Fresh Peach Pie is the simplest, sweetest celebration of our favorite summer fruit – peaches! The buttery, flaky crust is filled with loads of sliced, fresh peaches in a silky peach gel made entirely from scratch with a secret ingredient that makes this the best fresh peach pie ever!
Peach season is achingly short and every year I buy bushel after bushel of fresh yellow peaches as long as they hold out. In Georgia, that’s mid-May to early August. In California, that season starts in late June and wraps up toward the end of August, but in other parts of the country it’s a more like late-July to September.
There are so many incredible peach desserts to be made (as well as savory peach recipes too!) but this fresh peach pie is right up at the top of my list next to peach ice cream. They are my “must make” recipes of the summer!
When it’s summer and peaches are in season, we make all things peach around our house! Besides eating them out of hand, every year my family requests Fresh Peach Cobbler and Old-Fashioned Fresh Peach Ice Cream as soon as they show up at the farmer’s market.
If you love my reader-favorite strawberry pie and you also like peaches, then you are guaranteed a homerun with this recipe. It’s basically the exact same thing just using a different fruit and adjusting the cornstarch a bit to account for the additional juice from the peaches.
I opted for a naked pie presentation here rather than decorating the whole thing with whipped cream. Instead I piped swirls of sweetened whipped cream on top of each slice just before serving.
How do you slice peach pie?
One thing to know before you get started though is that this pie doesn’t set up super firm. When you slice into it, the slices will definitely be loose, which is how I like it as opposed to an overly thickened, gummy filling. It’s just the nature of a fresh fruit pie and I personally don’t care for it when it’s thickened much more than what you see here.
If you want even more stability to your slice, feel free to simply increase the cornstarch by 2 or 3 tablespoons without adjusting any of the other ingredients, particularly if your peaches are especially juicy. However, as with any fruit pie that has large pieces of fruit in it, you will likely always deal with some structural issues because of the weight of the fruit and the amount of juice they release as they break down.
Recipe Ingredients
- Peaches: While I’m guessing you could make this with white peaches, yellow peaches are my absolute favorite. You will use roughly half of the peaches to create the gel and the other half goes into the filling in slices. Look for freestone peaches, which are much easier to work with since the pit falls right out when you slice them in half. If you only have cling peaches, they taste just as good only you will need to slice the peach off the pit instead.
- Sugar: Regular granulated sugar adds the perfect amount of sweetness to the already sweet fresh peaches in this pie. If your peaches are slightly less sweet, you might want to increase the sugar by ¼ cup.
- Cornstarch: This is my favorite pie thickening agent because I always have it on hand in my cupboard. Be sure to add it at the same time as the sugar and toss it with the sliced peaches while they are still cold. This prevents it from clumping once the filling is over the heat.
- Water: Just a little water is used to create the gel filling.
- Almond extract: This is my secret ingredient for the best fresh peach pie! It’s not a large amount but the flavor adds complexity and compliments the peaches so well without overpowering them. Feel free to leave it out if you want to though.
- A blind baked pie crust: I HIGHLY recommend making your own pie crust for this simple pie. I have an entire post and YouTube video where I show you how to do it either by hand with a pastry cutter or using a food processor (affiliate link).
How to Make Fresh Peach Pie
- Blind-bake a pie crust: If you don’t already have a pie crust in your freezer, go ahead and make a batch of my favorite pie crust. You will only need one disc and the other can be frozen for future use. Roll it out on a lightly floured surface and line your pie plate (affiliate link) with it, tucking the edges under and crimping them for a nice finish. Prick the crust all over with a fork, then fill with pie weights and bake at 400 degrees F for 15 minutes. Remove the weights and bake another 10-15 minutes until the crust is golden brown, then cool completely.
- Prep the peaches: First you need to peel your peaches. My favorite way of doing this is to submerge them in a large pot of rapidly boiling water for 30 seconds, then plunging them into an ice water bath for a minute. The skins will slip right off! Remove the pits and slice the peaches, dividing them in half for the filling.
- Make the filling: In a medium saucepan, stir half of the sliced peaches with the sugar, cornstarch, and water to combine. Place this over medium heat and cook and stir for 7-10 minutes until the peaches break down and the filling bubbles and thickens into a silky gel with bits of peach. Remove from the heat and stir in the almond extract. Let this cool, then stir in the reserved sliced peaches until they are evenly coated.
- Fill the pie crust and chill: Add the peach filling to your cooled pie crust, then chill for 4 hours in the fridge to help it set up. Just before serving, whisk 1 cup heavy cream with ¼ cup powdered sugar and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract until stiff peaks form. Serve slices of pie with the freshly whipped cream piped over the top.
Recipe FAQ’s
This typically isn’t a problem for me since we always eat the whole pie on the day it is made. But if you want to protect against it, I would recommend melting a little white chocolate and spreading a thin layer of it on the pie crust after it has cooled from baking before adding the peach filling. This creates a protective layer so the filling isn’t absorbed by the crust as quickly.
I only tested this pie using cornstarch, but I have had good experience in the past using arrowroot powder in place of cornstarch. You could possibly even just use flour to thicken the filling.
Yes, I think you could get away with making this with frozen peaches. However, I do not recommend using canned peaches in this recipe.
Recipe Tips
- Storage: This pie really is best eaten the same day it is made. However, leftover fresh peach pie will still be good when stored in the fridge for 2-3 days. You could also freeze the pie for 2-3 months and thaw in the fridge overnight before serving.
- Variations: If you like peaches with a little spice, you could try adding ½ teaspoon or more of cinnamon or even pumpkin pie spice (is it blasphemy to speak of pumpkin pie spice in a summer peach pie post?) to the filling along with the sugar and cornstarch. Peaches and warm spices are actually really phenomenal together.
- Other fruit: Missed peach season? You could make this pie with almost any fruit! Blueberries, raspberries, apricots, etc. would all work!
More Summer Fruit Recipes
- Strawberry Peach Crumble
- Cherry Crisp
- Raspberry Cream Pie
- Award-Winning Strawberry Cream Cheese Pie
- Raspberry Peach Pie
- German Plum Cake
- Authentic French Fruit Tart
Did you make this recipe?
Let me know what you thought with a comment and rating below. You can also take a picture and tag me on Instagram @houseofnasheats or share it on the Pinterest pin so I can see.
Fresh Peach Pie Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 [pie crust]
- Freshly whipped cream for topping
Filling
- 6-7 cups ripe peaches peeled and sliced (about 9-10 peaches)
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 5 Tablespoons cornstarch
- 1/4 cup water
- 1/2 teaspoon almond extract (optional)
Instructions
Pie Crust
- Preheat the oven to 400°F. Make the pie crust according to the instructions in that recipe. It makes 2 crusts, but you can always freeze on to have on hand for future use.1 [pie crust]
- Roll out the pie crust on a lightly floured surface until it is slightly larger than a 9-inch pie plate (affiliate link). Roll the pie crust onto the rolling pin (affiliate link), then transfer to the pie plate (affiliate link). Tuck the edges under and crump with thumb and forefinger, a fork, or in some other decorative manner for a finished look. Dock the pie crust all over the bottom and sides with the tines of a fork. I like to freeze my pie crust for 15 minutes at this point before baking.
- Line the pie crust with a piece of parchment paper or aluminum foil and fill it with pie weights, dried beans, pennies, or even sugar. Bake for 15 minutes, then remove the weights and the liner. Return the pie crust to the oven and bake for another 10-15 minutes until golden brown. Cool completely.
Filling
- In a medium saucepan, combine 3 cups of the peaches with the sugar, cornstarch, and water. Set this over medium heat. Cook, stirring frequently until the peaches start to break down and the juice they release thickens from the cornstarch, about 7-10 minutes. It will be a very gloopy and thick gell at this point. Remove from the heat and add the almond extract, if using. Let the filling cool completely.6-7 cups ripe peaches, ¾ cup granulated sugar, 5 Tablespoons cornstarch, ¼ cup water, ½ teaspoon almond extract
- Once the peach gel has cooled, add the remaining sliced fresh peaches and gently stir to coat. Transfer the peach filling to the pie shell and refrigerate for at least 4 hours to set up a bit. Decorate with swirls of sweetened, freshly whipped cream on top of each slice before serving.Freshly whipped cream
Notes
- Storage: This pie is best eaten the same day it is made, but leftovers can be kept in the fridge for 2-3 days. It can even be frozen for up to 2 months, then thawed in the fridge overnight before serving.
Nutrition
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