Blueberry Streusel Pie

Have I tempted you with this picture to the point that you are determined to make it? Yes, it is as good as it looks! Go for it - you can do it! What an incredibly delicious and satisfying pie to make, serve to others and eat yourself!

Blueberries, the blue gems of the berry kingdom must have been created to be served in pie form, as with most berries. However, their primary purpose for being is to be popped right into the mouth from the bush!

If you’ve never had that experience, you should make sure that you do. Memories come to mind of bushes ridiculously weighed down with blue orbs to the point where you could rake your hand through for an abundant harvest. Another instance is, sadly, is one of my spindly blueberries bushes in my garden that the birds are better at harvesting than I am. I was delighted to harvest enough this past year to sprinkle on my yogurt.

This recipe calls for a whopping 5 cups of berries and a trip to the store if the birds ate all of the berries from your bushes before you. But the blueberries frolick beautifully with the sugar and lemon zest to dazzle and the crowning glory, a buttery fragipan streusel topping, cape this juicy glorious pie. I’ve never met a better. A beautifully flaky crust is implied.

Homemade Pie Crust or frozen pie crust (homemade recipe below.)

5 cups fresh blueberries, rinsed

3/4 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

pinch of salt

egg wash: 1 large egg beaten with 1 tablespoon milk

For Streusel Topping:

1/2 cup butter, melted

3/4 cup flour

1/2 cup oatmeal

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla extract.

-Melt butter in medium saucepan. Stir in flour, oatmeal, brown sugar, cinnamon, vanilla extract and salt until well mixed. Set aside.

Flaky Pie Crust:

1 cup all-purpose flour 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon sugar 3 tablespoons cold butter 3 tablespoons vegetable shortening 3 - 4 tablespoons ice cold water 1 tablespoon vinegar

-Combine the flour, salt and sugar. Cut in butter and shortening with a pastry blender or by hand until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. (This can be done in a food processor by pulsing the ingredients together about 10 times.)

-In another bowl, mix water and vinegar. Add the liquid mixture a bit at a time to the flour mixture, tossing with hands until water is distributed (or pulsing a few times in the food processor.) Form dough into a flat, thick disc handling as little as possible. Wrap dough disc in plastic wrap and chill for 30 minutes in fridge.

-In a large bowl, stir the blueberries with the granulated sugar, flour, lemon juice, salt and cinnamon until thoroughly combined. Set filling in the refrigerator while you roll out the dough.

-Adjust the oven rack to the lower third position and preheat oven to 400°F. Place a baking sheet on the bottom oven rack to catch any fruit juices that may spill over during baking.

-Roll out the chilled pie dough: On a floured work surface, place the pie crust and flatten slightly with a rolling pin. Dust the pin and dough with flour and roll it out to about a circle 12 inches in diameter. Turn the dough about a quarter turn after every few rolls to create the best circle shape. (I like to roll my pie dough out on a lightly floured piece of waxed or parchment paper. Then I place the empty pie plate upside down centered on the round disk and with the help of the paper, turn both upside down so the pie plate is standing upright. Then I just gently peel off the paper. Makes this step so easy!)

-Carefully lift and place the dough into a 9 X 2-inch round pie dish. Cut any excess dough that hangs more than an inch over the edges of the dish, then fold the dough under making the edge smooth and even around the dish. Crimp the edge decoratively in your favorite fashion or press with the tines of a fork.

-Pour and spread the filling evenly into pie dish. Sprinkle the streusel in small pieces over the top of the blueberry filling. It won’t cover the filling completely, but move the crumbles about if needed so that it evenly covers most of the filling

-Bake the pie on the center rack at 400°F for 20 minutes; then, keeping the pie in the oven, reduce the oven temperature down to 375° Continue baking the pie until the filling’s juices are bubbling everywhere, including in the center, 45–50 more minutes. This sounds like a long time, but under-baking the pie means a soupy, paste-like filling. If you want to be precise, the internal temperature of the filling taken with an instant-read thermometer should be around 200°F when done. (If the top of the pie begins to brown too quickly, place a piece of foil loosely over the top of the pie.)

-Remove pie from the oven, place on a cooling rack, and cool for 3 - 4 hours before slicing and serving. The filling will be too juicy if the pie is warm when you slice it.

-Serve with ice cream, sweetened whipped cream or sauce anglaise.

-Cover leftovers tightly and store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

-Serves 8