This recipe keeps the blueberries’ flavor fresh and bright. Instead of baking for an hour, the berries are lightly warmed by the sugar/cornstarch mixture, which also holds the pie filling together. This is quick and easy to make—and a great way to use the freshest, just-picked berries. Plus, in hot summer weather it’s nice to use the oven just briefly, to bake the pie shell. There’s no top crust, so you see all those luscious berries; but you can also add a layer of whipped cream on top.
Ingredients:
1 batch of pie crust, chilled
4 cups fresh blueberries
½ cup to ¾ cup sugar, depending on your sweetness preference
3 tablespoons cornstarch
Pinch of salt
1 cup water
1 tablespoon butter
Optional: 1 cup heavy cream, plus sugar to taste
Instructions:
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Roll out the chilled crust and place it in a 9-inch pie dish. Prick the dough all over; bake for 10 or 15 minutes, until golden-brown.
- In a saucepan, heat the sugar, cornstarch, salt, water and 1 cup blueberries over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens—about 8 to 10 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the butter. Let cool five or ten minutes, then fold in the rest of the blueberries.
- Pour the filling into the baked pie shell and refrigerate a couple of hours to let the filling set.
- Optional: before serving, whip the cream with sugar to taste and spread over the berry filling.
Also pictured in feature photo: deep-dish blueberry pie.
Picking the berries for our pies
