Deep Dish Strawberry Pie

A chocolate-painted baked pie crust prevents this pie from getting soggy and adds a wonderful flavor complementing the strawberries! Serve with whipped cream. I am adding blueberries just around the inner edge of the pie crust after the filling has been added to create a nice red, white, and blue theme for our 4th of July celebration!

• Preparation Time: 20 mins
• Cooking Time: 25 mins
• Total Time: 45 mins
• Calories: 332 Calories

Ingredients

• 1 cup white sugar
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 3 ½ tablespoons cornstarch
• ½ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1 pastry for a 9-inch deep dish pie crust
• ¾ cup ginger ale
• 2 quarts fresh strawberries, hulled, divided

Recipe Instructions

Step 1

Preheat an oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C). Press pie crust pastry into a 1/2-inch deep dish pie plate. Prick bottom and sides of pastry with fork.

Step 2

Bake in the preheated oven until lightly brown, 10 to 12 minutes. Cool completely on a wire rack.

Step 3

Melt chocolate chips in a saucepan over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, 1 to 3 minutes. Paint melted chocolate in the bottom and inside of cooled pie crust. Place chocolate-painted crust in freezer to harden the chocolate, about 30 minutes.

Step 4

Place the prettiest strawberry, cut-side down, in the center of the chocolate crust. Arrange as many attractive strawberries as possible around the center strawberry, so they appear as circles around the center.

Step 5

Mash the remaining strawberries in a bowl; transfer to a saucepan. Add sugar and lemon juice; bring to a boil, stirring frequently.

Step 6

Whisk ginger ale and cornstarch together in a bowl until smooth; gradually stir into boiling strawberry mixture. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, stirring constantly, until thickened, 12 to 14 minutes. Remove from heat and cool for about 5 minutes.

Step 7

Spoon strawberry sauce over strawberries in pie shell. Chill in refrigerator until pie is set, at least 8 hours.