Remember how I mentioned that Scott and I went to Maine on a vacation with his family and went blueberry picking? I had plans for those blueberries before we started picking: jam, blueberry squares, eating, etc. While Scott was paying for the blueberries we had picked, I was browsing in the "shop" and picked up a blueberry cookbook, which of course, I had to purchase. On the way back to the beach house, I noticed a recipe for blueberry cream pie. Since we had just picked a LOT of blueberries and I was eager to use them, we took a short detour to the grocery store to pick up some items for the pie.
That night I started my use of the blueberries with a batch of blueberry squares. I'd purposefully set the recipe aside for the trip in anticipation of our blueberry picking adventure. I want to tweak the recipe just a little more before I share it, so expect the recipe sometime soon. The next day, I made the pie. First I baked the crust, made the blueberry filling and the cream, and then I started to assemble it.
In my excitement, I didn't plan out my layers very well and put the blueberry filling on the top. As soon as I did it, I had regrets. It made it look messy, and I realized that the blueberry mixture should have been nestled in between the soft billows of cream instead of on top. Such is life.
The good news is that it didn't interfere with the taste or texture. Overall, the pie was exceptionally light and flavorful. Scott and I even ate a slice for breakfast the next day, before we went kayaking. Perhaps it wasn't the breakfast of champions, but it was the breakfast of vacationers. I wish I had some now.
Despite the many steps, this pie is incredibly easy to make. I made this with fresh blueberries, but I think you could easily make the blueberry filling using frozen berries. I would not, however, use frozen blueberries for the part where you add fresh uncooked berries in the middle and on the top, because they might weep and make the pie runny. To crush the graham crackers, you can put the crackers in a Ziplock bag and roll them with a rolling pin, you can pulse them in a food processor, or you can crumble them in a large bowl and use the bottom of a cup to finely crush them. I used a glass pie pan for this pie; if you use a metal pan, you may need to reduce the crust baking time. When I made this, I put the blueberry filling on top of the pie. It tasted delicious, but looked a bit messy, so I recommend putting the blueberry filing in the middle of the pie so that you have a nice layered effect when you cut the pie.
Adapted from Bountiful Blueberries: Cookin’ the Blues
Crust Ingredients:
1 sleeve of graham crackers (about 8 large graham crackers)
1 teaspoon cinnamon
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
Blueberry Filling Ingredients:
1½ cups blueberries
¼ cup granulated sugar
1 tablespoon of cornstarch
1 tablespoon of water
Remaining Pie Ingredients:
4 ounces low-fat cream cheese, room temperature
¼ cup granulated sugar, divided use
½ cup low-fat sour cream
½ teaspoon vanilla
½ teaspoon lemon juice
1½ cups heavy whipping cream
2 cups fresh blueberries
Yields one 9-inch pie
Make and Bake the Crust:
Place an oven rack at the middle level of the oven, and preheat to 350ºF. Crush the graham crackers until they are fine crumbs, and place them in a medium-sized bowl. You should have about 1⅓ cup of crumbs. Stir the cinnamon into the graham cracker crumbs, and drizzle the melted butter over top. Stir until all of the crumbs are evenly coated with butter. Transfer the mixture to a 9-inch pie plate, and press the mixture into the pan to form an even crust. Bake the crust for 8-10 minutes, or until it is browned. Set the crust aside to cool.
Make the Blueberry Filling:
Place the blueberries and the sugar in a medium-sized saucepan. Mix together the cornstarch and water, and add to the blueberries. Cook the mixture, stirring regularly, until most of the blueberries have popped and the mixture is thick, about 5 minutes. Scrape the mixture into a bowl to cool. Once the mixture has cooled slightly, press a piece of plastic wrap onto the surface of the filling so it doesn't form a skin, and place the mixture in the refrigerator to finish cooling.
Make the Cream:
When the pie crust and blueberry filling are cool, prepare the cream mixture. In a large bowl, beat together the cream cheese and sugar until they are light and fluffy. Beat in the sour cream, vanilla, and lemon juice. In a separate large bowl, whip the cream until it forms medium-stiff peaks. Stir a third of the whipped cream into the cream cheese mixture to lighten it, then fold in the remaining whipped cream.
Assemble the Pie:
Spoon half of the cream mixture into the baked (and cooled) pie crust, and smooth out the top. Spoon all of the blueberry filling on top of the cream mixture, and use a spatula to spread it out so it is evenly distributed. Sprinkle one cup of fresh blueberries on top of the blueberry filling. Spoon the remaining cream mixture on top of the berry filling and fresh blueberries, and smooth out the top. Sprinkle with the remaining cup of fresh blueberries, and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate the pie for about five hours, or until the pie is set. Refrigerate any leftovers.
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| Put the blueberry filling in the middle, otherwise the top of your pie will look messy! |
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