James Beards Blackberry Pie Recipes

JAMES BEARD'S BLACKBERRY PIE

Steps:

• To wash berries, put in colander and dip up and down in bowl of water; drain well.
• Combine with sugar, flour, salt and lemon juice.
• Turn into pastry lined pie pan.
• Dot with butter.
• Trim pastry edge and moisten it.
• Cover with top pastry, trim edge, crimp top and bottom edges together and cut vents for steam.
• Bake at 450ºF for 15 minutes.
• Reduce heat to 350ºF and bake 25 to 30 minutes longer.
• Cool on a rack.

WILD BLACKBERRY PIE

Steps:

• To begin making pastry dough, sift 1 1/2 cups flour, baking powder, and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Cut in 1/2 cup butter or margarine. Add boiling water to the flour mixture. Stir until mixture clings in a ball. Divide dough in half, and roll out two crusts.
• Combine sugar, 3 tablespoons flour, cinnamon, and 1/8 teaspoon salt. Mix with the berries. Place berry filling in an unbaked pie crust. Sprinkle with lemon juice and dot with butter or margarine.
• Fit and seal upper crust.
• Bake on lower shelf in a 425 degree F (220 degree C) oven for 30 to 40 minutes.

GRAMAMA'S GREAT BLACK BERRY PIE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Press one crust into the bottom and up the sides of a 9 inch pie plate.
• In a large bowl, stir together the sugar, vanilla, maple syrup, cardamom and cinnamon. Stir in blackberries carefully until evenly coated. Pour into the pie crust. Cover with the top crust, and seal the edges. Cut a few holes in the top to vent steam.
• Bake for 45 to 50 minutes in the preheated oven, until the crust is golden brown.

AWARD-WINNING MAPLE BLUEBERRY PIE

Steps:

• Make the dough: In the bowl of a food processor, mix the flour, cinnamon, maple sugar, salt and baking powder. Add the shortening and process until well incorporated. Add the butter and pulse until pea-size nuggets of butter remain. Add the vinegar and water, and pulse until dough is just holding together. Divide into 2 disks. Wrap in plastic and chill in refrigerator overnight.
• Make the filling: If using a sous-vide machine, place the blueberries into a vacuum-sealable bag. (If not, see Step 4.) Peel and core the apple and grate with a box grater. Squeeze the grated apple to remove the juice. Disperse the grated apple among the blueberries in the bag.
• In the bowl of a food processor, grind the tapioca, salt, cinnamon and sugar until the tapioca is fine. Then add to the bag. Stir the maple syrup, maple extract and lemon juice together and pour into the bag. Seal the vacuum bag. Cook in water bath at 150 degrees for 1 hour. Remove and cool on the countertop for 5 minutes.
• If using a stovetop, prepare the ingredients in the same way as the sous-vide method, but place all the ingredients in a saucepan with a lid, and stir well to combine. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring gently and occasionally, just until the berries soften and begin to give off their juice, about 20 minutes. Remove and cool on the countertop for 5 minutes.
• Assemble the pie: Roll out one of the dough disks on a lightly floured surface to make a top crust, and cut into 4 large strips. Press the dough into a wood-grain impression silicone mat and freeze for about 15 minutes. Or, simply place the 4 strips on a baking sheet lined with parchment and freeze.
• Roll out the second dough disk and place in a 9-inch pie plate. Pour maple blueberry filling into it. Place 4 crust strips on top of pie, slipping one end under another to form an attractive pattern. Trim and crimp edges.
• Chill pie in the freezer while heating oven to 425 degrees. Stir the egg yolk and heavy cream together and brush over the top-crust strips. Place the pie in the oven on the bottom rack and immediately reduce heat to 400 degrees. After 15 minutes, rotate pie and cover edge with a pie ring or strips of foil to prevent the edges from overbrowning. Bake for an additional 40 minutes. Let pie cool slightly before slicing.

JAMES BEARD'S FARMER'S CHICKEN

Steps:

• Pat chicken pieces dry and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
• In a wide skillet with a lid, heat oil over medium. Working in batches if necessary to avoid crowding the pan, brown the chicken, rotating as needed, until the skin is golden and releases easily from the pan, at least 5 minutes per side. Adjust the heat to avoid scorching. As the pieces are browned, transfer them to a plate.
• Once all the chicken is browned, add the onion and bell pepper to the skillet. Sprinkle with salt and cook, stirring, until softened and beginning to brown around the edges, about 5 minutes. Stir in the oregano and paprika.
• Add the wine and simmer, stirring up the browned bits from the bottom of the pan, until the pan is almost dry, about 5 minutes.
• Stir in stock, olives and currants, and bring to a simmer. Carefully return the chicken pieces to the pan. Cover and let simmer over low heat for 20 minutes. Remove the lid, stir and let simmer, uncovered, until the chicken is tender and the liquid reduces slightly, about 15 minutes. (The sauce will be quite loose.) Taste the sauce for salt and pepper. (Recipe can be made up to this point and refrigerated for up to 3 days.)
• When ready to serve, heat through and stir in lemon zest and juice. Divide among shallow bowls and sprinkle with parsley and almonds (if using). Serve with rice, orzo or toast.