The Simple Secret To Elevate Your Canned Pie Filling

We'll always have a soft spot for canned pie filling. It's the thing to reach for when you're pressed for time but still want to pull off a classic dessert. However, canned pie filling's crime is that it doesn't live up to its homemade counterpart with a hearty quality unique to each kitchen it emerges from — but the simple trick of adding butter will improve it. The thing about butter is that it makes almost anything taste better. It's the secret to the richest homemade ice cream you'll ever try while slathering butter on Irish soda bread completes its flavors. But how does butter fare when it comes to canned pie filling?

Extremely well, actually. Being a fat, butter offers that premium mouthfeel that rounds out creamy foods, including canned pie filling. So you can expect an upgrade just like you get when you add a fatty element like sour cream to make a richer box cake mix. Butter will also thicken your canned pie filling. Sure, it may not be one of the best thickening ingredients like flour or cornstarch for things like soup, but it adds a silkiness that gives your filling a beautiful glossy finish. All that fat will make for an excellent final texture of your canned pie filling and an overall great palate experience.

You could be making a simple pie or exploring other ways to use canned pie filling, but the approach when adding butter remains largely the same: Add a few cubes to the filling. For pies, add the filling to the pie and then the cubes of butter before placing the crust on top to bake. The butter will melt right into the canned pie filling as it cooks and enrich it with creamy flavors. This can work with other canned pie filling desserts such as mountain pie, where you add a bit of butter to the filling before pressing it, or a cobbler, where you add butter to the filling before pouring your dry cake mix on top.

That said, if butter isn't your favorite ingredient out there, there are still numerous other ways to elevate your canned pie filling. For example, fresh apples will add that much-needed crispiness to an otherwise soft pie center. Or, you can turn to vanilla extract and spicy herbs like cinnamon to complement your canned peach pie filling. And while these alternatives promise a texture-rich and aromatic finish, adding butter to your canned pie filling will deliver a rich taste and silky texture that mimics its homespun counterpart.