Sunday, June 27, 2010

Tiny Patriotic Pies


Pie is good. Tiny pies are even better. Several weeks ago I found three little pie tins at a local thrift shop. They looked like they might have come out of a child's baking set- the kind I used to make mud pies in when I was little. They sat on my kitchen counter just waiting for inspiration. I could just imagine the little pies that could be made in them. Pies you could hold in your hand. Pies you could share with a friend.


 And then I saw them- in the checkout line at the grocery store, no less. On the cover of Martha Stewart Living magazine. Little patriotic pies. It didn't hurt that blueberries were on special and they were absolutely gorgeous, blue and plump.


It also didn't hurt that my grandson was visiting and he loves to help in the kitchen. He had made several requests over the last few days to use those little tins on the counter. ("Mimi- Could we make the tiny pies now?" ) It's not like my arm needed twisting or anything.

We ended up with these three little pies, all dressed up for Independence Day. (Not that these will ever see the 4th of July. They won't even see tomorrow!) Don't they look like they should be cooling on a windowsill somewhere? They were quite easy to put together, especially since I used the pie crust in a box. (Sorry Johnny.) And if you don't have three little pie pans, this lovely blueberry pie filling would be just as delicious in one big one. You'll just need a fork to eat it.

This post has been entered in Faith and Nutmeg Nanny's All Through the Year Cheer 4th of July event!

Blueberry Pie
adapted from this recipe at pickyourown.org
For 3 tiny pies (5 inch diameter) you'll need:
2-3 cups fresh blueberries
1/3 cup sugar
1 1/2 Tablespoons lemon juice
1 Tablespoons water, grape juice, or other berry juice (I used some blackberry juice that I'd just prepared for jam.)
3 Tablespoons cornstarch
Pie Crust (enough for double crust pie), unbaked
For one 9-inch pie, double all of the filling ingredients except for blueberries. Use about 4 cups of blueberries.
Directions:
  • Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit
  • Line pie tin(s) with dough, trimming off excess from edges. Set aside.
  • Wash berries, discarding stems and mushy berries. Put in colander (lined with a towel) to drain.
  • Combine sugar and cornstarch. Stir in lemon juice and water or juice.
  • Arrange drained blueberries into prepared (unbaked) pie crust(s).
  • Pour sugar/liquid mixture evenly over the blueberries in the pie(s).
  • Cut remaining dough with a pastry cutter (or a Play-Doh Swiss Army knife if you can't find your pastry cutter) and a star shaped cookie cutter. Place dough strips and stars on top of blueberries in the pie shell(s). Press strips down onto the edges of the pie crust(s).
  • Brush exposed dough with a mixture of 1 egg yolk beaten with 1 Tablespoon milk. Make sure the mixture is well combined and that you don't put it on too thickly. Just a thin coating is best. Sprinkle with sugar (white or colored) if desired.
  • Bake for about 1 hour for one 9 inch pie, or about 40 minutes for three 5 inch pies. Before baking time is completely up, check to make sure pies are not browning too quickly. If they are getting brown too quickly, tent with aluminum foil.
  • Remove from oven when filling is bubbly and no longer cloudy. The crust should be lightly browned. Cool completely before slicing, if you can wait that long. Enjoy!

12 comments:

  1. These look adorable! Sometimes I buy something because I love it, but then take years before I use it - my vintage jelly mold comes to mind.

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  2. sometimes martha stewart (and her team) have some really stellar ideas, and this is one of them. your execution is terrific!

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  3. I love this. It is very patriotic. I love how they are mini pies too!! You can have one all for yourself! :DD

    Would you mind checking out my blog? :D
    http://ajscookingsecrets.blogspot.com/

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  4. Those turned out so sweet!! Great job!

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  5. What a cute post. I love your trio of small pies. They really do look wonderful. I hope you are having a great day. Blessings...Mary

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  6. I love this! We linked to your patriotic berries on foodwhirl previously, and I've linked to these as well (here:http://foodwhirl.com/seasonalholiday/happy-4th-holiday-food-ideas)

    Thanks for sharing this idea (now if I could only get my child to eat berries, this would be the perfect project, heehee.)

    dot

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  7. the barbecue sauce is so good you can eat it with a spoon. when i use it with chicken, i coat the chicken with a bot of olive oil and then rub spices all over it. i grill it like that and then we cut pieces of the chicken and dip it in the sauce. it's really good! have a great 4th!

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  8. Adorable! I think you've combined three of my favorite things (blueberries, miniature anything, and cookie cutter cut-outs) into one fantastic dessert. Thanks for sharing! :)

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  9. Everything is so much cuter when it's tiny :) I love the look of these pies...and many of the other recipes on your blog! Glad I stumbled upon it.

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  10. So much dedication seems to have gone into those pies...just wonderful!!!

    Thanks for sharing and flavourful wishes,
    Claudia

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  11. Thanks for the inspiration! We've included your recipe into our list of 150+ Delicious 4th of July Dessert Recipes.

    Happy 4th of July! :)

    http://thefoodexplorer.com/dessert/150-delicious-4th-of-july-dessert-recipes/

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Thanks for stopping by scrambled hen fruit! I appreciate all of your comments and look forward to reading them.

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