Mixed Berry Pie
Hello my sweet plums! Today I’m going to teach you lovelies how to make a pie from scratch, and yes that does mean a pie crust from scratch as well! This was the second pie recipe I’d ever made and I’ve since then fallen in love with making pies. I thought I’d share the passion for pies with you all! Let’s get started!
Step One: Gather Your Ingredients and Your Equipment
Pie Crust:
Ingredients
2 1/2 Cups All-Purpose Flour
1 Tablespoon Sugar
1 Teaspoon Salt
14 Tablespoons COLD Butter (Split your butter in half, ie 7 Tablespoons and 7 Tablespoons, cut the butter into cubes)
6 Tablespoons of Ice Cold Water
1 Egg and 1 Tablespoon of Milk (You’ll mix this together when your pie is done and brush it on your pie crust before it goes into the oven)
Equipment
Food Processor OR a Large Bowl
Sifter
Seran Wrap
Flour (to sprinkle on your rolling surface and your pie dough
Rolling Pin
Pastry Cutter or Two Knives (ONLY use these if you do not have a food processor)
Pastry Brush OR Napkins OR Paper Towels
Aluminum Foil
Scissors
**NOTE** Hey sweet peas, if you don’t want to make the crust then pre-made dough from the grocery store works just as well!
Filling:
Ingredients
5-6 Cups of Fresh Berries (Strawberries, Raspberries, Blueberries, Blackberries, etc)
Zest and Juice of 1 Lemon
1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract
1/2 Cup Sugar
1/3 Cup Brown Sugar
1/4 Cup Cornstarch
A Pinch of Salt
Equipment
1 Large Bowl
Spoon or Spatula
Pie Tin
Zester OR Vegetable Peeler
1 Tiny Bowl Or Measuring Cup
Step Two: Dough You Think You Can Bake This?
1) Sift your flour, sugar and salt into your food processor or large bowl.
2) Add 7 Tablespoons of COLD butter into your flour mixture. In your food processor on high pulse the mixture for 30 seconds. If you do not have a food processor use your pastry cutter or two knives to mix your butter and flour mixture together.
3) Add the rest of your butter into your mixture and pulse with your food processor or mix with your pastry cutter or knives, it will look very course. Like this
4) Add in your cold water 1 tablespoon at a time. (If it is still dry add in more water 1 tablespoon at a time)
5) Lay down Seran wrap onto your counter. Dump your dough onto your Seran wrap. Use your hands to form it into a large ball. Then you’re going to make two balls one slightly bigger than the other. Pat your balls into disks and cover them with Seran wrap.
6) Put your dough in the fridge for an hour (though you can chill it overnight if you want)
7) Seran Wrap your counter once more and dust the area with flour. Take out your large dough disk and let it stand for a few minutes before your roll it out with your rolling pin. You’ll want to roll it out enough that you can have an overhang of 1-2 inches. I know it’s tempting to trim your dough to the very edge of your pie tin but DO NOT!! I did that once. The lattice ended up being perfection, I literally shed a tear from how beautiful the lattice looked, but once I baked it it shrunk and ended up looking like an absolute disaster. SO PLEASE LEAVE THE OVERHANG!
8) Now you’re going to have to transfer your dough from the counter and into your tin. The method I use is to roll the dough onto my rolling pin and then drape it over my tin. I press down on it to make sure that there are no pockets of air. You’ll now pop this back into the fridge for 30 minutes. (Don’t worry the second, smaller, disk of dough will be mentioned in the third step). **NOTE**If you have pre-made pie dough, take one of the crusts and make sure it fits your pan, if not roll it out until it’s the size you want, and place it into the pie tin.
YOU’VE MADE YOUR VERY OWN CRUST!!!!
Step Three: A Very Merry Berry Filling
1) Clean your berries, carefully towel dry them, and measure the amount out. Place five, or 6, cups of whatever berries you want to use into a large bowl.
2) Take your lemon and make sure to wash it. Take your zester, or vegetable peeler, and zest away! Make sure it is only the yellow of the lemon and not the white. Add this to your bowl.
3) Slice your zested lemon in half. Squeeze the juice into your measuring cup or tiny bowl. You do this so you can remove any seeds from the juice without having to scramble around in your berries. Pour the juice into your berry bowl.
4) Add 1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extracts to your berries. Carefully toss, or mix, your berries. Try not to smoosh your berries! You DO NOT want the extra juice.
5) Add in your cornstarch, sugars, and salt. Make sure your berries are well coated and your cornstarch has disappeared.
6) If your thirty minutes are up, take out your pie crust. You’re going to now gently pour in your filling, making sure to pile it high in the middle. **NOTE** If you think your pie has too much juice, and you still have more in your pie, you do not have to add the remaining juice.
7) Take your small dough disk out of the fridge and place it onto your rolling surface, the place where you rolled out your last dough disk. Now roll this disk out making sure it is quite large. You’ll want to cut strips into your dough. You’ll have to do this process again later on to complete your lattice. Now it’s time to make a lattice. Don't worry, if you’ve never done a lattice before, here are some step by step pictures. (**NOTE** If you have pre-made dough you will also cut strips into it and you are also going to have to re-roll your scraps and repeat the same flattening and cutting into strips process.)
8) Once your lattice is done trim any excess strips that are longer then your 1-2 inch overhang. Now, take a fork and crimp the edges of your pie crust.
9) Mix your milk and egg together. Use a pastry brush, or napkins or paper towel, to brush on your egg milk mixture onto your pie crust.
10) Put your pie into your fridge for 15-30 minutes, while it chills pre-heat your oven to 375.
11) Now, the trouble with pies is that your edges ALWAYS browns the fastest. So as you wait for your 15-30 minutes to pass, you’re going to make a cover for your crust. Take a large square piece of foil and fold it in half, twice. Use your scissors to cut off a curve in your foil.
12) After your 15-30 minutes have gone by, and your oven is heated, unfold your aluminum foil. Place it over your pie crust. It won’t fit exactly, or at least mine usually don’t, so you’ll have to shape it to fit.
13) Place your pie onto a baking sheet and place your pie into the oven. You’ll bake this for 20-25 MINUTES! Once the timer goes off you’ll take off your foil. Place it back into the oven for another 30 minutes. Or at least until it’s nice and golden and your filling is bubbly.
14) Cover your pie with seran wrap or aluminum foil. Wait a few hours to serve. If you do not serve it right away store in the fridge it lasts for about three days.
YOU HAVE MADE A PIE! A HOMEMADE PIE!! BE PROUD!!
Thank you all for your time and I hope you enjoy baking this! I know as I was writing this post the new update to Check, Please! came out so maybe bake this pie in celebration. Or bake it before the next update and enjoy a slice of pie as you read the new update. Do whatever you want. The recipe is in your hands now! You are now a pie baker, congratulations! I hope you all have a lovely time baking this and remember if you have any questions feel free to message me! Now, maybe check out Check, Please! if you haven’t before, or bake away! Till next time!!
~Plots and Pastries













