Pi Day, otherwise known as March 14, was first celebrated in 1988 by American physicist Larry Shaw. A few short years later, I was introduced to my all-time-favorite pie recipe by a fellow intern at Longwood Gardens in Pennsylvania. Thank you Ellen, wherever you are!
Over the years I have adapted the recipe to suit various diets, but the main idea remains the same: Fresh, uncooked berries engulfed in a cooked-berry glaze, and placed in an already-baked pie crust. The result: Incredible deliciousness!
What makes this pie so amazing? Besides the fresh-fruit satisfaction squared, it is super simple to make. The crust I use is home-made, wholesome and delicious, with a bit of texture; but requires neither chilling and cutting in the shortening, nor rolling out the dough.
The filling is almost completely fruit, enhanced with a natural sweetener (xylitol) and lemon, and thickened to silky perfection with tapioca starch. For economic use of time, the crust is baked while the filling is prepared,
Barely-Baked Blueberry Pie Recipe
Although you can use any pie crust you like, I will share my vegan, flourless, press-in crust that I think suits the berries perfectly. You can bake the crust while you cook the berries and the whole procedure takes less than a half hour.
Crust ingredients:
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1 cup rolled oats – ground into a coarse meal
½ cup almond meal
⅓ cup tapioca starch, or cornstarch
½ tsp salt
¼ cup hot water
¼ cup coconut oil (melted in the hot water)
Instructions:
Mix the dry ingredients together before adding the wet, just enough to make a soft dough (you may have a wee bit left over).
Press into a 10 inch pie dish with a spoon, or your fingers. Level it out with a spoon. If you line the pan with parchment, you’ll be more likely to extract your pie pieces intact.
Bake at 350 F for 15 – 20 minutes, or until it smells toasty; but don’t wait for it to brown.
Remove and fill with prepared berries (below).
Filling ingredients
2 cups fresh blueberries
2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries (or a mix of berries)
Juice of one lemon
⅓ to 1/2 cup xylitol or other sweetener (I like it a little less sweet, so you can really taste the berry flavor.)
¼ cup tapioca starch or cornstarch
Instructions:
Wash the fresh berries and fold them in a towel to dry (you don’t want to add moisture to your gelatinous cooked berries).
Place the other two cups of berries in a small saucepan with the other ingredients. Mix and cook on medium heat until the berries are thawed (if frozen). Mash or hand blend the mixture and continue to cook until it is thick and uniformly colored. The whole process can be done while the crust bakes.
Remove from heat and add fresh berries. Mix them in, to thoroughly coat each berry; and pour into the baked crust. Allow several hours to cool, or put it in the fridge if you’re in a hurry.
Enjoy with or without fresh whipped cream of your choice (coconut, cow, or oat) and you can calculate on a perfect pi day!
