Homemade blueberry pie made with fresh blueberries is the perfect dessert—add a little whipped cream or vanilla ice cream on the side for a sweet summer treat!
My friend Molly has a gorgeous yard and a prolific green thumb—she is our go-to for any type of flower or planting advice. And, she has a lovely blueberry patch that she shares with her friends every summer.
Lucky for us, when we have a get-together in the summer, Molly always brings homemade blueberry pie. Is there anything better than a fresh fruit pie or cobbler? Well, okay, maybe fudge pie for me, but a lot of people claim fruit pies as their favorite and I certainly would never turn down a piece of Molly’s homemade blueberry pie!
I made this blueberry pie a couple of weeks ago and used refrigerated pie crust, then I made it again this past weekend and used my homemade pie crust recipe and there was simply no comparison. Homemade pie crust is so easy to make. You basically throw everything in the food processor and it just makes a much better pie.
Molly uses the blueberry pie recipe from the classic 1976 Better Homes and Gardens cookbook and it’s absolutely delicious. I tweaked it a bit to incorporate some of my favorite fruit pie baking tips, such as using ground Minute tapioca rather than flour and sprinkling some graham cracker crumbs in the bottom crust. I also like to add more berries to give the pie a little more bulk.
How to Make Homemade Blueberry Pie
You’ll need enough pastry for a 2-crust 9-inch pie. Place a baking sheet on the bottom rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 500° while you’re getting the pie ready. Start with a lightly floured surface and roll one portion of the the dough into a 12-inch circle and then line a 9-inch glass pie plate with the dough, allowing the excess to hang over the edges. Keep the other portion of pastry in the refrigerator until you’re ready for it. When I roll out pie crust I flip it a couple of times so each side has a light coating of flour, which helps with absorbing some of the fruit juices. Place the dough-lined pie plate in the refrigerator.
Make the Blueberry Pie Filling
In a large bowl, mix sugar, brown sugar, Minute tapioca (grind first in a spice grinder or food processor), lemon zest, nutmeg, allspice, salt, and lemon juice until blended. Add 1 cup of fresh blueberries and mash with a potato masher until you have a bit of a paste. Then gently stir in 5 more cups of fresh blueberries. Allow the berries to rest for about 15 minutes.
Roll out the second piece of pastry to a 12-inch circle and remove the pie plate from the refrigerator.
Put the Pie Together
I like to sprinkle some finely crushed graham crackers in the pie crust before adding the berries, because it helps absorb the juice. Then drain the excess juice from the berries and scrape the berry filling into the pie plate. Dot the blueberries with butter and place the second piece of dough over the top. Trim the excess dough to about 1/2-inch and fold the top dough over the bottom and press edges together, so that the folded edge is right on the pie plate lip.
If you’re a fluter, then you can flute the edges to make it pretty—or you can take the easy way out like me and just crimp the edges with a fork. Molly always uses the extra dough to make pretty leaves on top of the crust but I’m not that talented so I just roll it into little balls and pretend they look like blueberries.
Baking the Pie
Cut four small slits in the top dough, then brush with an egg wash using a pastry brush and sprinkle turbinado sugar over the top. The egg wash and sugar make your crust nice and shiny. Place the pie on the pre-heated baking sheet and immediately turn the oven down to 425°. Bake for about 25 minutes, until the top is golden brown, then reduce oven temperature to 375° and continue baking until the juices bubble and the crust is deep golden brown, about 30 minutes longer. Always make sure the juices are nice and bubbly or your pie won’t set correctly and will be too runny.
Here’s a great tip that I got from my Baking Illustrated book: Tear off a square of tin foil slightly larger than your pie and fold into a rectangle. Then cut an arch out of the center and unfold—you should have a perfect cover for the edges of your pie! Place this cover on the pie when you turn down to 375° and the edges won’t get too brown.
Most important step: Allow the blueberry pie to rest at least 3-4 hours to set the juices. Then serve at room temperature with vanilla ice cream or homemade whipped cream. Homemade blueberry pie is lovely and a great summer dessert to serve your family and friends!
Special thanks to my sweet friend for sharing her recipe for homemade blueberry pie!
Homemade Blueberry Pie Recipe
Ingredients
- Pastry for two 9-inch pie crusts
- 6 cups fresh blueberries
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup light brown sugar
- 2 generous teaspoons fresh lemon zest
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
- Pinch of allspice
- Pinch of salt
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 4 tablespoons Minute tapioca, ground in a spice grinder or food processor until fine
- 2 tablespoons finely ground graham crackers
- 2 tablespoons butter
Egg Wash
- 1 egg
- 1 tablespoon water
- 1 tablespoon turbinado sugar
Instructions
- Place a baking sheet on bottom rack in the oven and preheat oven to 500°.
- Start with a lightly floured surface and roll one portion of the the dough into a 12-inch circle. Flip the dough a couple of times so each side has a light flour coating.
- Line a 9-inch glass pie plate with dough, allowing the excess dough to hang over the edges. Place the pie plate with dough in the refrigerator.
- In a large bowl, mix sugar, brown sugar, ground Minute tapioca, lemon zest, nutmeg, allspice, salt, and lemon juice until blended. Add 1 cup of fresh blueberries and mash with a potato masher until you have a bit of a paste. Gently stir in 5 more cups of fresh blueberries. Allow the berries to rest for about 15 minutes.
- Roll out the second piece of pastry to a 12-inch circle and remove the pie plate from the refrigerator.
- Sprinkle graham cracker crumbs on the dough in the pie plate.
- Drain the accumulated juice from the berries and scrape the filling into the pie plate. Dot the blueberries with butter and place the second piece of dough over the top.
- Trim the excess dough to about 1/2-inch and fold the top dough over the bottom and press edges together, so that the folded edge is right on the pie plate lip. Flute the edges or crimp with a fork.
- Cut four small slits in the top dough, then whisk one egg with one tablespoon of water and brush over the top crust using a pastry brush. Sprinkle one tablespoon of turbinado sugar over the top. Place the pie on the pre-heated baking sheet and immediately turn the oven down to 425°.
- Bake for about 25 minutes, until the top is golden brown, then reduce oven temperature to 375° and continue baking until the juices bubble and the crust is deep golden brown, about 30 minutes longer.
- Remove pie from oven and cool on a rack. Allow the pie to rest at least 3-4 hours to set the juices. Serve at room temperature with vanilla ice cream or homemade whipped cream.
Notes
Slightly adapted from Baking Illustrated Blueberry Pie recipe.
Slightly adapted from Fine Cooking Classic Lattice-Top Blueberry Pie recipe.
