Happy Thanksgiving and Blueberry Pie

We're off in a while to head to the lookout tower - woo-who! - but I've got a little time before my family is ready for breakfast, so I thought I'd post a Happy Thanksgiving! and share the blueberry pie recipe that Davan and I made yesterday. I spent some time looking around for recipes and ended up putting a couple together and then still modifying...

Now, we haven't tasted the blueberry pie exactly, as it's for today, but we did use a bit of leftover crust to make little individual pumpkin pies, with some leftover pumpkin pudding, that we had for dessert last night, so the crust has been tasted. And we did have to cut the pie up in order to be able to put it in a back pack to carry into the lookout, so Davan did taste a little of the filling that got spilled in the process...

This is a fairly healthy pie, as far as pies go, with very little fat (and I'm thinking I could have left it out all together, really) and no refined sugar. Because of the whole grains and the date sugar in the crust, it's a really dark crust. Just lettin' ya know that it will look a little different than "traditional." Also, we went for a sweet crust, which is a little on the robust side, rather than a light, flaky, fat filled crust. Still, we like it and so might you, if you're looking for a healthier alternative.

Crust:

3 cups whole grain spelt flour
1/3 cup unsweetened apple sauce
2 TBS canola oil
3/4 cup date sugar
2TBS vanilla
almond milk as needed

Measure out the flour into a large bowl, then add the date sugar and mix well. In a separate bowl, mix the apple sauce, oil and vanilla, then add to the flour mix and mix well, until it resembles bread crumbs. I just use my hands for this. Now, add a bit of almond milk and mix. Test to see if it will all hold together. If not, add more almond milk, but not too much. You want the dough to just hold together in a ball if you work at it. When you reach this point, you're ready to roll.

On a lightly flourered surface, roll out half the dough, rotating occasionally to keep it from sticking and for even rolling. You want to make it large enough that it will spill over the sides of your pie dish. When it's big enough, gently fold it into quarters, put it in the pie dish and unfold. It may rip a little, but don't stress. Just press the edges back together. If you have a spot where the crust doesn't come over the edge of the pie pan, steal a little from another spot and just make a repair. Then use a knife to trim the extra, a fork to poke holes in the bottom and stick it in the fridge to rest.

Now for the other half. You can just roll it out and make it a complete top, but Davan and I made a latices work top, which wasn't too difficult. Simply roll the dough out using the same method as for the bottom, then use your knife to cut strips. We put the strips on a plate and put it in the fridge to rest.

Then make your filling.

Blueberry Filling:

5 cups blueberries (fresh or thawed from frozen, although we ended up with some thawed and some still frozen and it was fine)
a scant 1/2 cup avage nectar
juice of half a lemon
4 TBS corn starch

Mix all well in a bowl and then pour into your prepared pie crust.

Now for the lattice work. Get your strips out and start laying them out. Go one way and then the other across, weaving over and under. This was fun for Davan and I to do together, as one of us held up pieces for the other. If you rip a strip, don't worry, just pinch it back together. Your strips should make it over the edge and need trimming. Once you've trimmed, use your fork to press all around the edges, sealing together the lattice work and your bottom crust.

Bake, loosely covered in tin foil, in a 400 degree oven for about 45 - 1 hour or until the filling is bubbling. Remove the foil for the last 10 minutes or so for browning.

It makes a very pretty pie and is a fun project to do together with your 11, almost 12 year old. :)

Now, I'm off to enjoy Thanksgiving and, ahem, my birthday. Happy Thanksgiving!