Sour Cream Raisin Pie is an easy custard pie full of vanilla-plumped soft raisins, a sour cream custard and fall spices you’ll love! Great for Thanksgiving or anytime of the year.
Sour Cream Raisin Pie is an old-school classic pie that is easy to make and boasts favorite seasonal flavors. It holds its own amongst Thanksgiving favorites of pumpkin pie, mincemeat pie and pecan pie, offering a wonderful surprise.
It's VERY easy to make and will likely become a new favorite on your dining table. This recipe was my Grandmother's and without it I never would have known about this best kept secret pie!
Jump to:
What is Sour Cream Raisin Pie?
I'll confess If you are like I was when I first heard of Sour Cream Raisin Pie, the word 'yuck' came to mind. I think I imagined the texture would be lumpy and tapioca-like. And I couldn't imagine the flavors really.
The pie has the most wondrous texture, chock full of vanilla-soaked pudgy raisins filling every bite. Sour cream blends together the earthy spices of clove and cinnamon into a lovely custard base.
It's a pie for all season as well; uber flavorful yet light enough for the summer months, with the seasonings giving a nod as easily toward the cool weather months.
Sour Cream Raisin Pie can be eaten at room temperature or chilled. No one else will be bringing it to the summer picnic or potluck, nor any Friendsgiving or Thanksgiving meals, so you can bask in the glory of originality as well as introduction of a new favorite dessert.
My Favorite Pie Crust recipe
Butter Pie Crust is my all time favorite pie crust recipe. It’s easy to make and very forgiving (hard to mess it up).
It makes a delicious flaky crust every time!
The recipe post also contains more information about blind baking a pie crust.
Shortcut Pie Crust Tip
If you are in a pinch for time use a premade pie crust.
Keeping a stash of them in my freezer lets me whip up a pie with no notice.
Sour Cream Raisin Pie is fast to make and especially during the holidays this tip takes time out of the baking process.
If you love making your own crust from scratch, go for it!
Simply follow the instructions to pre-bake or ‘blind bake‘ before filling and baking the pie.
Use Gluten-Free or Regular Pie Crust
This pie may be made with any pie crust. I prefer Whole Foods Gluten-Free Bakehouse crusts for my gluten-free baking. The prepared pie shells are kept in the freezer area and I have a couple packages in my freezer at all time (also great for quiche!).
The filling is naturally gluten-free.
How to Make this Raisin Pie
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- Place the raisins in a mixing bowl with vanilla extract and cover with boiling water for 10-15 minutes.
- Bake the pie shell for 10 minutes.
- In a large mixing bowl whisk together the brown sugar, cinnamon, cloves, salt, sour cream, eggs, and lemon juice, until fully combined.
- Drain the raisins and mix into the filling.
- Spoon the filling into the prepared crust and bake for 25-30 minutes. Once cooled the pie may be served or chilled for serving later.
The pie cooks in less than an hour and takes about 15 minutes to construct!
Can Sour Cream Raisin Pie be Frozen?
Not recommended. Custard pies do not survive freezing well. The filling is often watery when thawed and the crust soggy.
This raisin pie is so fast and easy to make I recommend making it when you need it and sharing any leftovers instead of freezing.
More Pie Recipes You’ll Love:
Recipe
Sour Cream Raisin Pie
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups Raisins
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
- ¾ cup Light Brown Sugar
- ½ teaspoon Cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon Cloves , ground
- ¼ teaspoon Kosher Salt
- 1 cup Sour Cream
- 3 Eggs , lightly beaten
- 1 teaspoon Lemon Juice , freshly squeezed
- 9 " Pastry (pie) Shell {I used Whole Foods Gluten-Free Pie Crust)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Bring a kettle of water to a boil.
- Place the raisins and vanilla in a small bowl. Pour the boiling water just over the top of the raisins. Allow to sit for 10-15 minutes.
- Place pie shell in the heated oven and cook for 10 minutes.
- In a large bowl whisk together the brown sugar, cinnamon, cloves, salt, sour cream, eggs, and lemon juice, until fully combined.
- Drain the raisins and combine with the pie filling, mixing with a large spoon to incorporate.
- Spoon the filling into the pre-baked pie crust. Place the pie on a baking sheet, and into the oven. Bake for 35-40 minutes until the pie begins to brown slightly. Note: the pie filling will puff up above the pie crust while baking but will settle into a perfect custard when cooled.
- Allow pie to cool on a cooling rack until room temperature. Serve at room temperature or chilled. If desired, add whipped cream prior to serving.
Nutrition
Originally published June 14, 2013
Jocelyn (Grandbaby Cakes) says
This pie is absolutely perfect! I need this in my life.
Meghan says
Officially DYING to try this recipe! Sour cream and raisin sounds like a delish combo!
Jennifer Farley says
This sounds so tasty! I have to bake it!
Barbara Schieving says
My dad is always asking me to make these kids of old fashioned pies. Looks great.
Toni Dash says
It’s funny how there seems to be a vintage line in the sand with these types of desserts. Had I not been going through my Grandmother’s recipe box I’m not sure I would have known about this one!
Aysegul says
Very nice description and learned something more. Thanks for the details.
Sophie Baker says
It looks incredible – I bet this would work really well with cranberries or maybe even some kind of nut for a festive dessert too! Mine would probably be less neatly piped though!
Toni Dash says
That could be an interesting twist Sophie! You don’t have to pipe on the whipped cream; just spread it on!
mary says
well I am intrigued. I have never heard of this kind of pie. And had the same first thought – tapioca consistency – ehh not my style. But after seeing your pics and your description, I’m going to give it a try
Stacie says
Aww yeah. I can’t wait to make this! I’m a huge fan of baked goods made with fermented ingredients like sour cream and buttermilk. That sounds so good!
Brianne Manz says
I need to make this for the weekend. My family is going to love it. We’re all about the sweets!
Carrie says
I made a gluten-free, sugar free version using an almond flour crust. I subbed 1/2 cup of the raisins with dates, omitted the brown sugar and sweetened the sour cream mixture with stevia. It didn’t look pretty, but it tasted great with some stevia sweetened whip cream! Thanks for the recipe.
Toni Dash says
I love hearing back when readers have made changes to fit their needs and preferences Carrie! I love that you were able make it work for you. As long as it tastes good, that is all the matters!
Ginger Pack says
I have never liked raisins. So I may substitute cut up dates instead.
Toni Dash says
I would encourage you to try it as written. Soaking the raisins in water and vanilla makes them very plump and flavored like vanilla. When folded into the custard filling they are filled with the beautiful fall spices and I don’t know you’d even guess they are raisins! I completely understand your feelings since raisins so have a very distinct flavor normally. Also I think dates would be too heavy both in consistency and flavor to really replicate this unqiue pie. BUT if you try it please let me know how it turns out!
NancyB says
Searching online for a Sour Cream Pie recipe with whipped cream, yours was one of the first to come up. Now, I’ve been making Sour Cream Raisin Pie for almost our whole married life, which is 48 years! Before that, I had never heard of it either, but my husband kept talking about his mom’s raisin pie, which she made like an apple pie, only using just raisins. I do like raisins, but could not imagine such a pie being good! In an attempt to somewhat come up with a compromise, I found a recipe similar to yours in an old Betty Crocker cookbook, but with a meringue topping, and using the yolks in the stove top cooked custard. My meringue always weeps, but we love that pie, and so do most of the people who have tasted it. But thanks to your lovely story and recipe, I have something new to try! Oh, sometime back we decided to substitute some chopped walnuts for part of the raisins and wow! A great recipe made even better! Well, if you like it that way, as my husband likes to say. I really enjoyed reading your lovely story, thanks for sharing it. And for reading my lengthy comment!
Toni Dash says
I love comments like yours Nancy; thank you for your time in leaving it. I also love these desserts with such a mysterious but common past for so many of us. For some it is a completely obscure pie, and then for others such as your husband it is as commonplace as peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. It’s fascinating really. I will say regardless of my early reservations this pie does surprise and your substitutions to ‘make it work’ sound like perfection!
NancyB says
I spent some time last night reading your blog and loved your stories, too. I’ve made 5 or 6 of the Rose Cakes thanks to Amanda of I Am Baker, two of them this past weekend for a benefit auction. No one believes how easy they are to make, I’ll have to refer them to your post about making one! For the dessert bar at same benefit, one of the pies I made was a buttermilk, also a very old recipe, I believe. Lots of comments about that one, mostly from older people who hadn’t seen or tasted one in years. I have a pie crust chilled that will be used in making your Grandmother’s Sour Cream Raisin Pie…can’t wait to try it! I see several recipes from your entries that will be on the menu, soon. Thanks again!
Toni Dash says
I really love vintage recipes AND the very thing you are talking about with people coming forward to share their stories. One of my favorite posts was on a dessert from a well known San Francisco restaurant in my Grandparents generation (the post Angela Pia). After publishing the post I received emails for the next six months from various family members of the couple who owned the restaurant. Multiple generations of people who had lost touch, some having moved abroad. It was fascinating and heartwarming, reminding how food is so central to people.