BLUEBERRY PIE A LA 'MERICAN

in my humble opinion, there is nothing that speaks summer so thoroughly as a homemade, freshmade blueberry pie. most americans would say apple, and to that I say, 'what up?' apples are for autumn. summer is all about berries. berries that I may or may not have smuggled in from the not-so-neighboring coast of florida via my carry on during my last trip home. in all fairness, I did answer 'yes' on my immigration form when it asked me if I had any perishables. conscience clear. and rightly so because I would hate to be feeling guilty whist eating this delicious blueberry pie. I started off giving the top crust a stars-and-stripes appeal, but having not created a lattice since pastry class (circa autumn 2012), I couldn't resist! so I guess you can call this design 'stars-and-lattice'--not nearly as catchy but tasty, all the same. so let's talk recipe :: this recipe was adapted from this version by herriott grace compared with this version from pioneer woman with my own tastes and preferences thrown in there for good measure. the mister and I both really enjoyed devouring up the outcome. check it out.

for the crust ::

3 cups all-purpose flour ( plus plenty more for dusting )

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 cup sugar

1 cup cold butter

1 cold egg

about 1 cup cold water

2 tsp apple cider vinegar

step 001 :: combine all of your dry ingredients in a rather large bowl. 

step 002 :: add butter. with a pastry cutter, work the butter into the dry mixture. depending on climate and environment, this can take a little while. if your butter is melting all over the place, stick it in the fridge for a second, and then pull out and continue. when your butter/dry ingredient mixture resembles coarse meal, you're good to go.

step 003 :: crack egg into a 250 ml or one cup pyrex jug. beat slightly. then, fill with cold water to the one cup line. combine all of the liquid ingredients and make sure the end result is fridge-worthy cold. pour them over your coarse meal, mixing ever so slightly, and then scoop up into a ball. sit in the refrigerator for 10-15 minutes so as to relax all of your gluten strands. you can get started on your oh-so-easy pie filling as you wait.

step 004 :: pull your ball of dough out of the fridge. dust your surface exceedingly and begin the roll out rotating dough wad 90 degrees with each roll of your pin ( this prevents sticking, which in turn, prevents holes ). continue doing so until your dough measures a quarter of an inch. in school, they literally measured ours, but simply eye yours ;)

step 005 :: place your rolled-out dough in a greased pie tin so as to have a couple of inches overlap hanging on each side. fold overlap into the pie so as to avoid a raw edge and begin your design. there are so many and everyone has their favorite. for the classic design above, I simply placed the index finger of one hand between the pie tin and the dough and then pinched it from the other side with the index and middle finger of the other hand. then, I just evenly spaced this design along the remaining perimeter of my pie crust.

step 006 :: form your top crust. this is where you really get to make your pie your own. for the stars-and-not-quite-stripes, it's obvious that I didn't have a star cookie cutter and I wish I had. however, that is the beauty of homemade things...they are seldom ever flawless, but they are perfection, just the same.

for the lattice :: roll out another wad of dough on your work surface. using your rolling pin as a straight-enough edge and a pizza cutter for cutting, cut one inch strips in your dough. place one set of strips loosely on top of your otherwise-ready pie with a few inches hanging over each edge. the less they touch that colorful filling, the better! then, simply lift up every other  original strip and place a new strip down. replace original strips when finished. keep doing this alternating the original strips lifted until you've covered the whole pie. using a knife, trim the overhang so that no dough is left hanging over your pie.

for the blueberry filling ::

3 cups blueberries

1/4 cup white sugar

3 tbsp all-purpose flour

3 tbsp honey

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1tbsp butter

steps :: combine all of your ingredients in a dye-proof bowl stirring until mostly mixed. spoon into awaiting crust. if you're doing a lattice top crust, it is really helpful to not overfill your pie as your original strips will get all gooey and blue making it a little more difficult. however, I never notice things like that once that pie is in my belly ;)

bake it ::

once ready to bake, lather that top crust with a little egg white and then sprinkle with a mixture of 1/4 cup white sugar and 1 tbsp cinnamon

preheat oven to 425 degrees fahrenheit

bake for 30 minutes or until top is golden brown

and there it is! it really was deliciously easy, hey? it had been so long since I had made a pie, that I was a little nervous that a) it would take a ridiculously long time, and b) that I would forget some crucial step. and although I wasn't nearly as organized as I would have liked to be, it was incredible how easy it was to recall all that I had once learned whilst at school. 

and one more little tip that I didn't learn at school :: my mother-in-law premakes all sorts of pies while she's in the pie-baking mood and then freezes them before baking. then, when she feels so inspired to have pie for dessert, she pulls one out of the freezer, lets it defrost, and tosses it in the oven. absolutely genius!

I hope that this is the beginning of many wonderful summer and fall pies for all of us! I know that I am a little more than anxious to make another. have a terrific tuesday! it feels so invigorating to tell you all that I'm off to work!

love, arielle