Pie recipes often hold traditions—whether it’s a decadent pumpkin pie or apple pie for Thanksgiving, a pecan pie for Christmas, or a lemon meringue pie for a summer celebration. No matter which event you are baking up a pie for, it is easily a staple in the dessert lineup. And while the classic pies out there are delicious, there’s so much room to get creative with your recipe—beyond the conventional ingredients that we’ve all become accustomed to.

That’s why you should start putting herbs in your pie crust. This tip can be used for any pie, simple or complicated, from a refreshing strawberry pie to the perfect key lime pie with coconut rum whipped cream. Now, before you scoff at the idea of adding any sort of ingredient to your already perfected pie crust, hear us out.

Why You Should Put Herbs in Your Pie Crust

Pie crust is usually viewed as the vehicle aiding the real flavor: the mixture stuffed inside of the pie (apples, peaches, cherries, meat, etc.). If you’re using a homemade recipe, then pie crust usually only consists of four ingredients: butter or shortening, all-purpose flour, salt, and cold water. Because of those basic elements, the fruits, vegetables, creams, or whatever filling you’re using is designed to shine.

But what if you looked at pie crust as a blank canvas instead? Due to the fact that it is made up of so few ingredients, there is so much more opportunity to play around with different flavor profiles. In turn, including herbs will enhance the flavor of the pie as a whole—because every component of a scrumptious pie matters!

The Best Herbs and Spices To Use in Pie Crust

The herbs that you choose to throw into your pie dough depend on the current season and type of pie you’re cooking. For example, warming seasonings like finely chopped sprinkles of dried thyme or rosemary (which also work extremely well together) would be a complete game changer for Thanksgiving pies, like an apricot pie or the aforementioned pumpkin and apple pie. 

Thyme offers an earthy and savory flavoring, while rosemary offers a strong, herbal taste that gives more of a piney finish. If you’re aiming for a buttery pie crust with some sort of brown butter pie, then you may want to add sage, which is also a common flavor pairing during the fall months. In the summer, basil, mint, chives, oregano, and dill are fantastic inclusions to pie crust. During the winter season, additional spices like cinnamon, cardamom, ginger, and turmeric are solid options, as well (just imagine a pie crust seasoned with cinnamon in a sweet potato pie, yum!).

If you’re really looking to get adventurous with your ingredients, you can even throw some grated cheese into the pie dough. Think about how tasty that can be with savory ingredients, like a meat pie or chicken pot pie. The common thread here is that the options are endless. Experiment with various flavor profiles in the kitchen to see which tastes you and your loved ones find enjoyable. Trust us on this—once you start adding herbs to your pie crust, you’ll never look back.