Creamy Blueberry Pie

When I saw this recipe on Bunny's Warm Oven, I immediately thought: annual potluck.  Maybe it's because it has some similar components to the Blueberry Crumble Cake I made for last year's potluck.  I love blueberries.  Who am I kidding? I love custard and crumble too.  Not to mention that it looks delicious. So, I couldn't resist.

We have been longtime followers of Bunny's blog.  She is a great baker and I'm partial to her step-by-step photos of the process.  I'm a visual person and I like to know what I'd be getting myself into. 

I started with making this crust recipe:

Butter Flaky Pie Crust

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup butter, chilled and diced

1/4 cup ice water

Directions

In a large bowl, combine flour and salt. Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in water, a tablespoon at a time, until mixture forms a ball. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for 4 hours or overnight.

Roll dough out to fit a 9 inch pie plate. Place crust in pie plate. Press the dough evenly into the bottom and sides of the pie plate.

Creamy Blueberry Pie

Original recipe makes 1 9-inch deep dish pie

          3 cups fresh blueberries


          1 (9 inch) deep dish pie crust

For the Custard: 

1 cup white sugar  (Note: I used 2/3 cup)
  


1/3 cup all-purpose flour
         


1/8 teaspoon salt
         


2 eggs, beaten
         


1/2 cup sour cream  (Note: I used 2/3 cup) 

(Note: I also added a tsp. of vanilla and 1/2 tsp. of cinnamon based on recommendations from reviewers)
                 

  

For the Streusel:       

1/2 cup white sugar  (Note: I used half brown sugar and half white sugar) 
         


1/2 cup all-purpose flour
         


1/4 cup butter

(Note: I halved the streusel quantities based on recommendations from reviewers)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Place the blueberries in the pastry shell and set aside.

2. Combine 1 cup sugar, 1/3 cup flour, and salt. Add eggs and sour cream, stirring until blended. Pour the sour cream custard over the blueberries.

3. In another bowl, combine 1/2 cup sugar and 1/2 cup flour. Cut in the butter with pastry blender until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Sprinkle the topping over the sour cream mixture and berries in the pie shell.

Bake in the preheated oven for 50 to 55 minutes, or until lightly browned.  Cool on wire rack.

(like Bunny, I put tin foil over the pie for the first 20 minutes to avoid over cooking the crust)

Verdict:  The pie was a hit!  It was all gone by the time we left the potluck.  I did have some challenges with it though.  For one, my streusel topping didn't look anywhere near as nice as Bunny's.  Also, I had to cook the pie a lot longer to get the centre to finish cooking.  I knew it would get harder once it cooled, but it was just too liquidy for my liking to take it out at the directed time.  Lastly, I kind of wished that there was a more prominent vanilla flavour with the custard.  I added vanilla to the recipe.  But, I didn't taste it much after it finished baking. Still, the pie tasted great.