A Cherry Pie Recipe to celebrate National Cherry Day!

Love Hemp Brand Ambassador, and food fanatic, @pescatarianldn creates a delicious CBD-Infused Cherry pie, in honour of National Cherry Day.

Over the past half a decade Britain has lost around 90 percent of its cherry orchards. British Cherry Day was started in 2008 as part of a campaign to save the British cherry. Whilst the cherry industry is beginning to recuperate, we still import a flabbergasting 95 percent of our cherries!

In celebration of National Cherry Day I have created a delicious Cherry Pie infused with the Love Hemp's Wild Cherry CBD oil. What a duo?! You can get cherries in supermarkets all year round but the taste of British cherries while they are in season is unparalleled; so juicy, sweet and indulgent! The cherry season is in full swing but is fleeting, so what better excuse to make a cherry pie than right now.

INGREDIENTS (8 generous slices)

6ml Love Hemp® CBD Liquid Oral Oil Drops 1200mg, 30mg per slice

600g Fresh Cherries, pitted and halved

25g Cornstarch 

1 Lime, juiced and zested

140g Golden Caster Sugar, plus extra for topping the pie crust

50g Cherry Jam

1 Egg white, beaten

Serving suggestion: Single Cream or Ice Cream

Pie Pastry

425g Plain Flour

2 tbsp Golden Caster Sugar

1tsp Salt

300g Cold Unsalted Butter, cubed

90-135ml Cold Water

METHOD

• Add all the dry ingredients into a food processor, pulse for a few seconds until combined.
• Add the butter and process until combined. Slowly add in just enough iced cold water, one tablespoon at a time, until a dough forms.
• Halve the dough, cover and refrigerate for 45 minutes or up to 24 hours.
• In a large bowl, combine the cherries, lime, sugar and cornstarch. Refrigerate for an hour to loosen juices.
• Dust a surface and rolling pin with flour then roll out one of the halves of pastry, until it's large enough to cover the base and sides of your tin. If any breakages occur, gently press it back together. Save any excess for decoration later.
• Remove the cherry mixture from the fridge. Separate the cherries from the juice, using a sieve.
• Arrange the sieved cherries inside the pie.
• In a saucepan, heat the juice over a medium heat for a few minutes until thickened. Allow to cool slightly then mix in the CBD oil. Allow to cool for 5 minutes. Poor the slightly cooled mixture over the cherries.
• Roll the remaining pastry into a circle large enough to cover the top of the pie about 30cm in diameter. Using a pastry cutter or a knife, cut the circle in half lengthways and continue to cut an equal number of lengthways slices of the desired thickness. Thread the slices over and under one another in a lattice. Press the edges into the edge of the tin to seal. If you have excess pastry decorate the edges of your pie. I like to use beer bottle tops or piping nozzles to cut out fun shapes. Stick them on using an egg wash. Ensure the decorated areas remain within the pie circumference to prevent them from sliding off during the early stages of cooking.

10. Lightly brush the top of the pastry with egg white and sprinkle with extra sugar.
11. Bake the pie at 160C for 1 hour or until golden brown. Check the pie at 50 minutes, use foil to protect the edges if they look as though they are browning too quickly.
12. Remove the pie from the oven and leave to cool for an hour. Serve with ice cream and enjoy!