There Will Be Pie, part 2

The crust was ready to go, and the time had arrived to decide just what kind of pie to make for the dojo party. For me, certain pies are intrinsically linked to specific experiences. Apricot pie, for example, is best eaten at breakfast. (Or maybe I mean that the best breakfast is apricot pie… Remember, it’s a whole wheat crust–it’s just like having a bowl of oatmeal.) I made one once in collaboration with my sister (hi, Lindsay!), who had mailed me a jar of filling, made from apricots from her own fruit trees.

Blueberry pie, on the other hand, is an oddity for me. My strongest memory of eating it is as a child, at a neighbor’s birthday/July 4th celebration, and getting hit on the back of the neck with a stray spark from a firework. I have never had blueberry pie since then without thinking of that sharp stinging sensation. Now, I consider myself to be something of a blueberry expert, in spite of never having baked a pie with them. I know that most blueberries in this country come from Hammonton, New Jersey, right near where I spent every summer of my childhood. I have opinions about which brands are the best.

You didn’t know blueberries had brands, did you? Seriously, though, a handful of these tastes like sunshine and salt air and the Pine Barrens. So I decided that I needed to create a new association for myself. And since I was already using Rose Levy Beranbaum’s cream cheese crust, so it made sense to use her recipe for Open-Faced Fresh Blueberry Pie, too. It is an unusual preparation to say the least.

First, you bake the empty crust, fully cooked through. Brush it with an egg white wash.

For the filling, only about a quarter of the blueberries get cooked, right on the stovetop, in a bit of water.

Once the pot is boiling, add corn starch, sugar, and lemon juice.

Then turn off the heat, and fold in the rest of the berries.

That’s the extent of how much the berries get cooked.  Pour the filling into the baked crust, and let it sit for a couple of hours to set up.

And that’s it! I was a little bit nervous about how it would turn out. A pie that doesn’t entirely go in the oven? A crust with cream cheese and vinegar? A pie without a lattice top?? But I needn’t have worried. It disappeared very quickly.