This Cranberry Pie with a gingersnap crumb crust and silky cranberry curd filling is guaranteed to bring a little va-va-voom to your holiday dessert table this year; the recipe is easy to follow and the result is show-stopping!
change it up this year with cranberry pie for Thanksgiving or Christmas
Of course tradition rules the holidays. We make Libby’s Pumpkin Pie every year, also Maple Frangipane Pecan Pie, without fail. But In our house it’s also a tradition that every year we try something new on our holiday menus…enter this amazing cranberry pie. (Oh boy, is this one going to wow you.) I’m gaga over cranberries this year, I can’t stop playing with them ~ they’re my winter equivalent of lemons and they just seem to wake everything up. It’s all about how many bags I can cram in my freezer (12 at last count.)
what is cranberry pie?
This easy cranberry pie recipe is a gingersnap crumb crust filled with a brilliant homemade cranberry curd.
But it’s the glorious flavors (and color!) that make it so special. For the crust I used my absolute favorite gingersnaps ~ NyÃ¥kers ~ they come in a beautiful tin from Sweden, they’re super thin and crisp, and the flavor is bright and peppery. (These are the same cookies I used for the crust of my famous Lemon Crunch Bars, too) These gingersnaps in the pretty tin make a great gift if you can keep from eating the cookies first (we never can.) But don’t worry if you don’t have them, any gingersnap cookie will work.
What makes this crust stand out from the rest, apart from the spicy gingersnaps, is that it has an equal amount of walnuts processed right along with the cookies — so good!
as good as the gingersnap crust is, cranberry pie is all about that glossy cranberry curd
The curd filling for cranberry pie starts with tart fresh pureed cranberries that are mixed with eggs, extra yolks, sugar and lemon juice, and cooked until thick. You might recall I have a Microwave Cranberry Curd recipe on the blog, and that would work, too. The microwave recipe produces a fluffier, lighter curd, and either will be fantastic.
After the curd is cooked, and while it’s still warm, I whisk in some room temperature butter which helps to make it extra glossy. Don’t you just want to dive right in??
the secret to a silky cranberry curd pie filling
Curd recipes often call for slow cooking over a double boiler…I never bother with that and cook my curds either in the microwave, (have you tried my insanely Easy Microwave Citrus Curd?) or on the stove top.
- The secret to a perfect curd without all that fuss is medium heat
- constant stirring
- and a final straining to remove any lumps
how to garnish a cranberry pie
I garnish this pie with sugared cranberries for a festive look. I used thyme for a touch of green contrast, but small mint leaves would be great too.
how to make sugared cranberries the easy way
Let’s be frank, no one is going to eat your sugared cranberries, they’re just for decoration. So I sugar my cranberries the easy way, there’s no need for messy beaten egg whites or a boiled sugar syrup.
- I take damp cranberries and roll them in granulated sugar. The sugar sticks just fine.
- Let them dry and then place them on your pie. Try not to handle them too much.
tvfgi recommends: Nyåkers Swedish Gingersnaps
NyÃ¥kers comes in the pretty decorated tin, which I always re-use to give holiday cookies or store ornaments, etc. (I can’t bear to throw it away.) These Swedish spice cookies have a cult following, and they make a great gift, just send them straight from Amazon. I send a tin to my Dad every year.
“I took this cranberry pie to a pie potluck at work and it was a HUGE hit! The recipe seems foolproof to me; I followed your instructions exactly and my curd set up beautifully. And multiple colleagues (many of whom are accomplished bakers) asked me for the recipe!”
Katie
Cranberry Gingersnap Pie
Equipment
- 9 inch pie plate
- blender or food processor
Ingredients
crust
- 5 ounces gingersnaps
- 1 cup walnuts
- 3 Tbsp brown sugar
- 4 Tbsp butter, melted
filling
- 12 ounce bag of fresh cranberries
- 1 1/2 cups sugar, divided
- 3 large eggs
- 2 egg yolks
- pinch of salt
- 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
- 4 Tbsp (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, at room temp and cut in pieces
garnish
- sugared cranberries
- fresh thyme sprigs or mint leaves
Instructions
- Set oven to 350F. Lightly spray a 9 inch pie plate with cooking spray.
- Put the gingersnaps in a food processor and process until they are fine crumbs. (this should be a heaping cup) Add the walnuts, and sugar and process again until everything is finely ground. Add the butter and process briefly to combine.
- Pat the crust into your pie plate, and up the sides. Bake for 10-12 minutes. Set aside to cool.
- Put the cranberries, 1 cup of the sugar, and 1/4 cup water to a simmer in a saucepan. Lower the heat and simmer the cranberries, uncovered, for about 15 minutes until they’ve popped and the mixture is quite thick. Let cool slightly and then puree until completely smooth.
- Whisk the puree, the eggs, yolks, salt, lemon juice and 1/2 cup sugar together in a saucepan and set over medium heat. Cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens and coats the back of a spoon, this will take about 10 minutes or so. Stay by the pan the whole time and stir! Note: let the mixture just come up to a bubble, and then remove from heat.
- Push the curd through a mesh strainer, using the back of a spoon to get it all through.
- Let the curd cool for a few minutes and then drop the room temperature butter in, bit by bit, while you stir to melt it.
- Pour the curd into the pie crust and smooth out evenly. Chill the pie until it is firm, about 2 hours or so.
- Decorate with sugared cranberries if you like.
sugared cranberries
- Roll damp cranberries in granulated sugar and let dry.
Video
Notes
- Any firm curd will work in this pie, so feel free to experiment.
- Use graham crackers or plain chocolate wafters in place of the gingersnaps for the crust.
- Leave out the walnuts for a nut free crust, just add more crumbs.
This looks amazing! I’m going to make it for Thanksgiving this year. I’m thinking about adding a bit of meringue topping to contrast the tartness of the cranberries. Would you recommend changing any of the cooking prep if I plan to put it in the oven at the end to bake the meringue or do you think it will be okay?
I think that would be fine, and it sounds like a great idea 🙂
I’ve never made curd before… Does this pie hold its shape when cut?
Yes, it’s a little soft, but holds its shape.
Is easy to remove the whole pie from the pan once it’s fully set? I’m trying to see if I’ll be able to put these in pie take out containers to give as gifts. Thanks so much for sharing your recipe and answering our questions!
I’m not sure about that Jenny, I haven’t tried. But I don’t think it would be very easy because crumb crusts are delicate. If you want to give them as gifts I might bake them in disposable foil pans, like the ones you find at the supermarket.
Thank you so much for the insight for all of us making our 1st homemade cookie crusts 😉
Is there anything you can sub the nuts for?
You can leave the nuts out, Alexa, and add more gingersnap crumbs to make up for the loss of bulk. You may need a little more melted butter, too.
Hi Sue. My company held a pic bake off this week. I was looking for a pie with WOW factor and found this. I followed your recipe exactly ( to the placement of the garnish) and won 1st place. It was a hit! And the instruction was to easy to follow. Thanks for sharing
No way! I’m so excited, I feel like we both won 😉 Congratulations Kristen and thanks so much for letting me know, you made my day!
I want to make this but am worried about getting the cranberry filling smooth. How did you purée it? Did you use a blender or food processor?
I used my Vitamix blender, Ava, but you can use a food processor. If it’s not as smooth as you like, you can always push it through a mesh strainer or cheesecloth, but I didn’t find that necessary.
Lovely recipe!! Thank you for the inspiration and the recipe. My restaurant is very pleased with my pie. I did make my own gingersnap cookies, with fresh ginger, and that really boosted the flavor. Thank you again for such a beautiful pie!
Wow the the homemade gingersnaps must make the crust even better 🙂
It was really good. I didn’t have walnuts, so i just added more cookies. I loved the curd so much i actually took a slice home for myself!
Hi Sue,
I have a friendsgiving that I want to bring this pie to! Do you think it would be ok to make the pie a couple of days ahead of time, freeze it and then thaw it in the fridge the night before?
If I were you I’d make the filling and crust a couple of days ahead, and then assemble the day of. The curd will keep fine, well wrapped, and the crust will too.
Thanks, Sue! Can’t wait to make it!
Beautiful! Nut allergy here – would you recommend subbing extra ginger snap crumbs or something else?
Can I make this with frozen cranberries? They don’t have fresh cranberries where I live.
You can definitely make it with frozen!
Hi Sue, I just made this pie and it’s delicious! I added more cranberries and and reduced the sugar and butter and it turned out great. Beautiful colour and I would definitely make this again. Thanks!
Was it hard to purée the cranberries until completely smooth? I’m not sure if I should use a blender or food processor.
Ava- I used an immersion blender in the saucepan and it was not hard at all, particularly because it doesn’t need to be perfect since it will later go through a mesh strainer.
Hi. The color caught my eye and I’m smitten!!! Could I use frozen berries as I can’t get fresh??
Hello Tobi. Did you happen to try this with the frozen cranberries? I’m very interested.