July’s baking bucket list challenge was a lattice-topped blueberry pie and it was a challenge that was both frustrating and humbling.
Spoiler Alert: this pie does not have a lattice crust.
This month I challenged myself to make a lattice-topped blueberry pie. I love blueberry pies and I thought it was seasonally appropriate for July. Pies are something I don’t typically bake, other than a random pumpkin pie for Thanksgiving every couple of years. I thought choosing this pie would allow me to learn a bit more about pie making while getting creative with the crust. Right before baking, I decided I wasn’t just making a lattice-topped blueberry pie but was going to make a braided lattice-topped blueberry pie — totally upping the ante.
For my blueberry pie crust, I used Sally’s Baking Addiction’s pie crust recipe but rather than cutting the butter into the dough by hand as her recipe instructed, I used a food processor (something I’ve done it the past with my Mom’s pie crust recipe). And while the crust came together, it felt a little soft.
And that’s when I knew this crust was going to be trouble. But rather than scraping the crust (a triple recipe crust recipe!) and starting over, I forged ahead.
My shitty pie crust hunch was confirmed while attempting to get the bottom crust into my pie plate.
It broke upon flip and I had to piece the crust back together, mashing the dough in place to form the full bottom. By the time I was ready to start cutting the remaining crust into strips for braiding, the dough was too warm and it broke anytime I tried to release it from the counter.
In a measly attempt to remedy the situation, I chilled the pie crust in the freezer, waiting 30-minutes or so before having another go at cutting the crust into strips. Unfortunately, each time I ended up with the same disastrous results — ripped lattice strips that couldn’t be lifted off of the counter let alone braided together.
Feeling frustrated, I dumped my blueberry pie filling to into my prepared bottom pie crust and stuck the whole thing, uncooked, into the fridge. I then wrapped up my remaining pie crust and put that in the fridge to chill overnight. I thought maybe if I gave it a day and came back to it feeling fresh with more patience and properly chilled dough, I might have success.
The next day, I took the pie crust out again, added a bit more flour to stiffen it up and attempted to cut it into strips to work on the braided lattice crust. This time around it didn’t help that my anal, type-A personality was shining through because I meticulously cut even, straight lines using a ruler which took ages. Whenever the crust wasn’t perfectly straight, I bunched up the dough and started all over again. Prolonging the effort and causing the dough to get warmer and warmer by the minute.
Throughout the entire process, I moved cautiously, attempting to lift the strips from the counter and again, they broke. After several attempts on day 2, I finally use gave in. Not wanting to waste the crust or the $15 I spent on fresh blueberries to make the filling, I gave in, rolled the dough out and made a traditional double-crust blueberry pie. I slathered it with an egg wash and some sugar and baked it in the oven.
The result was a superbly delicious blueberry pie.
Just a hint of cinnamon & nutmeg spice that was juicy but not overly running. I also learned a new trick from Dorie Greenspan about adding breadcrumbs on top of the bottom crust, before you layer in a pie filling that helps keep the bottom from becoming soggy. While I was a tad skeptical about adding breadcrumbs, the results were amazing and the curst was definitely flakier than past pies. This is 100% something I’ll be doing for any future pie bakes. Overall, it was a delicious pie that any baker would be proud of. However, it simply didn’t meet my July baking bucket list challenge.
In retrospect, I’m unsure whether the failed braided pie crust was the result of the recipe, the warm Texas July heat which turned the pie crust warm quickly (even with AC on!), or my overall lack of patience. However, I do plan to attempt a braided lattice pie again this year to check off this bucket list item — likely with a fall fruit and this time using my Mom’s tried-and-true pie dough recipe.
You can find my recipe for a blueberry pie recipe below (sans crust). I highly recommend making it with your own amazing pie crust recipe or grabbing a couple of Pillsbury pre-made crusts. Because let’s face it, those store-bought crusts are pretty dang tasty.
Read about my other baking bucket list challenges here.
- 2 pie crusts for a 9-inch pie pan, prepared and chilled
- 5 cups fresh blueberries, stemmed & cleaned
- 2 teaspoons lemon zest
- 2 teaspoons lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon nutmeg
- ½-3/4 cup granulated sugar (depending on your sweetness preference)
- 2 tablespoons tapioca flour
- pinch of salt
- 2 tablespoons of bread crumbs
- egg wash, 1 egg whisked with 1 teaspoon water
- 2 tablespoons sugar, optional for dusting
- Roll out one prepared pie crust into a circle, large enough to fit a 9-inch pie pan (about 12-inches in diameter)
- Place your pie crust into the bottom of a 9-inch pie pan, allowing any excess to hang over the edge.
- Place the breadcrumbs into the bottom of the prepared pie crust and set aside.
- Make the filling: Place 3 cups of blueberries in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Lightly mash the berries to release juices. Continue to cook, stirring frequently until about half of the berries have broken down.
- Remove from heat and add in the reserved berries. Stir in the lemon zest, lemon juice, cinnamon, nutmeg, sugar, and salt. Once combined, gently stir in the tapioca flour.
- Pour the blueberry filling into the prepared pie crust with breadcrumbs on the bottom.
- Roll out your second pie crust into a circle (12 inches in diameter) and place it on top of the pie. Trim both pie crusts so they are flush with the pie plate, leaving about 1-inch of excess Use this remaining crust to crimp the edges.
- Brush the top of the pie crust with the egg wash, cut 4-5 slits in the top with a sharp knife to allow moisture to escape while baking then sprinkle the top with sugar.
- Bake at 425 degrees for 30 minutes then reduce the oven temperature to 400 degrees and continue to bake for another 30-minutes (1-hour total). Continue to check on the pie crust every 10-minutes after reducing the oven temperature to ensure it doesn't burn. If the top crust or edges become too brown, cover them with aluminum foil to prevent burning.
- Remove from oven and let the pie cool completely before cutting.
