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Why You’ll Love My Recipe
Some recipes are classics for good reason! Lightly spiced custard and plump raisins tucked under a layer of sweet, toasty meringue might not be what comes to mind when you think “pie”, but just one taste of this Midwestern classic and I know you’ll be a fan for life!
This recipe for sour cream raisin pie is the perfect mix of sweet and tangy, and topped with a creamy brown sugar meringue it is literally pie perfection!
For more great pie-baking skills, why not learn How to Blind Bake a Pie Crust? Or if you’re looking for a different kind of classic dessert, why not learn how to make this Peach Crumble Recipe instead?
Karlynn’s Recipe Notes
- Skill Level: Even though tempering eggs can be intimidating, take it slow and I’m sure you’ll find this recipe easy as pie!
- Total Time: This pie is done in 35 minutes, but be warned: you’ll want to let it cool and chill for a total of 3 hours before serving!
- Variations: Looking for something a little less formal? This recipe converts beautifully into bars by pouring the filling and fluffing the meringue over a buttery oatmeal or crumble crust!
- Tools For This Recipe: You’ll need a whisk, mixing bowls, and a wire cooling rack, and a spatula (for spreading out the meringue) to make this recipe. If you love meringues and hate separating eggs by hand, consider investing in an egg separator!
What You’ll Need for Ingredients
Spices: Make sure to keep your stock of pantry staples, like the spices used in this recipe, fresh and sealed in airtight containers away from light and damp. You might not think that it makes a huge difference if you’ve been using the same tin of nutmeg since who knows when, but I promise you’ll notice the difference fresh, properly stored ingredients!
Pie Crust: Since we’re really only putting this pie in the oven to toast the meringue, make sure that you have a pre-baked (aka a blind baked) crust prepped and ready to go! Karlynn’s Tip: You can use pie crust made from scratch or pre-made frozen pie crust. In the case of the latter, follow the instructions on the box for the manufacturer’s recommendations on how to bake the pie shell on its own.
Raisins: I suggest using Thompson raisins in this recipe; they’re dark, sweet, chewy and seedless. The name might not be familiar, but you’re most likely to get Thompsons when you reach for your everyday supermarket bag of regular raisins.
Sour Cream: It might sound odd to use sour cream in a sweet pie, but the tang it adds to the custard is excellent when paired with the rich, fruity sweetness of raisins!
Separated Eggs: This recipe calls for the yolks of 3 eggs (for the pie filling) and the whites of 4 (for the meringue). Don’t ditch the remaining yolk! It can be used to make Hollandaise sauce, or even added to your morning scramble for a little extra richness.
How To Make Sour Cream Raisin Pie
This is a quick overview of the recipe. The full list of ingredients & complete step-by-step instructions are in the recipe card below.
- Preheat your oven to 350°F. In a large saucepan, combine the sugar, cornstarch, spices and salt.
- Stir in the sour cream and whisk the mixture until smooth. Then cook over medium high heat, stirring constantly, until thickened and bubbly. Turn the heat down to medium and cook another 2-3 minutes, stirring continuously, and remove from the heat.
- In a separate bowl, whisk three egg yolks until well beaten.
- Temper the eggs by rapidly stirring a small amount of the hot filling into the beaten egg yolks. Once done, beat the egg mixture into the pot, stirring constantly, and bring to a gentle boil from 2 minutes. Remove from the heat.
- Stir in plumped raisins.
- Pour filling into pre-baked pie shell, then allow the filling to cool a bit while you make your meringue topping. Once topped, slide the pie back into the oven for 15 minutes to toast the meringe. Then you can set the pie aside to cool completely, and chill in the fridge.
Karlynn’s Tips and Tricks for the Perfect Sour Cream Raisin Pie
- Temper, Temper: Tempering eggs is a tricky task—it’s all too easy to end up with a scramble by accident. Just make sure that your eggs are well beaten before you add anything to them, and add your hot mixture very gradually while whisking quickly to help distribute the heat properly; this will help keep your pie filling from becoming egg drop soup!
- Keep It Fluffy: The key to getting a meringue to set up properly is to make sure that you keep your mixing bowl totally clean—wash and dry your whisk before mixing, and use the egg whites as soon as you separate them from the yolk. You should also make sure that you keep your separated egg whites totally yolk free, as fat can make it impossible to properly whip the whites. A little bit of an acid like cream of tartare or lemon juice goes a long way towards forming a stable meringue.
Storage Instructions
I don’t recommend trying to freeze this pie, as neither the custard nor the meringue will hold up well to freezing or being thawed.
You can keep leftovers in the refrigerator in an airtight container or covered pie dish for up to 5 days. Any longer than that, and your meringue will start to develop an unpleasant skin. But in all honesty, I doubt you’ll need to worry too much about having leftovers!
More Delicious Pie Recipes
- For another American classic, try my gooey, buttery, custard-filled Chess Pie!
- You can’t go wrong with a graham cracker crust filled with delicious custard and topped with meringue! Give the little known Flapper Pie a try!
- For a treat that almost seems magical, give my Impossible Saskatoon Pie! No need to scramble for Saskatoons, it’s just as delicious with blueberries!
There’s really nothing better than a slice of pie and a cup of coffee to end a meal, or just as an afternoon treat! And the classic, cozy flavors of this sour cream raisin pie make it a cozy bite that I know you and your family will love as much as mine does!
Try this pie and let me know how it turned out for your in the comments below!
Happy Baking!
Karlynn
Sour Cream Raisin Pie
Ingredients
- one 9 inch blind baked pie crust
- 1 cup Thompson raisins
- ⅔ cup white sugar
- 3 tablespoons cornstarch
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ⅛ teaspoon ground cloves
- ⅛ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup sour cream
- ½ cup heavy cream
- 3 large egg yolks, beaten well and at room temperature
Brown Sugar Meringue Recipe
- 4 large egg whites, at room temperature
- ¼ teaspoon cream of tartar
- ¼ cup packed brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350 °F.
- Place the raisins into a glass 4 cup capacity microwave safe measuring cup. Add in enough water to cover them with an inch of water. Microwave on high, stirring every minute, until the raisins have plumped up. Drain and set the raisins to the side.
- In a large saucepan, combine the sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg and salt. Stir in the sour cream and cream, whisking the mixture until smooth.
- Cook the mixture, stirring constantly, over medium-high heat until thickened and bubbly. Turn down the heat to medium and cook for another 2-3 minutes, stirring continously, then remove from the heat.
- Temper the eggs by rapidly stirring a small amount of the hot filling into the beaten egg yolks. Once done, beat the egg mixture into the pot, stirring constantly.
- Place back on the burner and bring to a gentle boil, stirring constantly, and cook for 2 minutes, until nice and thickened. Remove from the heat.
- Stir in the raisins then pour into the pie shell.
- For the meringue, in a medium bowl beat the egg whites, cream of tartar and salt on medium speed until soft peaks form.
- Gradually beat in the brown sugar on high until stiff peaks form.
- Spread the meringue in an even layer over the hot filling, sealing the edge to the crust to prevent a soggy meringue later.
- Bake the pie in the preheated oven for 15 minutes or until the meringue is a deep golden brown.
- Remove and cool on a wire rack for an hour, then place into the refrigerator for 2 hours before serving.
- Slice and serve.
Notes
- The meringue does have one more egg white than yolks used in the filling, but it is worth it, it makes the best brown sugar meringue!
- Make sure to cook the filling unit thickened, it doesn’t cook in the oven!
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Dot Andrews says
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Gayle says
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