BLUEBERRY PIE

Most of us have a soft spot for pies. To me it brings back the time watching my grandmother making pies from scratch and helping her roll out the dough. I would wait impatiently peaking in front of the oven for the pie to brown. Then waiting for it to cool and finally a big slice of delicious pie topped with an even bigger scoop of vanilla ice cream. In my previous post, I gave you the recipe for my favorite pie crust so now it is time to make a pie! And what could be more delicious than a blueberry pie loaded with plump blueberries.

2 rolled out rounds of perfect pie crust dough
4 c. blueberries
1 T. lemon juice
3/4 c. granulated sugar
3 T. cornstarch
1/2 tsp. grated lemon peel
1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon

Egg Wash
1 lg. egg yolk
1 T. cream

Fold 1 dough round in half and transfer to a 9-inch pie dish. Unfold and ease into the pan and pat it firmly into the bottom and up the sides of the pan. Trim the edge of the dough leaving 3/4-inch of overhang. Set aside until ready to use. Place the blueberries in a large bowl and sprinkle with the lemon juice and toss to coat evenly. In a small bowl, stir together the sugar, cornstarch, lemon peel and cinnamon. Sprinkle the sugar mixture over the berries and toss to distribute evenly. Transfer to the dough-lined pan. Fold the remaining dough round in half and carefully position it over half of the filled pie. Unfold and trim the edge neatly, leaving 1-inch overhang, then fold the edge of the top round under the edge of the bottom round and crimp the edges to seal. In a small bowl, beat the egg yolk and cream and brush evenly over the pastry and pastry rim. Make a few slits near center of pie to allow steam to escape. Wrap edges of pie with strip of aluminum foil to prevent excess browning. Refrigerate the pie until the dough is firm 20 to 30 minutes. Position a rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat to 375 degrees F. Remove the chilled pie from the fridge and place on a larger baking pan, to catch any spills. Bake the pie until the crust is golden and the filling is thick and bubbling, 50 to 60 minutes. Place the baked pie on a wire rack to cool for several hours. Serve at room temp with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.

Note: If using frozen blueberries (do not thaw) and increase the baking time by 10 to 15 minutes.

MAKING THE PERFECT PIE CRUST

Everyone has their favorite pie crust recipe. Some contain all butter, others a combination of butter and shortening, or just all shortening and the list goes on. Last fall, when it was time to make all the delicious pies for the season, apple, pumpkin, pecan, etc. I went in search of the perfect pie crust. I had a good recipe, but I wanted something really special. One that was flaky, tender and very easy to work with. Well after much trial and error, I found the perfect recipe and will not use another pie crust recipe ever again. I am not exactly sure where this recipe originated but it probably was in a 1950's or 1960's woman's magazine from some of the research that I did. Maybe some of you use this recipe already. If not, I urge you to give it a try. I don't think you will be disappointed. I sent the recipe to a good friend of mine in California and she was thrilled with the results. She declared it the perfect pie crust. I will be posting some delicious summer pie recipes to go with your perfect pie crust!

4 c. all-purpose flour

1 T. granulated sugar

2 tsp. salt

1 ¾ c. Crisco shortening, cut into pieces

½ c. cold water

1 T. white distilled vinegar

1 lg. egg

In large bowl, stir together the flour, sugar and salt. Cut the shortening in with a pastry blender until crumbly. In small bowl, beat together the water, vinegar and egg. Add to flour mixture. Stir until all ingredients are moistened. Divide dough into 4 or 5 portions and flatten each into a flat round patty ready for rolling. Wrap each patty in plastic and if using any of them right away chill for at least ½ hour. Otherwise freeze the others and remove from freezer about 30 minutes before using.

To prebake pie shell. Chill shell in refrigerator for 30 minutes. If the shell has been preformed and frozen, thaw it at room temperature for 20 minutes. Preheat oven to 450. Line pie shell with circle of parchment or wax paper and fill it with 2 ½ cups of dried beans or rice or pie weights spread to the edge and place more near the sides than in the center. Set the pie shell on a baking sheet. Bake for 10 minutes, then decrease heat to 375 and bake for 5 minutes more. Remove pie shell from oven. Remove parchment and beans or rice out of shell. Prick the bottom of the pie shell in 3 or 4 places with the point of a sharp knife to prevent the shell from forming bubbles as it finishes baking. Return shell to oven and bake for 15 to 18 minutes, or until it is golden brown. Cool completely before filling.

VANILLA ICE CREAM WITH BLACKBERRY SAUCE

It is hard to believe but the warm weather is finally arriving here in Atlanta. It is going to be 90 here today. To me nothing is more refreshing than a bowl of ice cream. And top it with a delicious blackberry sauce, and well, it is just yummy. The sauce is very easy to prepare and it looks so pretty drizzled over the ice cream and topped with a few whole blackberries. I hope you enjoy this easy recipe.

1 quart vanilla ice cream
1/2 c. granulated sugar
1/4 c. water
2 1/2 pints blackberries, divided
1 tsp. lemon juice

In a nonreactive saucepan, bring the sugar and water to a boil over medium heat. Add 2 pints of the blackberries and stir to combine. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the berries break down, about 8 minutes. Transfer the mixture to a blender and add the lemon juice. Puree the berry mixture, then strain it through a fine-mesh sieve. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

When ready to serve, scoop the ice cream into bowls, drizzle with the blackberry sauce and top with a few of the remaining blackberries. Serves 6.

MY WISH FOR YOU