Blueberry Pie

Ingredients for blueberry pie:
8 cups (about 4 pints) blueberries, picked over
1 cup granulated sugar
4 T cornstarch
1 T freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 T unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1 large egg yolk
1 T heavy cream

pate brisee or vinegar pie crust dough

all-purpose flour, for dusting

Variations:
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/3 teaspoon cinnamon (and 1/3 teaspoon nutmeg), OR, 2 T lemon zest and 4 T lemon juice
1/8 teaspoon salt

Preparing the pie:
On a lightly floured piece of parchment paper, roll out one disk of dough to a 12-inch round. With a dry pastry brush, sweep off excess flour; fit dough into a 9-inch glass pie plate, pressing it into edges. Trim dough to a 1/2-inch overhang all around. Fold edge of dough over or under, and crimp as desired. Roll out remaining dough in the same manner; transfer dough (on parchment) to a baking sheet. Chill pie shell and dough until firm, about 30 minutes.

Place blueberries in a large bowl; with your hands, crush about 1/2 cup of berries, letting them fall into the bowl as you work. Add sugar, cornstarch, and lemon juice; stir to combine. Spoon mixture into chilled pie shell, mounding berries slightly in the center. Dot with butter. Remove dough from refrigerator, and place over blueberry filling. Tuck edge of top dough between edge of bottom dough and rim of pan. Using your fingers, gently press both layers of dough along the edge to seal, and crimp as desired.

Using a paring knife, cut several vents in top of dough to allow steam to escape. In a small bowl, whisk together egg yolk and cream. Brush surface with egg wash, being careful not to let it pool. Freeze or refrigerate pie until firm, about 30 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 400 degrees, with rack in lower third.

Place pie on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake until crust begins to turn golden, about 20 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees. Continue baking, rotating sheet halfway through, until crust is deep golden brown and juices are bubbling and have thickened, 40 to 50 minutes more. Transfer pie to a wire rack to cool completely.

Serve with lazy cream or a rich vanilla ice cream, like Haagen Das.

The pie is best eaten the day it is baked, but it can be kept at room temperature, loosely covered with plastic wrap, for up to 2 days.

Makes 1 nine-inch pie