Summer Berry Pie

Source: Cook's Illustrated
Serves: 10

Crust
9 graham crackers, broken into rough pieces
2 T sugar
5 T butter, melted and warm

Filling
2 c raspberries
2 c blackberries
2 c blueberries
1/2 c sugar
3 T cornstarch
1/8 t salt
1 T fresh lemon juice
2 T red currant jelly

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Process crackers in a food processor until evenly fine. Add sugar and pulse to combine. Continue to pulse while adding butter and mix until mixture resembles wet sand. Press crumbs into a 9 inch glass pie plate. Bake 15-18 minutes or until crust is just beginning to brown. Remove from oven and cool completely on a rack.

Combine the berries and rinse. Gently pat dry. Puree 2 1/2 cups of berries until smooth, about 1 minute. Strain puree through a mesh strainer into a saucepan, scraping and pressing to extract as much puree as possible. Combine sugar, cornstarch, and salt in a small bowl and then whisk mixture into berry puree. Bring puree to a boil over medium heat stirring constantly until it has thickened to the consistency of pudding. Remove from heat and stir in lemon juice. Cool slightly.

Place remaining berries into a medium bowl. Heat jelly in the microwave 30-60 seconds on High until fully melted. Drizzle jelly over berries and toss gently to coat. Pour puree into cool pie shell and spread evenly. Top with mixed berry mixture. Loosely cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 3 hours or up to one day. Serve with lightly sweetened whipped cream.

Blueberry Cobbler

Source: Cook's Illustrated
Serves: 8

Filling
1/2 cup sugar
1 T cornstarch
A pinch of ground cinnamon
A pinch of salt
6 cups fresh blueberries (30 oz)
1 1/2 teaspoons grated lemon zest
1 T freshly squeezed lemon juice

Topping
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 T stone-ground cornmeal
1/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup buttermilk
4 oz (1/2 stick) butter, melted
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 teaspoons sugar mixed with 1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon, for sprinkling

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Prepare the filling by combining sugar, cornstarch, salt, and cinnamon. Gently mix in the berries with a rubber spatula until coated. Add the lemon zest and juice. Put the filling in a glass 9 inch pie plate, set on a baking sheet to catch drips, and bake ~25 minutes or until the edges are bubbly.

Meanwhile, prepare the topping. Combine dry ingredients. Whisk together buttermilk, melted butter, and vanilla. About 1 minute before berries come out of the oven, combine the wet and dry ingredients until no pockets of flour remain. Remove the berries from the oven and increase oven temperature to 425 degrees. Pinch off 8 equal pieces of topping and arrange on top of the berries about 1/2 inch apart. They should not be touching. Sprinkle cinnamon sugar over each mound and return the cobbler to the oven. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until topping is golden and filling is bubbly. Cool on a rack for 20 minutes before serving. Serve warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or lightly sweetened whipped cream.