(No, no flowers were used in the making of this pie. I just think the end result looks like a flower)
If I’m making pies in this Thanksgiving season, I might as well make two so two posts right after each other on the topic of pie. This time, blueberry that looks like a flower (ok, to me at least!). Blueberries make a notoriously runny pie if you don’t add corn starch to firm it up a bit. Alternatively, you can add Clear Gel (a pie thickener) or tapioca. If all else fails, add flour, but that will still make a fairly runny pie. If you don’t like a little messy, this pie is seriously delicious!
Ingredients
for the pastry
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 tablespoon sugar
3/4 teaspoon salt
12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
6 tablespoons (or more) ice water
for the filling
1/2 cup granulated sugar
3 tablespoons cornstarch
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 tablespoon. fresh lemon juice
Pinch table salt
4 cups fresh blueberries, stemmed, rinsed, and dried
1 egg mixed with 2 tablespoons water, for egg wash
2-3 tablespoons turbinado (“raw”) sugar, for sprinkling
Directions
Blend flour, sugar and salt in processor. Add butter and cut in using pulse function until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add 6 tablespoons ice water and process until moist clumps form, adding more water by teaspoonfuls if dough is dry. Gather into ball; divide into 2 pieces. Flatten each into disk. Wrap each in plastic; chill 2 hours.
Position rack in lowest third of oven and preheat to 400F. Mix together sugar, corn starch, and lemon juice in a medium bowl. Add blueberries and toss to blend.
Roll out 1 dough disk on floured surface to 12-inch round. Transfer to 9-inch-diameter pie dish or tart pan. Fold edge under, forming high-standing rim; crimp. Add filling. Roll out second dough disk on floured surface. Using a 2 inch round cookie cutter, cut out enough mini-rounds to cover the surface of the pie (I needed about 40). Cover the entire surface of the filled pie, overlapping to create a fan pattern. Using a pasty brush, brush surface with the egg was and sprinkle on salted turbinado sugar.
Place pie on a rimmed baking sheet (to catch any juices if the pie overflows) and place in oven and bake pie 20 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 375F. Continue baking until juices bubble thickly between the top rounds and crust is deep golden, covering edges with foil if browning too quickly, about 1 hour. Let pie cool a minimum of 2 hours before cutting. This is important as the pie filling will be pretty loose. If you want to serve warm pie, reheat pieces individually.
