Blueberry season marks the height of the summer here in Maine and there is no more iconic way to celebrate than a delicious blueberry pie.
Over the years I have tried countless recipes and was never completely satisfied until I made my own by combining the best bits of every recipe I learned from. Some were too runny, some didn’t have enough flavor and some were close but didn’t quite hit the mark. After four years of trying and tweaking and trying again, this is my favorite blueberry pie recipe.
Perfect Blueberry Pie
Ingredients:
2 pints blueberries (4 cups)
3/4 cup sugar
1 lemon, zested
5 Tbsp cornstarch
3 Tbsp lemon juice (1 lemon, juiced)
2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
2 Tbsp unsalted butter
1 egg, beaten with 2 Tbsp water
2 Tbsp Demerara, turbinado or other coarse sugar, for top of pie
2 individual pie crusts
Directions:
Combine 1 cup berries with 3/4 cup sugar and lemon zest in pan.
Simmer on low heat, stirring frequently, until sugar is melted and mixture is very liquid. This will take about 10 minutes.
Combine cornstarch, lemon juice and balsamic vinegar in bowl. Stir until mixture is completely combined and homogenous.
Add to pan with blueberries and cook over medium heat until mixture comes to a boil and is smooth and thick.
Pour hot mixture into large bowl. Allow to cool until warm.
Fold in remaining 3 cups of blueberries, cinnamon, nutmeg and butter.
Let cool completely before adding to pie crust.
To create a lattice crust, cut top crust into even strips and lay half of them on top of the pie in parallel lines.
Fold back alternating strips and place one strip perpendicular to the others.
Replace the alternating strips, covering the perpendicular strip of dough and fold back the others.
Continue repeating this process until the crust is complete.
Tuck the edges under and shape to your preference.
Preheat oven to 400 F. Refrigerate for fifteen minutes or longer before baking.
Gently brush top crust with egg wash and sprinkle coarse sugar liberally over pie.
Place a crust protector or piece of aluminum foil around the edge of the pie to keep from burning.
Put pie in oven and immediately decrease heat to 375 F.
Bake 40-45 minutes until crust is golden brown. Allow to cool on a wire rack at least one hour before serving.
Slice and serve with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
fireislandchef 
Do you have a foolproof pie crust recipe?
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Here is the recipe for American Pie Dough from The Bakers Manual.
American Pie Dough
Makes eight 8″ pies or seven 9″ pies.
Ingredients:
8 cups all-purpose flour
1 Tbsp salt
1 3/4 cups plus 2 Tbsp (15 oz.) unsalted butter, cold
3/4 cup shortening
1-1 1/2 cups ice cold water
Directions:
Place the flour and salt in a mixer bowl fitted with the paddle attachment; briefly combine. With the mixer running at medium-low speed, toss the cold butter into the bowl a tablespoon at a time. Add the shortening the same way. Once the fat has been reduced to 1/4 to 1/2 inch pieces (pea sized clumps), drizzle enough ice water into the bowl for the dough to start to come together. The dough will still be shaggy, not wet. Press the dough together, then divide into eight 8-ounce pieces for 8″ diameter pies or seven pieces just over 9 ounces each for 9″ pies. For easier rolling, flatten each piece into a round disc. Wrap in plastic. Let the dough rest for 2 hours or overnight before using.
The dough will keep for three days in the refrigerator or for several months frozen.
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