I have come to the conclusion that there is nothing...and I mean nothing...better then a homemade blackberry pie from freshly picked berries and from scratch crust. The only problem? When you have a family of 7 and most pies serve 8, there is only 1 savory, delicous, amazing serving out of all that work!
When the wild blackberries first came on this season we could tell they would give us an abundance this year. I am starting to believe that wild blackberries really flourish in wetter summers which usually do not bode well for my vegetable garden. Last year was a great garden year (weather wise) and the berries were not much to speak of, this year the opposite is true, but oooohhhh the berries! We started picking when we would only come home with a precious cup or two, that is when we made the first pie of the season. My children helped me pick and then begged for a pie that evening. We made our first and devoured it. The next day they begged for the same and I obliged, but by the third day I decided my waistline could no longer handle the deliciousness so we started to freeze some of the berries.
Though we have now had Blackberry milkshakes, smoothies, cobbler and jam, the pie remains my #1 favorite. It might also be because when I make it I always think of my grandmother as the crust recipe comes from her and I always think back to being small and helping her in her kitchen.
When the wild blackberries first came on this season we could tell they would give us an abundance this year. I am starting to believe that wild blackberries really flourish in wetter summers which usually do not bode well for my vegetable garden. Last year was a great garden year (weather wise) and the berries were not much to speak of, this year the opposite is true, but oooohhhh the berries! We started picking when we would only come home with a precious cup or two, that is when we made the first pie of the season. My children helped me pick and then begged for a pie that evening. We made our first and devoured it. The next day they begged for the same and I obliged, but by the third day I decided my waistline could no longer handle the deliciousness so we started to freeze some of the berries.
Though we have now had Blackberry milkshakes, smoothies, cobbler and jam, the pie remains my #1 favorite. It might also be because when I make it I always think of my grandmother as the crust recipe comes from her and I always think back to being small and helping her in her kitchen.
I think my favorite part about this crust is that it is pretty forgiving. If it is too wet, add more flour, if you roll it out and mess up, just crumple it up and do it again. And if you have scraps? My grandma ALWAYS made me cinnamon and sugared pie crust strips. She would just roll out the scraps and cut them into strips then place on a cookie sheet, sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar and viola! (If you have never tried this...you are so missing out!)
I really don't use a tried and true "recipe" for the berry part. I just get a saucepan and toss in the berries (about 3-4 cups) then add some sugar (depending on how sweet you want your berries 1/3 to 1 cup. When the berries are hot I start mashing them with a fork and then when I have quite a bit of liqued I add approx 2 T of cornstarch to a few tablespoons of water (to make a runny mix) then thicken up the berries with that. That is the basics of my pie "guts" then I just dump it in the crust and top it with more pie dough, bake at 400 for about 20-30 minutes.
Fool Proof Pie Crust (Grandma's recipe):
(Makes 4-5 crusts)
4 c. flour
1 T. sugar
1 3/4 Crisco
1/2 c. water
2 T. cider vinegar
1 egg (beaten)
1 tsp salt
Mix dry ingredients together and cut in Crisco until crumbly. Mix together the beaten egg, water and vinegar. Pour over flour and Crisco mixture and mix until moistened but able to be handled (if too sticky, just add a bit more flour). Then start rolling out your crusts!
Okay, no judgement here as this is definately not one of my "prettiest" pies, but I assure you, it didn't matter when we gobbled it up!
I really don't use a tried and true "recipe" for the berry part. I just get a saucepan and toss in the berries (about 3-4 cups) then add some sugar (depending on how sweet you want your berries 1/3 to 1 cup. When the berries are hot I start mashing them with a fork and then when I have quite a bit of liqued I add approx 2 T of cornstarch to a few tablespoons of water (to make a runny mix) then thicken up the berries with that. That is the basics of my pie "guts" then I just dump it in the crust and top it with more pie dough, bake at 400 for about 20-30 minutes.
Fool Proof Pie Crust (Grandma's recipe):
(Makes 4-5 crusts)
4 c. flour
1 T. sugar
1 3/4 Crisco
1/2 c. water
2 T. cider vinegar
1 egg (beaten)
1 tsp salt
Mix dry ingredients together and cut in Crisco until crumbly. Mix together the beaten egg, water and vinegar. Pour over flour and Crisco mixture and mix until moistened but able to be handled (if too sticky, just add a bit more flour). Then start rolling out your crusts!
Okay, no judgement here as this is definately not one of my "prettiest" pies, but I assure you, it didn't matter when we gobbled it up!
