Blueberry Pie

Last weekend, I picked up a big container of blueberries at Sam's Club. Not only that they were round and big, they looked so juicy that I had to buy it! So what do I do with 5+ cups of blueberries? Red suggested that we make a blueberry pie to go along our homemade fresh peach ice-cream (will post the recipe later) for our anniversary celebration this weekend! What a great idea! In the spirit of trying to save myself some time, I actually used frozen pie crust this time.

Adapted from Allrecipes

Ingredients

3/4 cup white sugar

3 tablespoons cornstarch

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

4 cups fresh blueberries

1 recipe pastry for a 9 inch double crust pie

1 tablespoon butter

Directions
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).
Mix sugar, cornstarch, salt, and cinnamon, and sprinkle over blueberries.
Line pie dish with one pie crust. Pour berry mixture into the crust, and dot with butter. Cut remaining pastry into 1/2 - 3/4 inch wide strips, and make lattice top. Crimp and flute edges.
Bake pie on lower shelf of oven for about 50 minutes, or until crust is golden brown.

BB: Peach & Blueberry Crumbles

I was so excited when I saw that Aggie of Aggie's Kitchen selected the Peach and Blueberry Crumbles for our 2nd recipe in June especially since we're in the smack of summer where sweet peaches are plentiful! I made a similar variation of this recipe a while ago, Plum & Raspberry Crumble from Barefoot in Paris and loved it.

We took this dessert to our friends who invited us over for an intimate cook-out on their backyard, while watching fireworks celebrating the Hudson Hometown Days. We all absolutely adored the flavors. It was very light without being too heavy. Although, I was a little bit disappointed that I had brought it over to their house baked (covered with a foil), it was a lot "soggier" than I had expected once we opened it a couple of hours later.

Fortunately, this recipe made a lot more than what I had expected! was able to split it up into a Le Creuset oval dish and 4 Le Creuset ramekins. The one in Le Creuset looked soggy so I didn't take picture of it, and instead took the pretty pictures of the ones in ramekin for the blog!! I used 8 fat peaches and doubled the blueberries (used frozen ones!)--and the sweetness was just right.



For the fruit
2 lbs firm, ripe peaches (6-8 peaches)
2 tsp grated lemon zest
2 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup fresh blueberries (1/2 pint)

For the Crumble
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 lb (1 stick) cold unsalted butter, diced

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Immerse the peaches in boiling water for 30 seconds to 1 minute, until their skins peel off easily. Place them immediately in cold water.
Peel the peaches, slice them into thick wedges, and place them in a large bowl.
Add the lemon zest, lemon juice, granulated sugar, and flour. Toss well. Gently mix in the blueberries.
Allow the mixture to sit for 5 minutes.
Spoon the mixture into ramekins or custard cups.
For the topping, combine the flour, granulated sugar, brown sugar, salt, cinnamon, and the butter in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment.
Mix on low speed until the butter is the size of peas.
Rub the mixture with your fingertips until it’s in big crumbles, then sprinkle evenly over the fruit.


Place the ramekins on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper and back for 40 to 45 minutes, until the tops are browned and crisp and the juices are bubbly.
Serve warm or at room temperature.
If you want to make these early, store the unbaked crumbles int he refrigerator and bake before dinner.

Serves 5 to 6.

Delightful Blueberries Squares

I decided to make this yummy fruity treats to use up our big pack of fresh blueberries.

Delightful Blueberries Squares

2. c of crushed vanilla wafers
2 tbs of butter melted
3/2 c. of sugar
1/4 c. of cornstarch
1/4 c. of water
3 c. of fresh blueberries, divided
3 tbsp of lemon juice
1 tsp of grated lemon peel
1 c. heavy whipping cream
2 tbs. confectioners' sugar
2 c. miniature marshmallows

• Combine wafers and butter, press into a greased 8-inch baking pan. Bake at 350 deg until browned. Cool.
• Combine sugar and cornstarch in small saucepan. Whisk water gradually with a whisker until smooth. Add 1.5 cups of blueberries, bring to boil, cook and stir for 1-1.5 minutes until thickened. Stir in the lemon juice, lemon peels and remaining blueberries. Cool completely.
• Using a small cooking bowl, beat cream until it begins to thicken, and add confectioners' sugar. Beat until small peaks form and add in marshmallows.
• Spread over crust, top with blueberries topping.
• Cover and refrigerate until set, about 45 minutes.

Yield: 9 servings