Rustic Berry Pie

There's nothing more American than pie, right? Especially when it's red, white, and blue. In honor of our nations birthday I decided to make a rustic berry pie, rustic in that there is no pie pan involved. For the crust the only tools you need is a food processor. I highly recommend throwing in finely chopped candied ginger into the dough as it plays nicely off of the lemon and berries.  For the filling I used a mixture of strawberries and blueberries but if you so desire, four cups of blueberries or raspberries* are great substitutes. Not only is this pie easy, but also absolutely delicious! 

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Prep time: Three and a half hours
Ingredients
For the crust:

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for sprinkling
• 1 tablespoon minced candied ginger (optional)
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 sticks cold butter, cut into small pieces
• 1/4 cup and 1 tablespoon ice water

For the filling:

• 1 1/2 cups blueberries
• 2 cups strawberries
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 2 teaspoons finely grated lemon zest
• 1/4 cup flour
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 beaten egg white

Serve with vanilla ice cream

1. In a food processor, combine the 1 1/2 cups of flour with the candied ginger and salt and pulse to mix. Add the butter and pulse until it is the size of small peas. 
2. Sprinkle on the ice water and pulse just until the pastry starts to come together. 
3. Turn the pastry out onto a lightly floured work surface and pat it into a disk. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for 2 hours, or until firm.
4. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. 
5. On a lightly floured work surface, roll out the pastry to a 14-inch round about 1/8 inch thick. Fold the pastry in half and transfer it to the prepared baking sheet. Unfold the pastry and refrigerate for 15 minutes.
6. Preheat the oven to 375°.
7.  In a large bowl, mix the 1/4 cup of sugar with the lemon zest and flour. Fold in the berries and lemon juice and let stand for 15 minutes.
8. Spoon the berries in the center of the pastry, leaving a 1 1/2-inch border all around. 
9. Fold the pastry border up and over the berries, pleating it as necessary. 
10. Brush the egg white on the pastry and sprinkle with sugar. 
11. Bake for about 55 minutes, until the pastry is golden brown and the filling starts to bubble. Transfer the baking sheet to a rack and let the tart cool to warm.
12.  Cut into wedges and serve warm or at room temperature.

** A neighbor recently brought over a few boxes of raspberries and I thought that I would try the recipe out again. The raspberries turned out to be a great alternative and gave it more of a tart flavor.If you desire a sweeter filling you can add a little extra sugar but, it truly depends on the fruit that you get as the sweetness can vary. 

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Enjoy!

xo, 
Madeline