THAT BLUEBERRY PIE, YES, THAT ONE!

HAPPY NEW YEAR PIE

Remember Elaine's "big salad", well I can do better than that. I made a "big pie", and, after eating it, I am going to wish that I had Elaine's salad. Although, I must say it was delicious and worth every calorie.

I have always loved blueberries. When it was time for me to decide on a dessert for my New Year's Day dinner, I remembered the big bag of small, sweet, Maine blueberries that I had in the freezer, and I thought this would be a good time for pie. Since I thought I might have eight people here eating collards, peas and pie, I decided that it needed to be a big pie. So, instead of the usual pie plate, I took out a heavy, deep dish casserole. The dish worked perfectly, and the pie was delicious.

By the time dinner came along, and the pie was sitting on the counter cooling, I realized that I would be eating dessert alone. I got out one of my favorite French glasses and put in spoons of the warm blueberry pie, and then poured in a couple of tablespoons of heavy cream. This was my grandfather's way of eating pies and cobblers, and it's mine too. I hope you enjoy the pie. It is one of my favorite recipes. I just have to find more people to eat it with. 

The recipe-

5 cups frozen blueberries, (no need to thaw)
3/4 cup plus one tablespoon sugar
4.5 tablespoons flour
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup orange juice
1 teaspoon lemon zest
1 package of two pie crust
heavy cream
Demerara sugar

Place one pie crust on the bottom and up the sides of a large pie plate or oven proof casserole dish that has been sprayed with non-stick cooking spray.

Add sugar, flour, juice, zest, and water to a large bowl and mix in the 5 cups of blueberries. Pour the berry mixture into the pie crust. Now place the second pie crust on top and take it down under the sides of the bottom crust. Seal the crusts together by crimping the edges with a fork, see photo. This keeps the blueberries from going out of the side and into the bottom of the plate. Now,  make several holes in the pie top with your fork. This helps the steam escape. Brush the pie crust with heavy cream and sprinkle liberally with Demerara sugar. Bake at 350 for about 60-90 minutes or until the pie is bubbling in the center, and crust is brown. If crust starts to brown too much before the pie is cooked, cover it with foil.

I had two refrigerated pie crusts from a grocery store. It's the best one out there as far as I'm concerned. It's their brand. If you want to know what it is, please ask me and I will tell you. This crust is always crisp, and it taste good.

Friends had given me citrus fruits when I visited them the day after Christmas, and it was right off their trees, so it was really fresh. I used a little lemon zest and orange juice for the pie. I have found that using both lemon and orange imparts a gentle flavor, and the two fruits counterbalance each other.

I hope you enjoy this pie. I know I sure am. I'm still eating it.