Blueberry Pie?????

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Andy M.

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I was perusing the internet for blueberry pie recipes. They mostly seem fairly simple.

However, the quantities for sugar and berries are all over the place!!!

For a 9" pie pan, sugar quantities range from 1/2 cup to 3/4 cup. Blueberry quantities range from 3 cups to 8 cups!

The ratios of the two ingredients are also all over the place, from super sweet - 3/4 C sugar for 3 cups of berries, to 1/2 C of sugar for 8 C of berries.

Most have lemon and some have cinnamon.

OH, forgot to mention, one recipe uses a cup of maple syrup to sweeten 7 cups of berries.

What the heck is going on???
 
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One of the issues with fresh fruit is that is can be very sweet or on the tart side. I think you have to taste your fruit and judge from there. I always start with a smaller amount of sweetener and add until I like it.

That, and there's no accounting for the extreme sweet tooth of some of the recipe authors!

Lemon and cinnamon are both very common in blueberry pie.
 
...and there's no accounting for the extreme sweet tooth of some of the recipe authors!

Lemon and cinnamon are both very common in blueberry pie.


Thanks.

I know from experience that lemon really makes the flavor of the berries pop. I hadn't heard of the cinnamon.
 
We usually use 4-5 c blueberries (but, this does depend on the size of the blueberries and the depth of the pie dish). 1/2 of those are tossed with a bit of corn starch and then mashed and cooked with sugar (for 2 c blueberries we use about 1 to 1-1/2 c sugar), a bit of water (depends on if we are using fresh wild blueberries or frozen) some lemon zest and cinnamon, lemon juice. Once that is pie-filling consistency, we let it cool, coat the remaining blueberries with a bit of flour, the rest of the sugar, lemon zest, combine the two. My grandma always topped the filling with a couple of dabs of butter before putting on the top crust (my aunt once tried lemon oil because she didn't have a fresh lemon--not recommended--the lemon oil taste was overpowering). We don't have a recipe for the filling--we all learned to make this at our grandma's knee and go by taste and consistency--add more sugar if it's not sweet enough--we usually start with less sugar. Add more blueberries if not enough to fill the pie pan. Always put the pie on a baking sheet so if it spills, it doesn't make a mess of the oven. The top of the pie was always brushed with milk and a sprinkle of sugar. Andy, I know you like exact measurements, but maybe there is one that you've stumbled across that is similar re: technique to how my grandma made her county fair blue ribbon wild blueberry pie.
 
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Thanks, CWS. I'll note your recipe. I was also commenting on the wide variances in the quantities.
 
....

What the heck is going on???


Different people, different taste buds, different recipes.

As an example: I make this cake and everybody loves it. When during Passover I do not eat sugar, and I make the same cake right after, to break the "fast" so to speak, I cannot eat it it is so sweet, no, that I know that it is a problem, I cut sugar by half or more.
 
I still need a go to blueberry pie recipe, I have a specific flavor and texture in mind, and I just have to figure it out. There is a restaurant back in Maine that had a great pie, not runny but not too thick and an awesome flavor.
 
I still need a go to blueberry pie recipe, I have a specific flavor and texture in mind, and I just have to figure it out. There is a restaurant back in Maine that had a great pie, not runny but not too thick and an awesome flavor.
Bakechef, I know my dad has written the recipe down because my mom can't make it anymore--I'll see if I can find it in my many recipe cards. Otherwise, my brother is going out for T'giving and I'll ask him to scan it and send it to me.
 
I have various size pie dishes, so I usually line the dish with plastic wrap and pour in the berries to measure. Add more to allow for the piling-high-and-cooking-down results.

I taste every fruit before I add any sugar. I probably use no more than 3/4 cup sugar for a 9-inch blueberry pie. The last apple pie I made (actually, it was a galette) got just a sprinkling of sugar over the top of the apples before I folded the dough over the edge. Those apples were sweet all on their own. :yum:
 
I think we all are in agreement. We want to take the fruit, not the sugar. But at the same time we don't want bitter either.

For me, I do not like a runny pie. :angel:
 
I have been experimenting with blueberry pie. Some folks like the filling to be somewhat cooked and gelled and some not so much. I've sort of split the difference and maybe that will help you out Andy. I take a couple cups of berries, toss in a bit of sugar (1/2 cup) and a GENEROUS splash of lemon juice and put it in a pot. I use my potato masher and give them a little squish to get the juices going. I cook this for a bit til the berries start to break down, then I add a cornstarch slurry to thicken it a bit. Once it starts to thicken I turn off the heat and keep stirring. Then I add another couple cups of raw, cleaned berries and stir them into the mixture. As this is cooling I roll out my pastry and get it ready. Pour the filling into the pie shell and top with the other half. Bake for about 35-45 minutes, brush the top of the pie with some milk and finish it for 5-10, then out it comes.

The amount are based on my deep dish pie pan, so I'd say I use around 6-7 cups of berries. I have been known to add a bit more sugar depending on who was going to be eating the pie. I like my pie less sweet and Ken, more sweet.

Does that help at all?
 
Yes, Alix. It does. Several of the recipes I viewed used a similar process.

I was just surprised at wide variance in the berry to sugar ratio.
 
I like my filling not jelled but not runny either, I hate it when you take out a slice of pie and the filling runs into the empty spot. I also really don't like the filling too tight, I want it to melt in your mouth but come out of the pan in a clean slice. In other words "perfect" :LOL:
 
How do you make your pie shell/pastry?


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2/3 cup lard
2 cups flour
4 tbsps ice water
1 tbsp vinegar

Blend cold lard into flour with pastry blender or knives, cut til pieces are smaller than pea sized. Add water and vinegar and use hands to form dough. Split into two pieces and shape into discs. Roll out into pie shells. This makes one good sized deep dish pie.

TIP: Since you're using your hands to incorporate the dough, cool off your hands in cold water first. The heat from your hands melts the lard and can result in less flaky dough.
 
Ok, I used this recipe and made my first-ever, really great blueberry pie, several years back. I got it from the side of the tapioca-flour box. I wrote down the ingredients for future use as I used my own pie-crust recipe and technique.

This makes a blueberry pie from fresh, wild Michigan blueberries, and has an intense blueberry flavor. It is firm, but tender, not rubbery from too much starch. The crust is very flaky and tender. I share it with you.

The Chief’s Blueberry Pie:
Filling Ingredients:
1 1/4 cups packed sugar
5 tablespoons quick-cooking tapioca
6 cups fresh, wild, Michigan Blueberries (or wild berries from somewhere else if you must). If you’re desperate, use 3, ten ounce packages frozen Blueberries, not thawed. Note, they will be tart.
2 tsp. fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1 large egg, beaten with 1 tablespoon water

Hardware (Can you tell I’m a guy?)
9 inch deep-dish pie plate
Pastry Cutter
With 6 cups of filling, this is a well-filled Pie!

Pie Crust:
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup chilled lard
1 ½ tsp salt
5 to 7 tablespoons ice water

Using a pastry cutter, cut the lard into the flour/salt until the dough resembles pea-gravel. Sprinkle the water over the dough and fold together just until everything holds together. Over-mixing will result in a tough crust.

How to make it:
Place a large 9 X 10 parchment paper-lined cookie sheet on the middle oven rack. Preheat the oven to 425°F.
Combine the sugar and tapioca. Add the blueberries, and lemon juice. Fold until the berries are evenly coated.

If your home temperature is above 75’ F, chill the pie dough, and place a bag of ice you’re your work surface (where you’ll be rolling out the dough). Liberally sprinkle the flour over your working surface. Divide the dough into two equal sections. Squish the dough between your hands to make a round disk. Place it onto your work surface and dust with flour. Roll ½ of the pie dough into a 12 inch circle, always rolling from the center of the circle outward in every direction. Roll larger than 12 inches as the edges will be somewhat ragged, at least mine are. Place your pie pan upside down on the dough. Use a sharp knife to cut a smooth circle 3 inches larger than the pan edge. This will help prevent the dough from tearing when you move it to the pie pan. Slide a frosting spatula under the crust to loosen it from the table. Fold the dough in half, then in halve again to make a triangle. Place the dough into the pan so that when unfolded, it fills the pan. Gently press the dough into the pan.

Roll out the 2nd dough ball as you did with the first. Fill the pie with the berry mixture. Fold the dough, lay on top, and unfold the dough. Carefully fold the overlapping edges behind the sides of the bottom crust and between the pie pan and the bottom crust. Pinch the edges all the way around, and flute. With a sharp paring knife, carefully cut three small vent holes into the top crust.

Brush with egg wash, or milk. Sprinkle with coarse sugar and cinnamon.
Bake pie on hot baking sheet in oven 30 minutes, cover edge with a pie shield or foil to Keep the edges golden brown.
Reduce your oven temperature to 375°F and bake until crust is golden. The filling will be bubbling in the vent holes. Bake for 45 to 50 minutes more.
Cool pie completely on a rack to set the filling.

Hint: If you like a firmer filling, add another tbs. of tapioca flour.

Seeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North
 
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I like my filling not jelled but not runny either, I hate it when you take out a slice of pie and the filling runs into the empty spot. I also really don't like the filling too tight, I want it to melt in your mouth but come out of the pan in a clean slice. In other words "perfect" :LOL:

Yeah, I want my piece of pie to come out of that tin like it does in the diner's pie chest. It leaves a very defined empty space where the piece was removed. I want to see the shiny bottom of the pie plate. Like a Table Talk pie. :angel:
 
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