Kelly Rudnicki has been dazzling me for months with her food allergy-friendly homestyle recipes on her blog Food Allergy Mama. She has a cookbok due out in the fall, Food Allergy Mama's Baking Book, but until it arrives, she has plenty of recipes to entice. Like this seasonally delicious dairy-, egg-, and nut-free Cherry Pie ...

"My mother-in-law, Jeanne, makes this pie all year long using the fantastic tart cherries of Door County, Wisconsin. She gets them fresh during cherry season and freezes them in quart-sized freezer bags. Get in the habit of picking in-season fruit and freezing for later; your pies will thank you ...

I made only a few changes to make the pie allergen free, but it tastes as wonderful as her version. I highly recommend using an OXO cherry pitter to make the pitting task much easier. Also, you could make this with canned tart cherries in a pinch, but I can’t emphasize enough the difference fresh-from-the-farm cherries makes in the pie. I love this pie warmed slightly with a dollop of dairy-free ice cream. Enjoy!!" 

Door County Cherry Pie

Recipe by Kelly Rudnicki of Food Allergy Mama. This recipe is Vegan, Dairy-Free, Egg-Free, and Nut-Free. It can be made Soy-Free with a soy-free margarine (such as the new one from Earth Balance) and it can be made Gluten-Free with a gluten-free pie crust.

• 1 recipe Easy Pie Dough
• 6 cups fresh red tart cherries, pitted (or use 6 c. frozen cherries or 2 cans tart or sour pitted cherries, drained)
• 3 tablespoons cornstarch
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 tablespoon dairy-free margarine, cut into pieces

Prepare Easy Pie Dough recipe as directed below. Line a 9-inch pie plate with 1 rolled-out disk of dough.

In a microwave-safe bowl, combine cherries, cornstarch, and sugar, and microwave for 3 to 4 minutes, until thickened. Stir in vanilla, and pour into prepared pie pan. Dot the top with pieces of dairy-free margarine. Roll out the second disk of dough into a large 11-inch rectangle. Cut the pastry into 1/2-inch strips, and weave dough into a lattice design.

Preheat oven to 400ºF. Bake 35 to 40 minutes, until fruit is bubbling and crust is nicely browned. Cover edges with foil if the crust is browning too quickly. Cool completely on a wire rack.

Tip: If you are using canned cherries, make sure they are well drained and rinsed thoroughly. Add drops of red food coloring to give the canned cherries some of their red coloring back. Alternatively use frozen cherries.

Yield: 6 servings

Easy Pie Dough

• 2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2/3 cup dairy-free shortening chilled and cut into small pieces
• 5–7 tablespoons ice water

Combine flour, sugar, and salt in food processor. Add small pieces of shortening, and pulse a few times until mixture resembles small crumbs. Add ice water, 1 tablespoon at a time, to flour mixture, pulsing until the dough just comes together. Transfer mixture to a sheet of plastic wrap. Use wrap to pull sides of dough together to form a rounded disk. Chill at least 30 minutes before using.

Yield: Makes enough dough for a double-crust 9-inch pie