Blueberry Pie with Wild Blueberries

Ingredients

For a 22–24 cm pie tin

For the pastry

320 g plain flour
220 g very cold butter
25 g sugar
4 g salt
About 90–110 g ice-cold water
1 teaspoon lemon juice

For the filling

600 g fresh wild blueberries
80 g sugar
25 g cornflour
1 tablespoon lemon juice
Finely grated zest of ½ lemon

To finish

1 egg
1 tablespoon milk
A little granulated sugar

Method

Prepare the pastry

Mix the flour, sugar and salt. Cut the very cold butter into cubes and add it to the flour. Work it quickly with your fingertips, gently pressing the cubes of butter without trying to create a perfectly smooth mixture. It is important to leave small pieces of butter visible in the dough: as they melt in the oven, they will give the pastry its crisp and slightly flaky texture. Add the lemon juice to the ice-cold water and pour it into the mixture a little at a time. The amount of water is only a guideline: use just enough to bring the dough together. It should not become soft and, most importantly, it should not be overworked. Divide the dough into two portions, making one slightly larger than the other. Shape them into two discs, wrap them in cling film and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

Prepare the filling

Quickly rinse the blueberries, if necessary, and dry them very well. In a bowl, thoroughly mix the sugar with the cornflour. Add this mixture to the blueberries together with the lemon juice and grated lemon zest. Mix gently, taking care not to crush the blueberries. Prepare the filling only when you are ready to assemble the pie, so the fruit does not have time to release too much juice.

Assemble the Blueberry Pie

Roll out the larger portion of pastry on a lightly floured surface to a thickness of about 3 mm. Line the pie tin, gently pressing the pastry against the base and sides without stretching it. Pour in the blueberries together with their juices and spread them evenly over the base.

Roll out the second disc of pastry and cut it into strips about 2–2.5 cm wide. Arrange the strips over the blueberries to create the classic lattice top. Fold the excess pastry around the edge inwards and seal it to the lattice. Return the assembled pie to the refrigerator for 30 minutes. This second chilling allows the butter to become firm again before baking and helps the pastry hold its shape in the oven.

Baking

Preheat the conventional oven to 210°C. Beat the egg with one tablespoon of milk and gently brush it over the lattice and the edge of the pie. Sprinkle the surface with a little granulated sugar. Place the pie on a lower shelf of the oven and bake for 20 minutes at 210°C. Then reduce the temperature to 180°C, without removing the pie from the oven, and continue baking for another 35–40 minutes. If the lattice and edges are already nicely golden during the second part of the baking time, loosely cover the pie with a sheet of aluminium foil. Do not rely only on the colour of the pastry to decide whether the Blueberry Pie is ready. Look at the filling through the gaps in the lattice: the blueberry juices should be gently bubbling in the centre of the pie as well as around the edges. This indicates that the cornflour has properly thickened the fruit juices.

Resting

Once out of the oven, leave the Blueberry Pie to cool in the tin. However tempting the smell may be, do not cut it while it is still hot: the filling will be very soft and may look almost liquid. Leave it to rest for at least 3–4 hours, or preferably until completely cool. As it cools, the blueberry juices will thicken, leaving the filling soft and juicy without running out when you cut the pie.

How to serve it

Blueberry Pie is delicious at room temperature, simply served as it is. If you would like to serve something alongside it, add a little freshly whipped cream with very little sugar or, in true American style, a scoop of vanilla ice cream. With wild blueberries this fragrant, however, it is worth tasting at least the first slice on its own.

Adocchio’s tips

• • Use as little water as necessary: the amount given is only a guideline. Add it gradually and stop as soon as the dough comes together. The less water you use, the crisper and flakier the pastry will be.
  • Keep the butter very cold: work the dough as little as possible and don’t worry if small pieces of butter are still visible. These are what help create the slightly flaky texture during baking.
  • Add almond flour to the base: if your blueberries are particularly juicy, sprinkle 15–20 g of almond flour over the pastry base before adding the filling. A very thin layer is enough to absorb some of the fruit juices and help keep the bottom crust drier and crisper without noticeably changing the flavour of the pie.
  • Mix the blueberries with the other filling ingredients at the last minute: combine them with the sugar, cornflour and lemon only when you are ready to assemble the pie. This prevents them from releasing too much juice before baking.
  • Baking paper: line the entire pie tin, including the base and sides, with baking paper. Some blueberry juice may escape during baking and, as it cools, it can stick to the tin. The baking paper will make it easier to remove the pie without breaking it.
  • Chill the assembled pie once more: once the pie is assembled, refrigerate it for 30 minutes. This allows the butter to become cold and firm again and helps the pastry hold its shape in the oven.
  • Watch the browning: if the lattice and edges become nicely golden before the filling is ready, loosely cover the pie with aluminium foil and continue baking.
  • Watch the filling, not just the pastry: the Blueberry Pie is ready when the blueberry juices are gently bubbling in the centre through the gaps in the lattice.
  • Don’t rush to cut it: the filling will still be very runny when the pie first comes out of the oven. Leave it to cool for at least 3–4 hours so the juices can thicken and the slices hold their shape while remaining wonderfully soft and juicy.

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