Thrill on Blueberry Hill
Fats Domino had a big hit with a little ditty: “I found my thrill on Blueberry Hill”. The song comes back around from time to time. And, today is a good day for it. It’s Blueberry Pie day. People talk about America’s greatness. Well, Fats is one from the music world. And, Blueberry pie is one from the culinary world. Blueberries are native to North America, especially in New England. Maine is particularly famous fro them, naming the blueberry pie the State dessert in 1990. But, the pie has much deeper roots. During the Civil war, Northern soldiers brought blueberry pies with them. The popularity spread to the rest of the country.
While Washington State and Oregon now produce the most blueberries in the country. Those are the cultivated one, known as high bush. But, Maine still produces the most wild or low bush blueberries in the country. And, there is a difference. The ones you find in supermarkets and most of the ones people grow in backyards are high bush. They are larger and grow better in warmer climates. But, low bush varieties are smaller, sweeter, and more intensely flavored. That’s why “Men from Maine” swear by it.
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I found my thrill on blueberry Hill
If you drive around Northern Maine, you’ll find a lot of hills. And, chances are, you’ll find some low bush blueberries. But, thanks to it’s popularity, you don’t have to trek through the wilderness to get some. Maine is famous for wilderness, oceanfront, and Blueberries. Sure, there may be some other things. But, who cares? Sure, the first place in America to see the sunrise. But, while you stand on the top of that hill looking out over the ocean, enjoy some of those mountain low bush blueberries. That’s the thrill on blueberry hill. And, there are plenty of places to get them. They have roadside stores. But, you can even find them in pies at Truck-stop gas station diners.
While you can make pies from frozen blueberries, fresh Maine wild blueberries in season are widely considered the best. If you’re unlucky enough to not live near Maine, though, you’ll have to make due with the standard supermarket ones. Not that there’s anything wrong with them. The larger varieties are still tasty, juicy, and plump. And, they still have a lot of the same attributes including all the health benefits. Blueberries enhance heart health, improve brain function, provide better blood sugar management, and reduce inflammation, among other things. So, enjoy whichever you have access to.
One of the easiest pies
When people say it’s easy as pie, they may be referring to blueberry pie above others. While apples and other fruit all make for great pies, blueberries require less work up front. Once picked and cleaned, they’re ready to go. When you buy them, they usually are ready to go. There’s no cutting, trimming, seeding, peeling or other prep. Just mix with sugar, butter, and a binder like flour or cornstarch and put in a pie crusts. Then bake.
That could be part of the reason they were so popular during the civil war. And, how they flourished as a uniquely American food. Of course, the natives who lived here before the European settlement knew of this wonderful fruit. But, making it into the pies we know today made it a uniquely American invention. Although, there are indigenous versions, Europeans brought sugar into the equation thanks to international trade. As sugar cane is not indigenous to New England. Unless perfectly ripe, blueberries are not sweet enough for most palates. So, a but of sugar or other sweetener helps, especially with the larger commercial berries.
The Messiest thrill on Blueberry Hill
Although they are easy to work with, tasty, and good for you, there is one downside to them. Being a smaller berry and loaded with color, they can get messy. If you accidentally drop a piece of blueberry pie on a carpet or drip some on your clothes, you’re in for a tough cleaning job. Blueberries are an anomaly in nature. There aren’t a whole lot of blue fruits or vegetables out there. And, most only have a bluish skin tone, but other color inside. And, a lot of them say they’re blue. But, they look more purple, like plums, blue artichokes, blue bananas, etc.
The important thing to remember is to be careful with blueberries. Although, you should really try to avoid spilling or dropping any food. Still, make sure you clean your plates soon after blueberry pie. It’s really hard to get out, especially if the plates sit overnight or longer. It’s worth it though. There’s nothing quite like a fresh baked blueberry pie. Of course, there’s nothing like fresh baked pie in general. But, Blueberries give such a thrill, especially on a hill.
Not as old as you’d think
We mentioned how the popularity of blueberry pie grew during the civil war. The first published recipe for it appears in 1872. In the scheme of things that’s not that long. Pie in various forms dates back to somewhere between 9500 and 6000 BC. What we think of as pie today has roots to medieval times. But, blueberries only date back about 150 years. That, pretty much, makes them the new kid on the block (thankfully not the band). Given the American love of all things sweet, it’s a welcome addition. And, now it’s popular in the south as well as north. It stands as a symbol of reconciliation since it made it’s way down there during the civil war.
While blueberries date back about 10,000 years, we only started growing them commercially around the turn of the 20th century. Now, they grow in foreign countries like Australia, Europe, and parts of Asia. But, they started right here is the USA long before it was the USA. The receding ice from the ice age allowed the plants to flourish and develop into what we know today. But, they all grew wild, unlike the commercial ones we know today. So, Canada and the Northern US are its natural home. And, now the world can share in this delicacy thanks to cultivation and commercial production techniques. But, they still don’t beat the original Maine blueberry. Ask anyone from Maine.
Baking Like Aunt Bea
In the Andy Griffith Show, Aunt Bea always seemed to have a pie at the ready. And, you can too. These days, people tend to take the easy way out and buy pies from a store. But, as the saying goes, it’s easy as pie. All you need is a simple dough, some sort of filling (sweet or savory), and a reliable oven. Oh, yeah, and a little time to make the pie. We used to have that time, but since the internet and all modern luxuries sped up how fast we get places and get things done, we somehow end up with less time? Go figure. But, if you do find the time, it’s a worthy endeavor.. And, Blueberry pie makes it easier, as highlighted previously.
We recommend making extra dough, and keeping a few balls in the freezer to pull out when you want to make more pies. With the dough already made, it’s just a matter of quickly making a sauce to bind the berries together, rolling out the dough, assembling the pie, and baking it. You could even make an open face or deep dish pie to cut down on the time and labor. So, what are you waiting for? Here’s a Blueberry pie recipe to make even a Maine-iac happy.
Maine Blueberry Pie
Equipment
- 1 rolling pine
- 1 9 inch pie pan
Ingredients
- 4 cups Blueberries, fresh preferably wild Maine berries. Substitute frozen if fresh unavailable.
- 3/4 Cup Sugar in the raw may substitute white sugar
- 4 TB Cornstarch
- 1/4 tsp Salt
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp Lemon zest
- Pie dough (see recipe)
- 2 TB Butter
- 1 large egg (optional) to glaze the top crust
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 Degrees F
- Toss all the ingredients except the butter, blueberries, and pie dough in a mixing bowl.
- Add in the blueberries and coat them evenly with the mixture.
- Roll out the pie crust to 1/8 inch thick. Line a pie pan with a disk of the dough a little bigger than the pan. Cut off excess and crimp the edges. Cut more rolled out dough into 1/2 inch to 1 inch strips to lay on top to make a lattice pattern. Or skip the topping. You could also make a simple streusel topping to put on top if you prefer.
- Fill the pie shell with the blueberry mix. Dot with butter. Add the to layer or lattice work or streusel. Trim off excess dough as you top the pie. You may use an whisked egg with a dash of water to create a glazed appearance on the crust and bind it better if you like or just go au naturel.
- bake for about 45 minutes until the filling is congealed properly, the crust is golden brown, and crisp.
- Remove from oven and allow to set for at least an hour. If it's too warm, the filling will ooze out.
Flaky Pie Dough
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 Cups Flour
- 1 Cup Unsalted Butter
- 1 tsp Salt
- 1/2 Cup Ice Water
Instructions
- Mix the flour and salt in a large bowl. Chop the cold butter into pea sized pieces. Chop the butter into the flour and mix until it becomes like coarse meal. Add water about a tablespoon at a time, and mix well until a dough forms. You don't want to make it too wet. Once it is firm, but, not tacky, form two balls. Roll each in flour, cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours until you are ready to use it. This step allows the worked up gluten/protein strands to rest. You can use it right away. But, resting it makes for a flakier pastry. The dough can hold for days. You can even freeze it too. A handy trick is to roll it out, put it in a pie tin, and freeze the extra so you have a pie crust ready to go, next time you want to make a pie. It will save a lot of time.