American Berry Pie

Course Desserts, Pies, Pies & Crisps

Prep Time 45

Cook Time 2

Total Time 47

Servings people

Ingredients

CRUST

2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup almonds finely chopped
1/4 tsp salt
2/3 cup Butter cold, cut into chunks
5 to 7 tbs ice water

FILLING

1 (16 oz) container strawberries fresh, sliced (2 1/2 cups)
1 3/4 cups raspberries fresh
1 1/2 cups blueberries fresh
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch
1 tbs water
1/2 tsp almond extract

EGG WASH

1 large egg slightly beaten
sanding sugar

Instructions

Heat oven to 425°F.
Combine flour, almonds, and salt in a bowl; cut in butter, using a pastry blender or two forks, until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in enough water just until flour is moistened.
Divide dough into 1/3 and 2/3 portions. Shape each portion into a ball; flatten slightly. Wrap the smaller ball of dough in plastic food wrap; refrigerate.
Roll out the larger ball of dough on a lightly floured surface into a 1/8-inch thick, 12-inch circle. Fold into quarters. Place dough into ungreased 9-inch pie plate; unfold, pressing firmly against bottom and sides. Trim crust to 1/2 inch from edge of plate; set aside.
Place strawberries and raspberries into a bowl. Place blueberries into another bowl.
Combine sugar and cornstarch in a small bowl until well mixed. Add 1/4 cup sugar mixture, 1 tablespoon water, and 1/4 teaspoon almond extract to blueberries; toss lightly to coat. Add remaining sugar mixture and remaining 1/4 teaspoon almond extract to strawberries and raspberries; toss lightly to coat.
Fold a piece of aluminum foil several times to make 2-inch wide strip; place into the pie crust to divide the crust into 1/3 and 2/3 sections. Press down slightly into crust. Spoon blueberry mixture into 1/3 portion of pie crust. Spoon strawberry and raspberry mixture into a larger area of pie. Carefully remove foil.
Roll out remaining ball of dough on a lightly floured surface into 11-inch circle. Cut 5 3/4-inch strips of dough in wavy shape to create stripes on the flag. Place over strawberry and raspberry mixture, trimming as needed. Fold bottom crust edge over edge of strips. Crimp or flute the entire edge of the pie.
Cut 10-12 stars from remaining dough using 1 1/2-inch cookie cutter; place stars over blueberry mixture. Brush crust with beaten egg; sprinkle with sanding sugar. Cover edge of crust with 2-inch strip of aluminum foil.
Bake 15 minutes; remove foil. Reduce oven temperature to 375°F. Continue baking 30-40 minutes or until crust is lightly browned and filling is bubbling. Cool pie 1 hour before serving.

Notes

American Berry Pie

Sometimes when we’re developing a recipe in the Test Kitchen, we know from the get-go that the recipe we’re working on is going to be a team favorite. This American Berry Pie was definitely one of those recipes! After we held our tasting panel, we were all talking about how it would be the perfect recipe to serve at our 4th of July parties.

The recipe itself is pretty easy – if you’ve made a double-crust pie before, this isn’t much different. The crust begins with flour, finely chopped almonds, and salt. Cut in butter until it resembles coarse crumbs, and stir in enough ice water until the dough comes together.


Divide the dough in half, and flatten slightly (this will make it easier to roll out). Wrap one half in plastic food wrap and keep in the fridge until the rest of the pie is done.
Roll out the other ball of dough into a 12-inch circle and fold into quarters for easy transporting.
Press the dough into a pie plate and trim to within ½-inch of the edge of the pan. You can either flute the edge at this point, or after the crust goes on top – I got too excited and did it right away. My favorite way to flute a crust is with my thumb and pointer finger and the end of a wooden spoon.
Rinse and drain the berries, placing the sliced strawberries and raspberries into one bowl, and the blueberries in another. Combine the cornstarch and sugar in a bowl. Add ¼ cup of the mixture to the blueberries with ¼ teaspoon of almond extract in each bowl, and add the rest of the sugar/cornstarch mixture to the strawberries and raspberries. Toss together until well-coated.
Fold a piece of aluminum foil into a 2-inch wide strip, and place in the crust to divide it into ½ and 2/3 sections. This will help the colors stay separate. Press slightly into the crust and pour the blueberry mixture into the smaller half, and the raspberry/strawberry into the larger area. Once the fruit is in the crust, remove the foil.
Roll out the remaining dough, cutting out 1-inch strips for stripes on the flag, and stars for other half of the pie. Place the stripes on right side of the pie (over strawberry raspberry mixture), and stars on the left (over the blueberry mixture). Fold the extra dough over the edges, trimming as needed, and crimp or flute the crust. Personally, I think the more rustic-looking, the better. Brush the top with egg wash and sprinkle with sanding sugar – I didn’t think it was possible to make the pie more beautiful than it already was, but this does the trick!
Bake for 40-50 minutes or until the crust is lightly browned and juices begin to bubble up. If your pie is getting too brown to fast, just cover with aluminum foil. Make sure to cool the pie for about an hour before serving – this will make it a lot easier to cut.