 recipe for butter pie crust dough or store-bought
- 6 heaping cups strawberries fresh and ripe, hulled and divided
- ½ cup sugar
- 3 tablespoons cornstarch fully dissolved in 1/2 cup cool water
- 1 recipe for stabilized whipped cream for topping
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 450F with rack on lower middle position. Press single pie dough evenly into bottom and up sides of a regular 9-inch pie pan, not deep dish. Roll excess dough over edges and crimp well.
- Line dough with parchment paper so that it's fitted and excess edges of paper extend 1-2 inches beyond pie pan. Fill with pie weights and bake 12-15 minutes, watching so edges don't get over browned.
- Remove pie weights with parchment paper carefully and return empty pie shell into oven for another 5 minutes or until bottom looks dry/baked (cover loosely with foil if edges are cooking too quickly.) Let baked shell cool to room temp while you prepare the filling.
- Mash 2 cups fresh strawberries. Transfer to a medium saucepan and add sugar. Bring to a boil, stirring often.
- Add fully dissolved cornstarch/water mixture and continue boiling/stirring for 2-3 minutes or just until filling is thickened and glossy.
- Transfer filling to a shallow dish to allow quicker cooling; cool at least 10 minutes or to warm/lukewarm.
- Place remaining 4 cups whole strawberries evenly into the baked/cooled pie shell. Evenly distribute filling mixture over the strawberries.
- Chill at least 2 hours to set, before slicing. Serve with whipped cream, if desired.
Video
Notes
- Pick the ripest, reddest strawberries you can find. Their natural sweetness and juicy flavor make all the difference in this fresh strawberry pie.
- Use fresh strawberries rather than frozen ones. Frozen berries release too much water and won’t hold their shape as well in the pie.
- Make sure the cornstarch is fully dissolved in cool water before adding it to the hot filling. Even a tiny lump can cause clumps in the glossy strawberry glaze.
- If the crust edges brown too quickly, cover them loosely with foil while the crust finishes baking.
- If you make enough dough for a double crust, divide it in half and freeze the extra dough tightly wrapped for another pie.
- For a quick mash, place strawberries on a cutting board, cover them with plastic wrap, and gently tap them with a meat tenderizer or rolling pin.
- Stabilized whipped cream holds up beautifully for hours. You can make it a day ahead and pipe it onto the pie just before serving.
- Store leftovers covered in the fridge for up to 3 days. The crust is crispest the first day, but the strawberry flavor gets even better as it chills.
- This recipe is part of our Berry Recipes Collection.
- We love serving this strawberry pie along with some stabilized whipped cream for the most delicious pie you’ll ever have.
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Join our Free Recipe Club and get our newest, best recipes each week!Nutrition
Serving: 1g | Calories: 360kcal | Carbohydrates: 15g | Protein: 0.01g | Fat: 2g | Sodium: 1mg | Potassium: 1mg | Fiber: 0.04g | Sugar: 13g | Vitamin A: 0.1IU | Vitamin C: 0.4mg | Calcium: 0.3mg | Iron: 0.02mg
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use frozen strawberries instead of fresh?
It’s best to use fresh strawberries for this recipe. Frozen berries release more water as they thaw, which can make the filling too runny and affect the texture of the whole strawberries in the pie.
Why didn’t my filling set properly?
The most common reason is undissolved cornstarch. Make sure the cornstarch is completely dissolved in cool water before adding it to the hot strawberry mixture. Also, allow the pie to chill for at least two hours so the filling can firm up.
Is it possible to make the whipped cream ahead of time?
Yes. You can make the stabilized whipped cream a day in advance and simply pipe onto the pie when you’re ready to serve. It holds its shape much better than regular whipped cream.
Can you freeze baked strawberry pie?
We do not recommend freezing fresh strawberry pie, as the texture may change after freezing/thawing. Enjoy your pie fresh!
How long does it keep?
Store the pie covered in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. The crust will stay crispest on the first day, but the flavor remains delicious throughout.
More to Cook and Eat
- Fresh Strawberry Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting – This Fresh Strawberry Cake is layered simply with a strawberry cream cheese frosting that’s jaw-dropping delicious.
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- Sweet Cherry Pie Recipe – This Sweet Cherry Pie recipe never lets me down – flaky crust, glossy filling, and made for sharing at every summer gathering.
- Chocolate Covered Strawberries – Chocolate Covered Strawberries are always impressive and well-loved, yet they’re super easy and fun to make!
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