This Fresh Peach Pie capitalizes on delicious and naturally sweet peaches while they're in season. We create a flaky and tender whole wheat crust, and use warming spices to complement the peaches without added sugar. We love everything about this healthy peach pie!
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I am in love with all things summer, especially fresh summer fruits! So of course I needed to make a healthy peach pie that was whole grain, low in saturated fat and sodium, and low to no added sugar.
It's been a long time since I started developing this, but it's finally ready! Grab your forks and plates, and dig in! Also try my Cherry Galette with Olive Oil Crust, which is sort of like a free-form pie!
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Heart Health Benefits of Healthy Peach Pie
We all probably know two things about peach pie. One: peaches are pretty healthy! Two: pie is not.
Your average pie - even homemade ones - feature refined flour crusts made with lots of butter and/or shortening, among other ingredients. These result in a tender and flaky crust, that is also high in simple carbohydrates and saturated and trans fats. Not to mention the sometimes CUPS of sugar added to the already naturally sweet fruit filling!
We change all that here and now! We start with whole wheat pastry flour for the crust. This creates a hearty, nutty crust, full of fiber. Then, instead of butter or shortening, we use olive oil, which is high in heart healthy monounsaturated fat, and low in saturated fat (and trans fat free). These, combined with the other crust ingredients create a flaky, hearty crust, that is perfect for any fruit filling! Turns out, this also makes it a vegan peach pie!
Our peach filling is a pretty typical fruit filling, minus one very important thing. ADDED SUGAR! We find in season peaches to be plenty sweet, and add some warming spices to them to amplify it a little more. We're using 100% peach nectar to provide a little extra juiciness to the filling, without that added sugar. Our pie has half the total sugar of popular "take and bake" frozen peach pies, and none of the added sugar!
Bottom line: our peach pie is high in fiber and heart healthy monounsaturated fats, while being low in saturated fat, sodium, and added sugars. It's also a good source of vitamins C and E.
Ingredients
Surprisingly simple ingredients combine for our delicious, added sugar free peach pie.
- Whole wheat pastry flour
- Salt
- Olive oil
- Ice water
- Vinegar
- Peaches
- Peach nectar
- Lemon juice
- Cinnamon
- Cardamom
- Nutmeg
- Cornstarch
See recipe card for quantities.
Instructions
While there are a lot of steps in making pies, most of them aren't too difficult. Follow these step by step pictures!
- Step 1: Combine the flour and salt in a large bowl, and add the rest of the crust ingredients.
- Step 2: Stir everything together until it becomes too thick for a spoon. Then use your hands to form a ball. Cover and refrigerate.
- Step 3: Boil a pot of water. Cut an "X" in the bottom of each peach. Submerge in boiling water until the skin starts to peel away.
- Step 4: Submerge in ice water immediately, and cool to the touch.
- Step 5: Peel the peaches and slice into a pot.
- Step 6: Add lemon juice and spices, and bring to simmer. Whisk peach nectar and cornstarch, and pour into peaches.
- Step 7: Simmer and stir for a few minutes, until thickened. Remove from heat and set aside.
- Step 8: Cut the dough in half, and place one half on a floured surface.
- Step 9: Roll out the dough until it's large enough for your pie plate with a little overhang. Move the dough to the pie plate.
- Step 10: Add the filling.
- Step 11: Roll out the other half of the dough until it's large enough for your pie with a little overhang. Moisten the rim of the bottom pie dough with a little water to help seal the top and bottom together.
- Step 12: Move the top dough onto the pie, and gently press the top and bottom dough together.
- Step 13: Gently roll the excess dough under the top of the pie, onto the rim of the plate, or just cut it off with a knife and use a fork to press the dough around the edges. Cut slits in the top for venting.
- Step 14: Bake for ten minutes at 450 degrees F, then reduce heat and bake for one hour at 350 degrees F. Cool completely before cutting.
Hint: Use a pie crust shield to prevent burning of the crust edges.
Substitutions
- Peach nectar - use mango nectar if it's more available - you won't taste the difference!
- Oil - use another oil you prefer, like grapeseed, peanut, canola, or even vegetable oil
- Peaches - you can use the exact same recipe with nectarines, apricots, or any variety of peaches
Variations
- Classic peach pie - leave out the spices for a more classic peach pie
- Gluten free - use an all purpose gluten free flour to make the crust
- Spiced up - add extra cardamom and/or nutmeg, and consider adding some ginger, too
Try this Cherry Galette, which doesn't even need a pie plate!
Equipment
For this pie recipe, you'll use basic equipment you would expect to use to make a pie. You will need a 9 inch pie plate*, which is the typical size of a pie you would purchase at a bakery.
You'll also need measuring cups and spoons, a liquid measuring cup, mixing bowls and mixing spoons, and a few medium sized pots with lids.
And let's not forget a rolling pin*! I like to use a pastry mat* to roll out my dough on, too, but this is not required. It makes clean up much easier, though. Lastly, you may want a crust shield* to prevent the edges of your pie from burning. You can also simply use aluminum foil for this.
* These are affiliate links, and are provided for your convenience.
Storage
Uncut, this pie will be fine on the counter for about a day. After that, and after you slice it, it should be covered and stored in the refrigerator.
Once baked, the pie won't freeze well. You could freeze it once it's totally assembled, but before baking. It will keep for about 3 months in the freezer. Thaw completely before baking.
Pro tip
For easier transferring of rolled out dough to the pie plate, place a sheet of parchment paper over your pastry mat or other silicone mat, and roll out the dough on that. The dough won't stick to the parchment paper, and it's really easy to lift the paper to transfer the dough. This is a technique I use in the above process photos.
FAQ
Technically, no. We use the vinegar to add to the flakiness of the crust. You won't taste it. Promise! But you can leave it out if you'd prefer.
Yes. If peaches are out of season, you can use 3-4 cups of frozen peaches to make this pie.
While you can use any variety you prefer, yellow peaches tend to give the best, tastiest results in pies. White peaches tend to be overly sweet, but will still be delicious in this sugar free peach pie!
Related
Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:
Pairing
These are my favorite dishes to serve with healthy peach pie:
📖 Recipe
Fresh Peach Pie {no added sugar}
Ingredients
For the dough:
- 3 - 3 ¼ cup Whole Wheat Pastry Flour
- ½ teaspoon Salt
- ⅔ cup Olive Oil
- ½ cup Very Cold Water
- 1 tablespoon Vinegar
For the Filling
- 2 lbs ripe Peaches (about 5 large peaches) peeled and sliced
- 1 tablespoon Lemon Juice
- ½ tablespoon Cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon Cardamom
- ⅛ teaspoon Nutmeg
- ½ cup 100% Juice Peach Nectar (or Mango Nectar) SEE NOTES
- 3 tablespoon Cornstarch
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 450° F.
Make the dough
- Combine 3 cups flour and salt in a large bowl.
- Add the olive oil, water, and vinegar, and stir to combine. Use your hands to mix when it starts to get too thick for a spoon.
- Add a little more flour if it seems too wet.
- Shape into a ball, cover with a damp towel or plastic wrap, and place in the refrigerator until you’re ready to roll it out.
Prepare the Peaches
- If you haven’t already, blanch the peaches and remove the skins. Do this by bringing a pot of water, deep enough to submerge the peaches, to a boil.
- Cut an “X” into the bottom of each peach. Carefully lower them into the boiling water. You may need to do this in batches.
- Boil for a few minutes until you see the skin start to peel away at the “X”, then remove from the pot and immediately submerge the peaches in ice water.
- Once they’re cool enough to touch, you can easily peel off the skin, and slice the peaches into a pot to make the filling. I recommend slicing them over the pot to capture all the juices! Note: if your peaches are underripe, they will be difficult to peel no matter what you do.
Make the filling
- Add the peach slices to a pot, and combine with lemon juice, cinnamon, cardamom, and nutmeg, over medium heat.
- Whisk the cornstarch into the peach (or mango) nectar, and slowly pour it into the pot with the peaches. Stir.
- Simmer and stir for a few minutes, until the filling is thickened.
- Remove the dough from the refrigerator, divide in half, and place one half on a floured surface. Use a rolling pin to roll out the dough so it is large enough to go in your pie plate with a little overhang.
- Move the rolled out dough to the pie plate. Use a bit of water as “glue” to seal any tears that happen.
- Pour the peach filling into the bottom pie crust.
- Roll out the other half of the dough the same way.
- Use your finger to spread a thin layer of water around the rim of the bottom pie crust, and place the top pie crust over the pie.
- Gently press around the rim to seal the two crusts together.
- Roll the extra crust around the edges under itself and onto the rim of the plate, or simply cut off the extra dough.
- Cut slits in the top of the pie to vent.
- Place in the oven at 450° F for 10 minutes, then lower the temperature to 350° F and bake for 60 minutes. Watch the edges and add a crust shield if they are browning too quickly.
- Cool completely on a wire rack before slicing.
Notes
Nutrition
*Nutrition information is an estimate, and will change based on the brand and individual ingredients and amounts you use. This is provided for your convenience only.
Food safety
Safety is our top priority in the kitchen! Always keep these tips in mind.
- Cook to a minimum temperature of 165 °F (74 °C)
- Do not use the same utensils on cooked food, that previously touched raw meat
- Wash hands before touching food, and after touching raw meat, your hair, face, pets, etc.
- Don't leave food that should be either hot or cold sitting out at room temperature for longer than 2 hours (or 1 hour if the weather is hot)
- Never leave cooking food unattended
- Always have good ventilation when using a gas stove
jacquie says
How can you say you don't add sugar when you add the nectar which has 28 grams of sugar? yes it is still fruit base but you are adding sugar to the recipe. why not just use the peaches themselves as your "no sugar added" suggested you did?
Laura Yautz says
Hi Jacquie, thanks for your question. I say this recipe has no added sugar, because there is no added sugar in it. I have misrepresented nothing.
The peach nectar I recommend is a 100% juice blend, with no added sugar, as you can confirm in the ingredients list. The sugars listed on the nectar label are natural sugars in the fruit, not added sugar. For reference, the 2 pounds of fresh peaches in the recipe add a total of 73 grams of sugar. Again, naturally occurring fruit sugar, not added sugar. Per the FDA: “Added sugars include sugars that are added during the processing of foods (such as sucrose or dextrose), foods packaged as sweeteners (such as table sugar), sugars from syrups and honey, and sugars from concentrated fruit or vegetable juices. They do not include naturally occurring sugars that are found in milk, fruits, and vegetables.”
The peach nectar is not a concentrated fruit juice, and is not classified as an added sugar.
It is true that fruit juice - even 100% fruit juice - should not be overconsumed. It's easy to do, and doesn't have the same satiety factors as a whole piece of fruit. So we use only 1/2 cup of it in this recipe that serves 10 people (not even the 1 cup serving size listed on the label you read). I trialed this recipe many times, and several early attempts without the nectar. The filling was not juicy enough, and didn't really feel like a pie. My goal is always to makes recipes both healthy and enjoyable.
I'd encourage you to try it without the nectar if you are concerned about it. That's what's great about making things yourself; you're in control.