This blueberry pie has tons of flavor and can be made year round. It's designed to bake with frozen fruit - you don't need to defrost the berries or cook down the filling first! The blueberry filling bakes up juicy and thick and features a generous amount of lemon zest for extra flavor and depth.It has a deliciously flaky all-butter crust that's simple to make and handles well. A random width lattice top adds a homey, rustic look.
Using your fingers, squeeze each cube of butter to flatten it into a wide, thin layer. Continue to toss flour mixture with butter to make sure it's coated.
Continue cutting butter into flour mixture (with your hands or a pastry blender) until the butter is in flattish, pecan-sized pieces.
Form a well in the center of the dry mixture. Pour in chilled water and vinegar. Using a bench scraper or a heavy spatula or wooden spoon, push the mixture back and forth until the liquid has been absorbed into the dry ingredients. Using your hands, lift the edges of the rough dough mass, turn them inwards and press them firmly down. Repeat this, turning the bowl, until you can gather the dough into a rough ball, and there are no loose pieces at the bottom of the bowl.
On a work surface, divide dough into two equal pieces and flatten each into a disc. Wrap tightly with plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.
Remove both discs of dough from the fridge and let rest for about 15 minutes. On a piece of lightly floured parchment paper, roll one disc into an 11 inch diameter circle. (Roll the dough out by placing the rolling pin in the center of the circle and firmly pressing down while moving the pin towards the outer edge of the dough. Turn the dough clockwise 90 degrees and continue this process of rolling and turning until the dough forms a circle approximately 10 inches in diameter. Use a bit of flour as needed to keep the rolling pin from sticking.)
Lift dough onto your 9 inch pie pan. Center it carefully, pressing down into the base and corners to be sure there are no air pockets trapped underneath. Trim the outer edge so that it uniformly overlaps the edge of the tin by ½ inch. Wrap in plastic wrap and place into the refrigerator to chill.
On a piece of parchment paper, roll the second disc of dough into a circle 10 inches in diameter. Using a knife and a ruler, cut lattice strips in random widths between ¼ and 1½ inches. Transfer the strips on the parchment to a baking sheet, cover with plastic wrap and place in the fridge to chill.
FROZEN BLUEBERRY PIE FILLING
To a large bowl, add frozen blueberries. Add lemon zest, juice, sugar, tapioca flour and salt. Fold ingredients together until well blended. The tapioca flour should no longer be visible, and the sugar will take on a pinkish purple color. Let sit for 15 minutes to thicken slightly.
For random sized lattice, place half of each size of lattice strips along the top of the filled pie. Fold back every other strip. Place a strip in the center of the pie at a 90 degree angle to the first strips, forming a plus (+) shape. Unfold the folded strips, covering the most recently placed strip.
Repeat this under/over weaving procedure on either side with the remaining strips of dough until you have a fully woven lattice crust. If this seems complex, refer to my detailed post on how to make lattice crusts for additional instruction.
Trim the edges of the lattice so that they just meet the inner edge of the pie tin. Fold edge of bottom pie crust down under itself to create a double layer at edge of the pie pan.
Use your fingers to crimp the pie crust. In a small bowl, beat egg with water and brush the lattice and crust with egg wash. Sprinkle with Turbinado sugar. Place assembled pie in the refrigerator to chill for 30 minutes.
1 large egg, 5 mL (1 teaspoon) water, 24 grams (2 Tablespoons) Turbinado sugar
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit (200 Celsius, Gas number 6) and position an oven rack in the lower third of the oven. Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil (to catch any spills) and place on the lower rack to preheat.
Place the pie on the hot baking sheet and bake for 55-65 minutes, or until top crust is golden brown and juices at center of pie are bubbling (not just at the edges). At about the 30 minute mark, gently tent pie with aluminum foil to keep top crust from browning too much. Remove from oven and place on a cooling rack to cool completely. Pie should be fully cooled before slicing to ensure fruit filling has gelled.
Serve individual slices of pie with sweetened whipped cream or a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
Notes
Feel free to use either fresh or frozen blueberries for this recipe. There's no need to defrost the blueberries prior to baking, which makes this pie recipe so easy! If using fresh blueberries, begin checking the pie about 10-15 minutes earlier. Tapioca flour - While I recommend tapioca flour for this recipe, if you just can't find tapioca flour, you can substitute half as much corn starch. You will need 22.5 grams cornstarch (just under 3 tablespoons). Note that cornstarch may cause the fruit filling to cloud when it gels.For pie baking tips on how to achieve aflaky crust and keep your pie filling from being runny, please read the FAQ in the main recipe post!