Michigan Blueberry Pie

Growing up in the Midwest, we always looked forward to the first Michigan blueberries of the season. I'm not sure why we thought they were better, or more exotic than the East coast berries, but it was something to wait all year for. Today, the first showed up at my grocer.

I'd been filling Danny's head with all sorts of stories about how the Michigan blueberries only grow when no one is looking and they achieve this mostly at night. If you're a regular here, you've probably figured out by now that we tell our son some pretty outrageous stories, and the blueberry tale is kind of mild in comparison to our other whoppers. Anyway, he's been pretty excited about these berries.

Know what? They are better than the East coast berries we've been getting.

The pie is a fairly simple deal. I keep my spicing of fruit pies rather tame and this is no exception. I used nutmeg and lemon zest. You may prefer a bit of vanilla sugar, or cardamom, or cinnamon even. Whatever you choose, keep it subtle and let the berries be the centrepiece of the pie.

The crust recipe is quite good, but delicate. if you're not super-confident in your pastry skills, use one without sugar and butter.

You Will Need:

For the crust:

3 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 cup vegetable shortening
1/4 cup unsalted butter
1/3 cup very cold water
1 egg
1 tablespoon white vinegar

Combine flour, salt and sugar. Cut in the shortening and butter. In a bowl, mix the water with an egg and vinegar. Mix into flour mixture slowly-you may not need it all. Let rest a few minutes before rolling out. Makes 2 9 inch crusts

For the filling:

2 pints blueberries washed and stems removed
Grated zest of 1 lemon
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 cup flour
2 tablespoons butter for dotting top
1/4 cup heavy cream for brushing crust
Sugar for sprinkling crust

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Fit the bottom crust into a 9 inch pie plate. Combine filling and pour into bottom crust. Dot with butter and top with other crust either cut into a lattice or a plain top. Make slits as needed. Brush generously with cream and sprinkle with sugar. Bake at 400 degrees F. for 15 minutes, then lower to 350 degrees F. for about 45 minutes or until done. I bake mine on a baking sheet-just in case.

Serve with whipped cream.