Name: Cranberry Sugar Pie
Prep time: 10 min
Total time: 45 min
Ingredients: 1 Single Pie Crust; 1 Cup Sweetened Dried Cranberries; 2 Teaspoons All Purpose Flour; 2 Large Eggs; 1 Cup White Granulated Sugar; ⅙ Teaspoon Salt; 1 Cup Sour Cream; 2 Teaspoons Clear Vanilla Extract

Cranberry Sugar Pie is sweet like crème brûlée and filled with tart cranberries. This unique cranberry pie is rich with sour cream, eggs, and sugar, with a big splash of vanilla extract. As it bakes the whole house smells like vanilla and sugar heaven!

Close up overhead view of a pie in a tart shell decorated with pie crust leaves and cranberries on a pale pink glass plate.

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Every single bite of this Cranberry Sugar Pie is perfectly balanced with sweetened custard and tart cranberries. Best of all the preparation is super easy and most of the ingredients are pantry and refrigerator staples.

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About this Recipe
What is a Sugar Pie?
Ingredient Notes
How to Make a Cranberry Sugar Pie
My Top Tips
Decoration
Make Ahead and Storage
More Delicious Fruit Desserts
📖 Recipe
💬 Comments

About this Recipe

When you think of a cranberry pie, I bet you are thinking of a pie filled with a sweetened cranberry filling that may include citrus notes or warming spices. But, I have a cranberry pie that is totally different and absolutely delicious!

A couple of weeks ago I was watching one of my favorite YouTube channels, Cooking with Glen, and Glen presented a tutorial on a 1943 Sour Cream Raisin Pie. As soon as I saw this pie, I knew I had to try it.

However, I’m not really crazy about raisins, but I do love dried cranberries. So, I thought I would reimagine that pie with dried cranberries and a few more tweaks. In addition to the cranberries, I upped the vanilla extract, switched the brown sugar to white, and discovered a perfect combination for a delicious pie filling.

What is a Sugar Pie?

As I researched what to call this pie, I came across the Sugar Pie, which is also similar to a Sour Cream Raisin Pie. Sugar pies are also made from just a handful of basic pantry and refrigerator items and are simple to make. In general, the ingredients for the filling of a sugar pie are sugar, eggs or cornstarch, a dairy item, flavoring, and salt.

Variations of this pie are bountiful. There seem to be many regional favorites of this pie everywhere. Midwestern Sugar Pies typically don't contain eggs and are set with cornstarch. While the French-Canadian sugar pie has eggs and contains brown sugar and sometimes maple syrup. It just goes to show that inventive cooks will make do with what they have on hand!

Square image of a pie in a tart shell decorated with pie crust leaves and cranberries on a pale pink glass plate. A fork and red napkin are beside the plate.

Please don't hesitate to give this cranberry pie a try! It is perfect for afternoon tea or holiday celebrations and it pairs beautifully with a cup of tea or coffee. So, let's bake!

Ingredient Notes

The ingredients for the pie, clockwise from top right: pie crust, salt, all purpose flour, sour cream, clear vanilla extract, eggs, sweetened dried cranberries, and sugar.

My Cranberry Sugar Pie Contains just 8 ingredients:

Pie Crust - A refrigerated pie crust works well. But, if you want to make your own I have several recipes on my Pie Crust Recipes Chart.
Sweetened Dried Cranberries - I've used Craisins, my local store brand, and Trader Joe's brand and they are each delicious in this pie.
All Purpose Flour - A small amount of flour helps suspend the cranberries in the pie filling.
Large Eggs - Large eggs will give the correct volume of eggs for this recipe.
White Granulated Sugar - White sugar will give a beautiful look to the custard and just the right amount of sweetness.
Salt - I almost always use basic table salt in baking, because the grain of it is very consistent. Baking is scientific and amounts do matter even with salt.
Sour Cream - Please only use full-fat sour cream and do not substitute a low-fat version.
Clear Vanilla Extract - To keep the custard a beautiful color, I prefer to use a clear vanilla extract.

How to Make a Cranberry Sugar Pie

Pie crust is eased and pressed into a tart pan.

Ease the pie crust into a 9” tart pan with a removable bottom. Press the crust into the sides of the pan and trim the excess crust from the top of the pan. Place the tart pan on a baking sheet and set it aside for later.

Dried cranberries are coated in flour in a small bowl.

In a small bowl toss the sweetened dried cranberries with the flour until the cranberries are coated (dredged) with the flour. Set them aside for later.

Eggs, sugar, and salt are beaten together in a medium sized bowl.

In a medium-sized bowl beat the eggs with a fork. Add the sugar and salt and continue to beat the eggs and the sugar until they are well combined. Let the egg and sugar mixture stand for 5 minutes before continuing. This allows the sugar to dissolve into the eggs.

Sour cream is added to the egg mixture in a medium sized glass bowl.

Add the sour cream and vanilla extract to the sugar and egg mixture and mix until no streaks of the white sour cream can be seen.

Cranberries are added to the egg and sour cream mixture in a medium sized glass bowl.

Gently fold in the flour-dredged dried cranberries.

The pie filling has been poured into the prepared tart shell. The tart pan is on a well used baking sheet.

Pour the pie filling into the prepared tart pan.

The baked pie is cooling on a wire rack. The pie is golden brown around the edges.

Bake the pie at 425°F/218°C for 10 minutes. Then reduce the oven temperature to 325°F/163°C and continue to bake the pie for another 25 to 35 minutes.

As the pie bakes, the filling will puff up. The pie is done when the edges of the filling turn golden brown and the filling is set.

Remove the pie from the oven and let it cool on a wire rack. During cooling, the pie filling will lose its “puff”. This is completely normal.

My Top Tips

♡ Use a 9-inch Pie Pan. This recipe is scaled to use a 9-inch pie pan or a 9-inch tart pan with a removable bottom. If you use a larger pan or deep-dish pan, the filling will not completely fill the pan.

♡ Use Clear Vanilla Extract. I like to use a clear (imitation) vanilla to keep the pie light in color. This makes the red cranberries really stand out in the filling. But, if you don't have clear vanilla, please use the vanilla extract you have on hand.

♡ Use a Dry Ingredient Measuring Cup. Measure the sour cream by using a dry ingredient measuring cup. It is easier and more accurate than a liquid measuring cup.

Decoration

When you make this pie, there is usually a small amount of pie crust left, which you can use to cut out some small shapes to decorate the top of the baked pie. I cut out leaf shapes, bake them, and then, after the pie is baked and cooled, add them to the top of the pie with a couple of fresh cranberries.

Make Ahead and Storage

Make-Ahead: This pie is best if made the day you will serve it.

Storage: If you don't plan to eat it within a couple of hours, it should be refrigerated. Allow the pie to come to room temperature before serving.

Any leftover pie will keep in the fridge for up to two days.