Blueberry Pie in a Pastry Shell

Blueberry Pie in a Pastry Shell is filed under Pies and tarts and built around all-purpose flour, kosher salt, and sugar. Plan on 8 slices.

Count on 45 minutes of prep, 50 minutes of cooking, 3 hours of resting, about 4 hours from the first measurement to the plate.

Ingredients Method

What goes in the bowl

Foolproof Vodka Pie Crust

• 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 12 tablespoons unsalted butter
• ½ cup vegetable shortening cold, cut into small bits
• ¼ cup vodka ice cold
• ¼ cup water ice cold
• flour for your work surface aka 'bench flour

Blueberry Pie Filling

• 5 ⅔ cups blueberries
• ¼ cup lemon juice
• 1 zest from orange
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• ¼ cup tapioca flour
• heavy cream optional, for topping
• turbinado sugar optional, for topping

How the cooking goes

Roll & lattice the dough

1. Roll out both top and bottom crusts to ⅛-inch thick. If it cracks, it is a little too cold. Let it sit out for 5-8 minutes. For additional information, visit the post on vodka pie crust!
2. You can lattice like you did, or you can just cut a few vent holes. You can also just lay the strips on top of the filling without weaving, and it will still taste delicious.

Make filling & assemble

1. In a pot, combine all the filling ingredients. Slowly cook over a gentle flame until the blueberries begin to break down and the tapioca is absorbed (no longer visible). This should take about 15 minutes. If using frozen blueberries, no need to thaw them before cooking.
2. Turn up the heat and boil the mixture for one minute to begin activating the tapioca. Pour the filling out onto a sheet pan lined with plastic wrap or baking paper. Cover and cool until it is no longer warm.
3. Warm the oven to 350°F.
4. Tip cooled filling into bottom crust (lined in pie tin) and spread out in an even layer.Top with a second pie circle or latticed top and crimp edges decoratively. You can brush tops with heavy cream and sprinkle with turbinado sugar if desired. If the crust didn’t get too warm, you can forgo a final refrigeration, but if it no longer feels cold to the touch, refrigerate for 30 minutes to an hour.
5. Set dish on rimmed sheet pan and bake in pre-heated oven for 45-50 or until the filling is bubbling in the center and the pie crust is a dark deep gold.

After it comes off the heat

Let the pan settle before you slice, so the crumb stays together. Cover leftovers once they are cool.

If you want another plate from Pies and tarts, open Mixed Berry Pie Cooled Before Slicing and The Pecan Pie Cooled Before Slicing.