Yes. That’s the answer, always accompanied by a puckish grin, when some of my favorite men, not a yes-man among them, are asked about their favorite pies. Cream pie? Fruit? With meringue? À la mode? Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes.
Left over for breakfast? Yes again, at least when the answer comes from my own father.
Credit thirty years of pie-baking to my Uncle Marv, who beamed and extolled and then insisted on seconds with my first pie, a creditable Thanksgiving apple, when I was just 16. With such psychic income, what aspiring cook wouldn’t happily enter the pie business?
In all that time, this blueberry pie ranks high among favorites. It shouts summer, the berries puffed plump in light, sweet cream. It smells delicious and tastes even better.
It will make yes-men (and yes-women) of us all.
Two pints of berries fit perfectly in a standard pie dish. If yours is a deep dish, use three pints. For years, I’ve substituted a Penzey’s spice blend called ‘cake spice’ in recipes calling for cinnamon or nutmeg. Last summer I discovered ‘baking spice’. It turns this pie from superior to sublime. Tips for crust makers: for perfect slicing, lightly butter the pie pan before arranging the crust; for easy handling, use equal parts cake and all-purpose flour; for delectable flavor, use half lard, half butter; for tenderness, refrigerate dough for an hour before rolling.
BLUEBERRY SOUR CREAM PIE
Time-to-table: About 3 hours
Serves 8
- 1 unbaked pie crust, homemade or refrigerated (see ALANNA’s TIPS)
-
FILLING
- 2 or 3 pints (see TIPS) fresh blueberries (frozen just don’t work)
- 1 egg
- 1 cup sour cream
- ¾ cup sugar
- 2 tablespoons flour
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon (see TIPS)
- 1 teaspoon almond extract
- ½ teaspoon table salt
-
TOPPING
- ¼ cup (½ stick) unsalted butter
- 4 tablespoons flour
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- ½ cup toasted sliced almonds
Roll crust, then transfer to a glass pie dish. Freeze for 10 minutes while oven preheats to 400F. Cover crust with foil, fill with dried beans or pie weights. Bake until sides set, about 12 minutes. Remove foil.
Pick through and wash berries, drain well in a colander.
Whisk egg in a large bowl. Add remaining filling ingredients and combine well. Stir in berries. Pour into partially baked crust. Bake until filling is just set, about 25 minutes.
Melt butter in microwave in a small bowl. Stir in remaining topping ingredients. With fingers, drop in small dollops evenly across partially baked pie. Bake until topping browns slightly, about 12 minutes. Cool to room temperature to serve.
More Fruity Summer Dessert Recipes
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Your Comments:
Gorgeous pies--both of them!