Why bother with canned fillings when fresh cherries taste so much better, and pitting cherries is no big deal? Cherries are at their best in July,* so make this pie then. Also, small children find it amusing to pop the pits out of cherries – make them do the work and this pie is even easier. You can make this pie with beautiful yellow/pink Rainier cherries, but do reduce the sugar to ½ cup or less.

• Double recipe pie crust
• 5 cups pitted sour or tart/sweet Montmorency or Bing cherries
• 1 cup sugar for sour cherries; ½ to ⅔ cup for Montmorency or Bing
• 6 tablespoons tapioca flour or 3 tablespoons cornstarch
• 2 tablespoons water
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• ¼ teaspoon almond flavoring
• Optional: splash of vanilla
• Egg wash (1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Combine cherries, tapioca, lemon juice and almond flavoring in bowl; let sit for 15 minutes or until light syrup forms. Line 8- to 9-inch pan with one pie crust. Pour cherries into pie pan; top with second pie crust and cut vents in top to steam. Brush with egg wash. Put a cookie sheet on the lower rack to catch drips; place pie on center rack.

Bake at 325 degrees for 30 minutes; reduce heat to 325 degrees and bake for 20-30 minutes or until crust is brown and juice bubbles through vents. Cool completely before serving.

*And if you ever get the chance, go to the National Cherry Festival in Traverse City, Michigan, held in late June to early July every year when the cherries are ripe. Set aside a couple of hours for a detour south to the Cherry Hut restaurant in Beulah, Michigan, for one of the best cherry pies you will ever eat.