4th of July – Red White & Blue Strawberry Blueberry Pie

June 30, 2010 by Mansi

July 4th is just around the corner, I’m sure everyone in the US is looking forward to the long weekend, not to mention the barbecues, family feasts, fireworks, as well as deliciously patriotic Red White and Blue desserts. If you are looking for something quick and easy to fix up for your Independence Day celebration, this No Bake Strawberry Blueberry Pie is a perfect alternative. The recipe comes from Donna Diegel who blogs at Corkscrews & Spatulas. We made her recipe more time and budget-friendly by using some semi-homemade ingredients. With ready-made pie crust, adorned with a couple layers of fresh strawberries, some warm strawberry glaze, and a final round of fresh blueberries dotted with whipped cream, this chilled dessert pie does not eat up much of your time, and can be made a day in advance. For the more daring ones, you can make your own pie crust if you like. Here’s the recipe for baking a perfect pie crust at home.

This recipe calls for Cornstarch, which, as you may already have guessed, is used as a Thickener in this pie recipe. Thickeners are used in juicy fruit pies so the liquid that comes from fruit gels properly when baked. Without them you will have baked fruit in a puddle of juice. Cornflour, cornstarch, tapioca, arrowroot are all good thickeners for fruit pies, but if you are looking for a commercial grade thickener which is used by most baking professionals, then you need to buy Clearjel. This makes a fruit filling that’s clear, not cloudy; has absolutely no floury or starchy taste; and is freezer-stable. All you have to do is whisk together the ClearJel and the sugar in a small bowl, and then sprinkle this mixture over the fruit. Stir or toss well and you’re done. You can check out ClearJel at King Arthur’s store online. Enough of baking tip, now let’s move on to the recipe!

Quick & Easy July 4th Red White & Blue Pie

Ingredients
1 piece 9 inch ready-made Pie Crust
6-8 cups (2 quarts) ripe strawberries – hulled, and rinsed
1 cup white sugar
1/3 cup cornstarch
2 Tablespoons butter
soft whipping cream – as needed for garnish
1 cup fresh blueberries – as needed for garnish

Method
Take the prepared pie crust and arrange it in a pie dish that you will use to serve it in. Select approximately 12-20 small, perfectly shaped, hulled and rinsed strawberries that are similar in size. If they’re not small, cut in half or slice them, and set aside to use as decoration on the top of the pie.

Combine sugar and cornstarch in a medium saucepan. Crush 2 cups of whole strawberries with a masher. Add enough water to make 2 cups, and stir into the sugar and cornstarch mixture.

Cook strawberry mixture over medium heat. Bring to a boil, and cook for 2-3 minutes until thickened. Remove from heat and stir in the butter. Let cool for 10 minutes.

Place a layer of halved strawberries in the bottom of the prepared pie crust. Spoon 1/2 of the cooked strawberry mixture over this layer. Then use the perfectly-shaped berries to form another layer on the top, placing the berries hull side down. Spoon the remaining strawberry glaze over the top, making sure to coat all the whole strawberries with the glaze.

Chill the prepared pie for at least 4 hours or overnight. Before serving, decorate the pie with the fresh blueberries and whipped cream piped onto the pie using a star-tip on an icing bag.