Homemade Blueberry Pie By Rose Arrowsmith DeCoux
The clack of the rolling pin. The smell of bubbling fruit. The first oozing slice served warm (or the last cold one eaten standing up for a midnight snack). Pie is a magical thing, and with a little practice it’s as easy as youknow-what. ready when it will hold its shape when gently formed into a ball.
Divide dough into two even balls, handling minimally. If it won’t hold together, go back a step. Wrap in plastic and chill in refrigerator, or freeze for later use.
Cornstarch Slurry Double Crust Pie Even if you have to patch it up, a homemade crust is always going to impress people more than something from the grocery store. Work it quickly, as if you’re a pioneer woman in a hurry; this will keep things light and flaky. A splash of vinegar gives the dough a subtle savory flavor.
3 cups flour 1 tablespoon sugar 1 teaspoon salt 16 tablespoons lard, frozen (or half lard, half butter/shortening) 1 tablespoon good vinegar ½ cup ice water (it’s ok to use more) Whisk together the dry ingredients. Grate frozen lard using the large side of a cheese grater, then cut it into the flour mixture with a pastry cutter or food processor until the lard is just smaller than dried peas. Any smaller and your crust won’t be as flaky.
Mix water and vinegar; use something nice enough for a vinaigrette dressing, not the cheap white stuff. Then dribble the water over the dough and fluff with a fork (don’t stir!) until it begins to come together. It’s
Berry pies often call for a thickener like cornstarch. But if the filling never reaches a boiling point, the cornstarch doesn’t get activated, and you get a runny pie with a soggy bottom crust. By making the slurry first, you can see the consistency of your filling before it goes into the oven.
Gently fold the slurry into your fruit filling. It should begin to resemble canned pie filling more and more as it cools.
Blueberry Pie Few things taste more like summer than blueberry pie. You can substitute half the fruit with rhubarb, strawberries, or peaches for variety.
3 tablespoons cornstarch ⅓ cup sugar 11 ounces water Whisk together the cornstarch and two pinches of sugar. Whisk in about a fourth of the water. The mixture should be cloudy and opaque.
7-8 cups blueberries, thawed and drained if frozen 1 lemon, grated and juiced ½-⅔ cup sugar Dash salt Cornstarch slurry 2 tablespoons butter Mix all ingredients and fold in slurry.
Sprinkle your surface with flour, and generously flour the rolling pin. Roll out the bottom crust, working from the center outward in quick motions. Gently fold in half, slide into a 10-inch glass or ceramic pie plate and unfold. Trim the crust to extend just beyond the rim of the plate. (Save the scraps: they’re delicious sprinkled with cinnamon and sugar and baked
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Bring the remaining water and sugar to a boil. Whisk in the cornstarch mixture and boil for one minute, whisking continuously. Remove from heat.
on a cookie sheet for 10-15 minutes.)
Pour the filling into the pie shell and dot with sliced butter. If you’ve got extra filling, set it aside for another use.
Brush a little water on the lip of the bottom crust and drape the top crust over the pie. Trim the edges, leaving about an inch and a half. Tuck the top crust around the bottom crust and crimp with your fingers or a fork to seal. Make decorative steam vents with a knife or a fork and brush with egg wash (one egg beaten with ⅛ teaspoon salt) and sprinkle with sugar.
Set the pie on a cookie sheet to catch spills. Bake at 425F for 15 minutes on lower rack, then for 35-50 minutes at 350F on upper rack. Add a pie shield or use tin foil to prevent the crimped edges from over-browning. It’s done when the filling is bubbling and the crust is white or golden like a sugar cookie, and feels sturdy when tapped. Allow to cool for at least one hour so the filling can set. Serve a la mode or with whipped cream.
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JULY 2018
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