Peachy Pie

Most peach pies just toss the fruit with sugar and flour. This one takes a smarter path: fresh peaches sit on the bottom of the crust, then a thickened cream cheese and sour cream custard pours over the top to envelope them. The result is somewhere between a peach pie and a peach cheesecake, with the best qualities of both.

Cooking the cream cheese and sour cream first is the technique that separates this from amateur versions. Heating them together until thickened removes excess moisture and builds a base that won’t weep liquid into the bottom crust during baking. The mixture then gets cooled with eggs, lemon juice, and sugar before pouring over the peaches.

The two-stage baking (425°F/220°C for 10 minutes, then 350°F/175°C for 30-35 more) sets the bottom crust quickly before the filling has time to soak in. Cover with foil if the edges brown too fast. Serve at room temperature or chilled, dusted with extra cinnamon. Pair with vanilla ice cream and a glass of cold iced tea on a hot summer afternoon.

Pro Tips

• Use ripe but firm peaches. Soft peaches turn mushy and bleed liquid into the custard during baking.
• Toss peaches with cornstarch first as written. This thickens the natural fruit juice and prevents a runny filling.
• Cool the cream cheese mixture slightly before adding eggs. Hot mixture will scramble the eggs.
• Refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours. The cream cheese-sour cream filling needs cold storage.

Variations

• Add 2 tablespoons of bourbon or peach liqueur to the filling for a Southern adult version.
• Use a graham cracker crust instead of pastry for a more cheesecake-like profile.
• Top with a lattice or full top crust as suggested for a more traditional double-crust peach pie.