If pies are on your Christmas dessert menu, then we’ve got both classic and creative ideas to spice up your holidays. Our traditional Chocolate Cream Pie will please the chocolate lovers in your family, while Nut Free Pecan’t Pie is perfect for anyone who wants the goodness of pecan pie—but without nuts. Cranberry Apple Pie, flavored with cardamom and brandy, can be made with a lattice or crumble top. Old-Fashioned Sour Cream Raisin Pie remains one of our most popular recipes year-round. Looking for other flavors? Try eggnog, pumpkin, peanut butter, apple, cherry, cranberry, and more.
Chocolate Cream Pie
Chocolate Cream Pie.
Blaine Moats
The filling of this chocolate-crust pie is luscious, but not too rich. (Think old-fashioned chocolate pudding.) A bit of sour cream in the whipped topping balances the filling for a decadent chocolate dessert. “The filling is so good, people always rave!” says a website reviewer.
Nut Free “Pecan’t” Pie
Pecan’t Pie.
Adam Albright
Gerard Klass, chef and co-owner of Soul Bowl in Minneapolis, created this genius sweet-and-salty pie. It calls for pretzels, so the nut allergy folks at the table can finally have in on the goodness of pecan pie.
Redemption Hazelnut Pie
Redemption Hazelnut Pie.
Andy Lyons
This super-sweet pie is like a traditional pecan pie, but made with hazelnuts. The recipe comes from Patty Pinner’s cookbook Sweety Pies.
Cranberry Apple Pie
Cranberry Apple Pie.
Kelsey Hansen
This beautiful pie, spiced with cardamom and flavored with apple brandy, might be the standout dessert your Christmas table is waiting for. The recipe comes from Pie Bird home bakery in Des Moines.
Old-Fashioned Sour Cream Raisin Pie
Old-Fashioned Sour Cream Raisin Pie.
Carson Downing
Sour cream raisin pie likely traces its roots to Mennonite communities who settled in the Midwest. It’s basically sweet, creamy, and totally delicious.
Bittersweet Chocolate Tart
Bittersweet Chocolate Tart.
Blaine Moats
Leaving this tart in a turned-off oven gives it a rich, creamy, pudding-like texture. The filling has just four ingredients—it’s so much easier than it looks! Just what you need to end a Christmas dinner.
Cranberry Crumble Pie
Cranberry Crumble Pie.
Lisa Ludwinski of Sister Pie in Detroit says this sweet-tart recipe, which she shares in her Sister Pie cookbook, might be her all-time favorite—especially served with vanilla ice cream.
Peanut Butter Chiffon Pie
Peanut Butter Chiffon Pie.
Blaine Moats
Your family members who love peanut butter desserts will be in their happy place if you make this for Christmas. Melba toast replaces graham cracker crumbs for a crisp, salty foil to the decadent filling.
Chocolate Eggnog Swirl Pie
Chocolate Eggnog Swirl Pie.
Serve your Christmas eggnog in this creamy pie, swirled with chocolate. The recipe is from the former Elsah Landing Restaurant in historic Elsah, Illinois, which was famous for its pies. “My family has made this recipe every year at Christmas for going on a decade,” says a website reviewer. “It’s a fan favorite and a hit at every potluck. We use almonds in the crust, and heavy cream in the filling. Sooo good!”
Black Bottom Oat Pie
Black Bottom Oat Pie.
Kelsey Hansen
This chewy, gooey, chocolate pie from Des Moines’ Pie Birds has the soul of the best oatmeal cookie you can imagine—with whiskey for extra flavor.
Frango Mint Chocolate Ice Cream Pie
Frango Mint Chocolate Ice Cream Pie.
Kritsada
Originating in the Walnut Room at Chicago’s iconic Marshall Field’s department store, this decadent graham cracker-crust pie is a Midwest holiday icon—and a perfect make-ahead Christmas dessert. It features a graham-cracker crust, and a filling of homemade chocolate ice cream flavored with Frango Mints.
Old-Fashioned Buttermilk Coconut Pie
Old-Fashioned Buttermilk-Coconut Pie.
Classic buttermilk pie gets a nice flavor boost from flaked coconut. Using a refrigerated piecrust helps it all come together quickly.
Gingerbread Hand Pies
Gingerbread Hand Pies.
Kelsey Hansen
If you think brown sugar and cinnamon Pop-Tarts are the best flavor, you’ll love these hand pies from Des Moines’ Pie Bird bakery. For an easy chocolate swap, skip the filling and instead put a dollop of Nutella in each pie.
Spiced Cherry Pie
Spiced Cherry Pie.
Robert Jacobs
This beautiful double-crust fruit pie uses frozen unsweetened pitted tart red cherries sweetened with sugar and flavored with cinnamon and allspice. (Did you know that Michigan produces about 75 percent of the nation’s tart red cherries?)
Toasted Marshmallow Sweet Potato Pie
This pie is a bit of a time commitment, but what a showstopper! The recipe comes from the Sister Pie cafe in Detroit.
USS Missouri Buttermilk Pie
USS Missouri Buttermilk Pie.
This creamy, pecan-custard pie takes its name from the battleship Missouri, where the pie was said to be served to President Harry Truman. The recipe was submitted by a Columbia, Missouri, reader.
Pumpkin Chiffon Pie
Pumpkin Chiffon Pie.
A spiced filling, made from whipped cream, creates a lighter-tasting version of traditional pumpkin pie—one of our readers’ favorite pumpkin recipes. The gingersnap crust adds more kick than classic crusts.
Triple Pear Pie with Walnut Crust
Triple Pear Pie with Walnut Crust.
Blaine Moats
You can’t mistake the fruit in this cardamom-spiced beauty. Pear nectar and dried pears complement thick slices of fresh, juicy Bosc pears.
Dining and Cooking