Blueberry Apple Pie

Prep Time: 1 hour 50 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
Cooling Time: 1 hour
Servings: 8 - 10 people

This blueberry apple pie is the perfect pie for combining freshly picked apples with frozen blueberries for a taste of both Summer and Fall. The crispy and flaky pie crust is filled with a juicy and lightly spiced filling of tart apples and blueberries.

Ingredients:

Pie Crust:

360 g all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
250 g unsalted butter, cold and cubed
160 g ice cold water

Pie Filling:

6 small tart apples, peeled, cored, and cut into ¼” slices
230 g blueberries, fresh or frozen
70 g brown sugar
4 tablespoons cornstarch
2 tablespoon ground cinnamon
3 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 egg, beaten
3 tablespoons sugar crystals or coarse sugar

Directions:

Pie Crust: In a medium bowl, stir together flour and salt. Add in the cold butter chunks and toss to coat in flour.
Press the butter pieces between your fingers and your thumb until they break apart into smaller pieces. Repeat with all butter pieces, tossing to coat in flour occasionally. Work quickly to break butter pieces down until they are about pea-sized pieces.
Make a well in the middle of the flour. Pour in ice cold water. Mix together to hydrate the flour until it forms a shaggy dough, making sure to incorporate any dry flour at the bottom of the bowl. If needed, add up to 20g more of water if it’s too dry (but you shouldn’t need to).
Turn the dough out onto a sheet of plastic wrap. Press dough together with your hands. Use a bench scraper or your hand to fold the dough onto itself 2-3 times to create layers of butter.
Use a bench scraper to divide the dough into 2 halves. Press and shape each half into a flattened disc shape. Wrap each disc of dough tightly with plastic wrap. Once wrapped, press down on the dough to compact it against the plastic wrap. Chill dough in the fridge for at least 4 hours or preferably overnight.
On a floured surface, place down the first disc of dough. This will become the bottom crust. Firmly whack the dough with a rolling pin several times to soften it. Roll out the dough in a roughly round shape until about ⅛” thick.
Transfer the dough into your pie dish by rolling up the sheet of dough around your rolling pin and unrolling it over your die dish. Gently lift the edges of the dough and let it slump into the bottom edges of the dish. Trim any excess overhanging dough, keeping about a 1” overhang. Place the whole pie dish in the fridge while prepping the second disc of dough.
Re-flour your surface and place down your second disc of dough. This will become the top lattice crust. Again, firmly whack the dough with a rolling pin several times to soften it. Roll out the dough in a roughly round shape until about ⅛” thick.
Use a long knife or pizza cutter to cut out 10 strips of dough, each about 1” wide. Transfer these strips to a cutting board or baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Chill in the fridge until you’re ready to use them.
Pie Filling: In a large mixing bowl, add in apple slices, blueberries, brown sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon, and vanilla extract. Fold together until the fruits are coated.
Take your pie dish out of the fridge and pour all of the fruit mixture into the pie crust. There should be enough fruit fill the dish and dome up out of the dish significantly.
Take the dough strips out of the fridge and begin arranging the lattice on top of the pie. Place down two of the longest strips in the middle of the pie in an X shape. Place two more strips on either side of the strip that is on the bottom of the X.
Lift up the strip that is on the bottom of the X, the “under” piece. Place a strip under the strip you lifted up but over the other two strips. Repeat lifting up all the “under” strips when placing a new strip, alternating with each new strip. See photos in the post - it’s easier to understand this by seeing it rather than reading it.
Once the lattice is done, trim off any overhanging ends of the strips. Fold the overhang of the bottom crust inwards, sealing off the lattice ends. Press the crust with a fork to remove some bulk.
Press your index finger and thumb on one hand against the inside of the crust while pressing your index finger on the other hand against the outside of the crust to crimp the crust into a wavy pattern.
Preheat the oven to 425°F.
Use a pastry brush to apply a thin layer of egg wash over all of the pie pastry. Sprinkle generously with sugar crystals or coarse sugar. Chill the pie in the fridge while the oven finishes preheating. This allows the butter to solidify again before baking to retain the shape of the crimped crust and for a flaky crust.
Place an empty tray on the bottom rack to catch any juices that bubble over. Bake for 15 minutes. Lower the heat to 350°F and continue baking for 50-55 minutes or until the crust is golden brown and filling is bubbling.
Cool on a cooling rack for at least 1 hour or until you can touch the bottom of the pie dish with your bare hand as the filling needs time to set.

Tips & Notes:

Lift and rotate the dough as you roll it out to avoid it sticking to the counter. Be sure to sprinkle more flour as you lift up the dough and flour any buttery spots that start to melt. Work quickly when rolling the dough. Once the dough is in the pie dish, you can chill it in the fridge again to firm up as it will have gotten warm during the rolling process.
Chill the dough in the fridge any time it gets too warm. Don’t be shy to chill the dough at any time during the process if it gets too warm and soft or when you’re not actively working on it. It’s important to keep the butter cold and intact until baking so that they create flaky layers.
Overfill the pie with fruit filling. The fruit filling bakes down significantly and loses about half its volume by the time the pie has cooled. You want to start with enough filling to dome out of the pie to account for the shrinkage.
Chill the pie before baking. Chilling this blueberry apple pie again right before baking ensures even baking and helps the crimped crust hold its shape.
Let the pie cool for several hours before serving. Pies need more time to cool than you probably think. You might want to dig in while it’s still hot but trust me, it will just fall apart into more of an apple crisp! It’s better to let a pie cool almost completely and then re-heat it before serving if you want to enjoy it warm.