Ann Lafiandras Blueberry Pie Recipes

HOMEMADE BLUEBERRY PIE

Steps:

• Prepare either pie crust recipe through step 5.
• Stir the blueberries, sugar, flour, cornstarch, cinnamon, lemon juice, and lemon zest together in a large bowl. Mix together until it's no longer dry and powdery; burst a few blueberries if necessary to moisten. Set filling aside as the oven preheats. Filling can be covered and refrigerated for up to 24 hours if needed.
• Adjust the oven rack to the lower third position and preheat to 425°F (218°C). Place baking sheet on the bottom oven rack to catch any blueberry juices.
• On a floured work surface, roll out one of the discs of chilled dough (keep the other one in the refrigerator). Turn the dough about a quarter turn after every few rolls until you have a circle 12 inches in diameter. Carefully place the dough into a 9×2-inch round pie dish. Tuck it in with your fingers, making sure it is smooth. Pour and spread filling evenly into pie dish. Dot the pieces of butter on top of the filling. Set aside at room temperature or in the refrigerator as you assemble the top pie crust.
• Remove the other disc of chilled pie dough from the refrigerator. Roll the dough into a circle that is 12 inches diameter. Using a pastry wheel, sharp knife, or pizza cutter, cut strips of dough; in the pictured pie, I cut 10 1.5-inch-wide strips. Carefully thread the strips over and under one another, pulling back strips as necessary to weave. (Here's a lattice pie crust tutorial if you need visuals.) Press the edges of the strips into the bottom pie crust edges to seal. Use a small paring knife to trim off excess dough. Flute or crimp the edges with a fork.
• Lightly brush the top of the pie crust with the egg wash. Sprinkle the top with coarse sugar, if using.
• Bake the pie at 425°F for 25 minutes; then, keeping the pie in the oven, reduce the oven temperature down to 375° (190°C). Place a pie crust shield (see Note for homemade shield) on the edges to prevent them from over-browning. Continue baking the pie until the filling's juices are bubbling everywhere, including in the center, 40-50 more minutes. This sounds like a long time, but under-baking the pie means a soupy filling with paste-like flour and cornstarch chunks. If you want to be precise, the internal temperature of the filling taken with an instant read thermometer should be around 200°F (93°C) when done. Tip: If needed towards the end of bake time, remove the pie crust shield and tent an entire piece of foil on top of the pie if the top looks like it's getting too brown.
• Remove pie from the oven, place on a cooling rack, and cool for at least 4 hours before slicing and serving. Filling will be too juicy if the pie is warm when you slice it.
• Cover leftovers tightly and store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

OLD-FASHIONED BLUEBERRY PIE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400°F.
• Rinse and drain the fresh blueberries or drain the frozen blueberries. Set aside.
• In a bowl, combine the sugar and cornstarch and mix well until all the lumps disappear. Add the blueberries and lemon juice. Toss to combine.
• Roll out half of the dough and fit it into a 9-inch pie pan. Fill with the blueberry mixture. Dot with butter. Roll out the remaining dough. Moisten the edge of the bottom crust with water. Fit top crust over the filled pie. Trim and crimp edges. Make 2 or 3 vent holes in the top crust.
• Brush the top crust with the cream or milk. Place the pie on a baking sheet with sides. Bake for 15 minutes. Reduce the heat to 350F and continue baking for 30 minutes or until the crust is golden and the filling is bubbling.

CONTEST-WINNING FRESH BLUEBERRY PIE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425°. On a floured surface, roll dough to fit a 9-in. pie plate. Trim and flute edge. Refrigerate 30 minutes. Line crust with a double thickness of foil. Fill with pie weights. Bake on a lower oven rack until golden brown, 20-25 minutes. Remove foil and weights; bake until bottom is golden brown, 3-6 minutes. Cool on a wire rack., In a saucepan over medium heat, combine sugar, cornstarch, salt and water until smooth. Add 3 cups blueberries. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened and bubbly., Remove from the heat. Add butter, lemon juice and remaining berries; stir until butter is melted. Cool. Pour into crust. Refrigerate until serving.

BLUEBERRY PIE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
• Mix sugar, cornstarch, salt, and cinnamon, and sprinkle over blueberries.
• Line pie dish with one pie crust. Pour berry mixture into the crust, and dot with butter. Cut remaining pastry into 1/2 - 3/4 inch wide strips, and make lattice top. Crimp and flute edges.
• Bake pie on lower shelf of oven for about 50 minutes, or until crust is golden brown.

FRESH BLUEBERRY PIE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper.
• Mix the blueberries, the 1/2 cup of sugar, the flour, lemon zest, lemon juice, and cassis in a large bowl. Carefully ease one pie crust into a 9-inch pie plate, making sure not to stretch the dough at all, or it will shrink as the pie bakes. With a sharp knife, cut the excess dough off at the edge of the pie plate. Spoon the blueberry mixture into the pie shell, scraping the bowl with a rubber spatula to be sure you have all the juices.
• Brush the edge of the crust with the egg wash. Carefully lay the second crust on top, again easing -- not stretching -- it onto the pie. Cut the excess dough off at the edge of the pie plate. Press the two edges together with a dinner fork. Brush the top crust with the eggs wash, cut three slits for steam to escape, and sprinkle with sugar.
• Place the pie on the prepared sheet pan and bake in the middle of the oven for 45 to 50 minutes, until the filling is very bubbly and the crust is nicely browned. Allow to cool and serve warm or at room temperature.
• Cut the butter in 1/2-inch dice and return it to the refrigerator while you prepare the flour mixture. Place the flour, sugar, and salt in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade and pulse a few times to mix. Add the butter and shortening. Pulse 8 to 12 times, until the butter is the size of peas. With the machine running, pour the ice water down the feed tube and pulse the machine until the dough begins to form a ball. Dump out onto a floured board and roll into a ball. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
• Cut the dough in half. Roll each piece on a well-floured board into a circle at least 1 inch larger than the pie pan, rolling from the center to the edge, turning and flouring the dough so it doesnt stick to the board. (You should see bits of butter in the dough.) Fold the dough in half, ease it into the pie pan without stretching at all, and unfold to fit the pan. With a small sharp paring knife, cut the dough 1 inch larger around than the pan. Fold the edge under and crimp the edge with either your fingers or the tines of a fork.
• "Barefoot Contessa Foolproof" by Ina Garten (c) Clarkson Potter 2012. Provided courtesy of Ina Garten. All rights reserved.

CLASSIC BLUEBERRY PIE

Steps:

• In medium bowl, mix 2 cups flour and the salt. Cut in shortening, using pastry blender (or pulling 2 table knives through ingredients in opposite directions), until particles are size of small peas. Sprinkle with cold water, 1 tablespoon at a time, tossing with fork until all flour is moistened and pastry almost cleans side of bowl (1 to 2 teaspoons more water can be added if necessary).
• Gather pastry into a ball. Divide in half; shape into 2 flattened rounds on lightly floured surface. Wrap in plastic wrap; refrigerate about 45 minutes or until dough is firm and cold, yet pliable. This allows the shortening to become slightly firm, which helps make the baked pastry more flaky. If refrigerated longer, let pastry soften slightly before rolling.
• Heat oven to 425°F. With floured rolling pin, roll one round into round 2 inches larger than upside-down 9-inch glass pie plate. Fold pastry into fourths; place in pie plate. Unfold and ease into plate, pressing firmly against bottom and side.
• In large bowl, mix sugar, 1/2 cup flour and the cinnamon. Stir in blueberries. Spoon into pastry-lined pie plate. Sprinkle any remaining sugar mixture over blueberry mixture. Sprinkle with lemon juice. Cut butter into small pieces; sprinkle over blueberries. Cover with top pastry that has slits cut in it; seal and flute. Cover edge with 2- to 3-inch strip of foil to prevent excessive browning.
• Bake 35 to 45 minutes or until crust is golden brown and juice begins to bubble through slits in crust, removing foil for last 15 minutes of baking. Cool on cooling rack at least 2 hours.

ANN LAFIANDRA'S BLUEBERRY PIE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Roll out 1 round of dough between 2 sheets of lightly floured wax paper and fit it into a 9-inch pie pan. Sprinkle with the oatmeal.
• Mix together the blueberries, lemon zest, lemon juice, sugar and salt. Let sit for 10 minutes. Add the flour and stir to combine.
• Pour the filling into the prepared crust. Dot the top with the butter. Roll out the other round of dough between wax paper. Cut into strips and lay over the filling to make a lattice, crimping the edges together firmly. Lightly combine the beaten egg with the heavy cream. Brush top crust with egg wash and sprinkle with sugar if desired
• Bake for 10 minutes. Lower the heat to 400 and bake for 30 to 40 more minutes, or until the crust is brown and the berries are bubbling.