Fresh Strawberry Pie Recipe – An Italian in my Kitchen

Fresh Strawberry Pie is so fresh and delicious, a fast and easy dessert made with a creamy Mascarpone & Cream filling, then topped with fresh strawberries. The perfect way to welcome the warmer weather!

So yes Strawberry season is in full swing here in Italy. And my youngest daughter couldn’t be happier! I love making strawberry bread, no pectin strawberry jam or our favorite strawberry mousse!

 

I love pastry crusts so I really didn’t have any desire to make a cookie crust for this no bake filling. And I also decided not to add any gelatine to firm up the filling. I did it my way by making a stabilized whipped cream which includes some mascarpone.

Why we love this Strawberry Pie

• No gelatine – no need for gelatine in this filling, it comes out thick, creamy and not too sweet! Just the way we like it!
• Flaky crust – I used my Mom’s pie crust recipe although make it even quicker and use your favorite store bought crust.
• Berries – we are strawberry lovers but if you prefer you could use your favorite berries instead.

Recipe Ingredients

• Pie crust – for this recipe you could use a homemade crust or a store bought one.
• Strawberries – fresh strawberries are best.
• Cream – whole heavy or whipping cream, with at least 30% fat content, other creams won’t whip.
• Mascarpone – know as Italian mascarpone cheese, a creamy full fat cheese.
• Sugar – both granulated and powdered sugar are used in the recipe.
• Vanilla – vanilla extract.

How to make a Fresh Strawberry Pie

This no baked mascarpone pie filling is so creamy and delicious, it’s perfect as a topping on fruit or even a slice of cake. For full recipe instructions and ingredients scroll to the bottom for the recipe card.

Start by making your pie dough or use a store bought crust. Fit the dough in the prepared pie pan, prick the bottom of the dough with a fork, then cover the dough with parchment paper, place dry beans or pie weights on top. Bake until golden. Let the crust cool completely before filling.

In a large bowl add the cold cream, mascarpone, powdered sugar and vanilla and beat on medium speed until combined, then raise the speed to high and beat until very, very thick. 

Fill the cooled crust with the filling, freeze the pie for about 15 minutes, slice the strawberries and toss them with the granulated sugar. Remove the Strawberry Pie from the freezer, top with the strawberries and serve.

Recipe Tip

If you aren’t serving the pie immediately then refrigerate it until you do, It’s also a good idea to place the pie in the freezer for 15-20 minutes before serving, this way it firms up even more.

How to Make a Thick Creamy Filling with no Gelatine:

In order to make a really thick creamy filling with no Gelatine, you have to combine the whipping or whole cream, mascarpone and a little powdered sugar, beat it all together until it is extremely thick. And that’s it.

It’s so good, I use it all the time now for cakes, toppings everything.

How to Clean Fresh Strawberries:

To clean Fresh Strawberries be sure to leave the stem on the strawberries when washing, it helps the strawberries absorb less water (and make sure to never soak the strawberries in water).

Then place the strawberries in a large colander and rinse them under cold water, moving them gently with your hand to remove any dirt. Then gently pat them dry with a paper towel.

Variations and substitutions

Instead of strawberries you could substitute with blue berries, raspberries, blackberries, peaches or even apricots. Instead of a classic pie crust you could substitute with a chocolate pie crust, an almond pie crust or even a Italian pie crust.

How to Blind Bake a Pie

• Roll the dough to approximately 1/8 inch thickness
• place it  in prepared pie plate,
• prick the bottom with a fork.
• Cover with parchment paper and add dried beans or pie weights on top, bake for approximately 20 minutes (if pie is not baked, then bake for an additional 5 minutes without the beans).
• Remove from the oven, remove paper and beans, let cool.

What are the best Pie Doughs to use for a cream filling?

1. Italian Crostata Dough  –  I love the taste of an Italian pie crust, the eggs give it a delicious flavour and flakiness.
2. Easy Homemade Pie Dough –  This was my Mom’s Pie Crust recipe and it is one of the best.
3. Homemade Brown Sugar Pie Crust –  The addition of a little brown sugar gives this dough the perfect sweetness and a delicious flavour.
4. Easy Nutella Pie Dough –  This is the perfect crust for any and all Nutella Lovers, and it would be amazing as a crust in this Fresh Strawberry Pie.

Most pie crust recipes, including the ones above are for 2 pie crusts, so if don’t plan on using the dough immediately then wrap the extra dough tightly in plastic wrap, place in an airtight freezer bag and freeze. The dough will keep for up to 6 months in the freezer.

If you plan on making another pie or tarts with the extra dough, keep it tightly wrapped in plastic and refrigerate for up to 3 days.

How to store the Strawberry Pie

Any leftover pie should be store in an airtight container and refrigerated, it will keep for up to 2 days in the fridge. I don’t recommend freezing it unless to firm it up for 10-15 minutes.

One of the best reason to look forward to Spring and Summer are all the wonderful fresh fruits and berries. I hope you enjoy this Fresh Strawberry Pie with a Mascarpone Filling.

Updated from April 20, 2018.

Related