Enjoy the fresh mountain air, great vibes, and food at Wild Mountain Music Festival in the Heart of the Canadian Rocky Mountains. These Sour Cherry Cheesecake Hand Pies are a great make ahead for any music festival. Just bake and share!
Disclaimer:This post has been sponsored by The Wild Mountain Music Festival. I feel very fortunate to have been given passes to the event and compensated monetarily for my time.
It’s Music Festival Season in Alberta!
Summer season is here and music festivals are popping up all around the province! Last summer we were recovering after our son’s May wedding in Maui so we were pretty house bound but this year we’re going to be making the most out of Summer 2018 by getting out there and attending some amazing events.
Soon we’ll be digging the old tent trailer out of storage and hauling it up to Hinton Alberta for the Wild Mountain Music Festival. Three days of camping in the fresh mountain air in the picturesque Alberta Northern Rockies (right at the doorstep of Jasper National Park). We’ll fall asleep to the soothing sound of amazing Canadian artists and wake up to fresh mountain air.
I’m going to slow right down, throw on a hoodie, and pop a cold one while I chill in my festival chair. Though I have a million things to do before then, I can almost feel my heart relax and become one with the beat already.
Let’s Go Festival Camping
By the time we attend Wild Mountain Music Festival (July 13-15, 2018), we will officially be empty nesters! It’s a bit shocking to me as it feels like it was only yesterday that we were packing up the tent, camping gear, dogs, and kids then heading Eastward to my childhood home for the Ness Creek Folk Festival.
Our oldest must have been around 10; old enough to be hungry all the damn time but young enough to worry about bears coming to eat us in our tent.
So many memories of that time in our lives are coming back now…the younger kids crafting all day and getting painted up for the children’s parade, the oldest scowling in a blanket under the stars, the sounds coming from the vibe tent as we drifted off to sleep in the fresh air and the FOOD! Ha ha!
Come on, you know food would come up at some point after all, this IS a food blog. That particular Festival was pretty bare bones but they had a communal kitchen where you could bring food and volunteer your time to feed yourself and your family.
There were few food trucks back then but I’ll never forget the bliss I felt eating Sour Cherry Pie under the stars with my children all passed out on the blanket around me. There wasn’t anywhere else in the world I wanted to be at that single moment.
So many people think that having kids slows you down but really they just keep you grounded in the most amazing way.
Who Doesn’t Love Festival Food?
Food trucks are much more mainstream now and I’m looking forward to checking out the variety available at Wild Mountain Music Festival.
I wouldn’t be a true food lover if I didn’t do my research ahead of time. I know that hubby will be most excited for tummy filling perogies and sausage while I am most intrigued by the ‘Tacos in a Bag’ concept. Let’s be honest, I’m pretty much up for Taco ANYTHING.
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Sausages and Perogies vs. Taco in a Bag?
The Wild Mountain Music Festival Lineup
Today I took a look at the Festival line up. I was thrilled to find Tom Cochrane with Red Rider as the Saturday headliner. I’m for sure dating myself but I would be remiss if I didn’t reveal that ‘Life is a Highway’ was the theme to my high school graduation!
Speaking of high school, one of the other acts on Saturday is Ayla Brook & The Soundmen. I went to high school with Ayla and he’s a true performer. It was a thrill to attend his shows back then because I had such a huge crush on him.
In yet another bizarre high school connection, Winnipeg native and two time Juno Award winner Fred Penner will be performing at Wild Mountain too! I didn’t go to high school with Fred Penner (how old do you think I am?!) but my father in law did.
Mr. Penner’s music was a prominent fixture in our home as our children grew up. I’m honoured to have the chance to see him perform live right here in Alberta. Here’s a list of the 2018 Wild Mountain Music Festival Lineup…there seems to be a little something for everyone!
Let’s Go Together
Those are just the artists that I know and there’s so much more to discover. I’ve been listening to some of the ‘new to me’ artists online as I write this post. It is such a unique to discover music from all over Canada.
If you’re like 2017 me and dreading another beautiful summer weekend being stuck at home…just don’t! Grab some weekend passes to Wild Mountain Music Festival, organize that camping gear and meet me there. I’ll even have a cold beer waiting for you! Passes are available for the full weekend and on a daily basis but with this lineup I think you’ll won’t want to miss a beat.
Sour Cherry Cheesecake Pie
Did you read that whole post with the words Sour Cherry Pie stuck in your head? Today is your lucky day. I’m so excited to share this recipe for these Sour Cherry Cheesecake Hand Pies.
They taste just like the ones I associate with my most cherished music festival memory. They freeze well so make a batch to share at your next music festival.
Get Pie-eyed with these Dish ‘n’ the Kitchen Pie Posts:
Chocolate Pecan Pie with Bourbon
If you make these Sour Cherry Cheesecake Hand Pies, please be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Be sure to follow me on Facebook and Pinterest for my latest recipes. Also, if you do make this recipe, please tag me on Instagram, I’d love to see what you guys are making! Thank you so much for reading my blog.
Sour Cherry Cheesecake Hand Pies
Enjoy the fresh mountain air, great vibes, and food at Wild Mountain Music Festival in the Heart of the Canadian Rocky Mountains. These Sour Cherry Cheesecake Hand Pies are a great make ahead for any music festival. Just bake and share!
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups (360 grams) all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 Tablespoon sugar (optional)
- 1 cup (227 grams) very cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes (2 sticks)
- 6 to 8 tablespoons ice water
FOR THE FILLING
- 1 cup frozen pitted sour cherries
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch
- 2 Tablespoons cold water
- 1 - 8 oz package (250 g) cream cheese
- 1 egg; beaten
Instructions
FOR THE PASTRY
- Add 1 1/2 cups flour, salt and sugar to a food processor. Pulse 2 to 3 times until combined.
- Scatter butter cubes over flour and process for 20 seconds until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
- Add remaining cup of flour and process another 15 seconds. It will look nice and ‘sandy’.
- While processor is running, drizzle 6 tablespoons of ice water over mixture. Eventually the crumbs should begin to form larger clusters. Once the dough holds together in a large clump, it’s ready.
- Remove dough from processor bowl and place in a mound on a clean surface. Work the dough just enough to form a ball (do not overwork).
- Cut ball in half then form each half into discs. Wrap each disc with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 1 hour, and up to 2 days. You can also freeze it for up to 3 months (just thaw it overnight in the fridge before using).
FOR THE FILLING
- Place Sour Cherries (frozen or fresh) in a small saucepan. Add sugar and simmer until sugar dissolves.
- Mix cornstarch in the cold water and pour into simmering cherries. Stir to avoid clumping.
- Allow mixture to thicken then gradually add slices of cream cheese. Allow the sour cream to melt into the cherries, stirring often to avoid scorching.
- Allow filling to cool.
TO MAKE THE PIES
- Before rolling, take pastry out and let sit for five minutes. Flour your work surface and roll one disk of dough out. Cut your preferred hand pie shapes.
- Place 1 tbsp filling on your pastry shape, brush bottom edges with egg wash and seal carefully. Pierce pasty to allow steam to escape while baking.
- Brush egg wash over top of hand pie. Scatter coarse sugar over the egg wash.
- Place on baking sheet and bake at 375 F until golden brown, 20 minutes. Share with friends at the festival.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
15Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 210Total Fat: 6gSaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 2gCholesterol: 29mgSodium: 189mgCarbohydrates: 32gFiber: 1gSugar: 15gProtein: 6g
Nutritional calculation was provided by Nutritionix and is an estimation only. For special diets or medical issues please use your preferred calculator.
That is great that you get to experience the Music Festival as an Empty Nester and yet also have so many wonderful memories of when you were there with your children. Wish I was closer – I would love to meet you, Bernice! Enjoy the Festival (I adore Fred Penner!) I will make those little sour cherry pies – they are adorable! Thanks so much for sharing.
Looks like a perfect summertime picnic food! Cherries and cheesecake all wrapped up in a neat and tidy package. Yum.
See you there!!
The pies look delish!!! Blue Rodeo at a festival in Calgary…my first festival..so many memories!
Ah…they are SO great to see live!
This event looks amazing, had I not seen this blogpost I wouldn’t have known about it at all! Festivals, the food and the people…. 🙌🏼
I know! It’s kind of like a hidden gem. I’m really excited to go. Plus, it may be the only opportunity for us to camp this summer as well.
My favourite part about festivals is meeting new people!
Agree! We met some really awesome people a few weekends ago at an outdoor concert in Banff. It’s just not the same indoors…
Cannot wait to spend some time with you in the wonderful setting of the festival! Loved your post and those sour cherry hand pies!