Blueberry Basil Pie

I bought two pints of fresh blueberries from the Union Square Market, took it Chef’s sister’s apartment, and taught her how to make this pie:

Blueberry Basil Pie.

While we were walking to her apartment, Chef wondered how the basil and blueberry would taste in the pie because there are a lot of wonderful cocktails using both ingredients together. Since blueberries are in season and the east coast is just stupidly hot, I figured a pie using both of these ingredients would be a nice summer dessert. Coincidently, Chef’s sister and her husband have a basil plant in their apartment so it was the perfect time to make this pie using local blueberries and some homegrown basil…

For an 9” pie:

Pastry:

• 2 3/4 c. all purpose flour
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 1/2 tsp. sugar
• 1 c. butter, cut into 1/2” pieces
• 1/2 c. cold water

Filling:

• 4 c. blueberries
• 3/4 c. granulated sugar
• 1/4 c. cornstarch
• 6 fresh basil leaves

Egg Wash:

• 1 egg white
• 1 tsp. water

For the pastry, combine all of the ingredients except the cold water in a mixing bowl. If you decide to use a food processor, pulse all of the ingredients on a low setting. If mixing by hand (literally, use your hands), add the water 1/4 c. at a time until the dough sticks together and not on your hands. Wrap the pastry in a plastic wrap; freeze the dough until it’s firm. When the dough is ready, divide it in a half and roll out one of the halves dough on a floured surface and mold it into a 9” pie dish. Remove the excess scraps and add it to the other half. For the blueberry filling, (I recommend that you make this while the dough is chilling) gently mix together the blueberries, sugar and cornstarch in a large bowl. Add the basil by tearing it into small pieces. Once the basil is added into the mixture, gently mix again. Spoon the filling into the pastry lined pie dish.

Roll the other half of the pastry dough on a floured surface into a rectangle; with a knife, cut 3/4”-1” wide strips. Place the strips side by side, leaving a 1” space between each strip so that the pie is evenly covered:

Repeat on the perpendicular side but weave the strip over and under each of the strips on the opposite side. This is the lattice! :) For the egg wash, make this by mixing the egg white and water in a small bowl; with a pastry brush, brush this mixture over the pastry parts of the pie — this will give the pie a nice shine and some additional coloring. Bake the pie in the bottom, center rack in a preheated 375F oven for 50 minutes. The pastry part of the pie should be golden colored. Let it cool before serving.