Blackberry Lavender Pie
Confession: I don’t usually like fruit pies.
The recipe
Yield: one 9-inch pie, about 8 servings
Time: 2 hours baking plus 2 hours cooling
Ingredients
Crust:
1 ½ c (185 g) flour
1 tbsp (16 g) sugar
½ tsp (5 g) salt
1 stick (115 g) unsalted butter
3 tbsp (45 g) milk or cream
Filling:
24 oz (680 g or 4 c) blackberries, washed and gently patted dry
½ c (108 g) sugar
4 tbsp (38 g) cornstarch
2 tsp culinary lavender, finely ground
¼ tsp salt
2 tsp lemon juice
1 tsp vanilla extract
Whipped cream:
1 tsp culinary lavender, finely ground
2 tbsp sugar
1 c (255 g) heavy cream
Instructions
Crust:
1. Preheat your oven to 425°F.
2. Mix the dry ingredients in a pie pan with a fork so that they’re blended well.
3. Heat the butter in the microwave just until melted but not hot.
4. Measure the milk into the butter and mix it up with the same fork until well blended.
5. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ones and mix thoroughly with a fork until the mixture looks uniform and there are no dry bits of flour remaining.
6. Use your hands to spread the mixture evenly, pressing it into the bottom and sides of the pie pan.
Filling:
1. Wash and dry the blackberries and place them in a large bowl.
2. Combine the dry ingredients (sugar, cornstarch, lavender, and salt) in a separate bowl and mix well to combine. Sprinkle them over the blackberries.
3. Drizzle the lemon juice and vanilla over the blackberries.
4. Gently mix the blackberries until they are evenly coated. Pour the into the pie crust.
5. Cover the pie loosely with foil and bake at 425°F for 20 minutes. After that, lower the temperature to 350°F and continue to bake until the filling is bubbling in the middle, about one hour more. Halfway through the baking time, take the pie out and gently press the berries down so that they are mostly submerged in the filling.
6. Remove the pie from the oven and cool completely, uncovered, until it reaches room temperature. This may take a few hours. When the pie is cool, it can be stored on the counter, covered, for two days before serving.
Whipped cream:
1. Just before serving, prepare the whipped cream. Crush the lavender very finely using a mortar and pestle or in a plastic bag with a rolling pin. Stir the crushed lavender and the sugar together.
2. Pour the cream into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Add the lavender-sugar mixture and beat on medium speed until the cream forms soft peaks. (When you lift the whisk from the bowl, the tip of the peak should flop over gently.)
3. Spoon the cream onto the pie and serve right away.
4. If you don’t finish the whole pie in one sitting, store it in the fridge. Or, alternatively, top individual slices with whipped cream and store the cream in the fridge and the pie on the counter at room temperature separately. Both will keep for one or two days.
Notes and tips
Though any kind of cream will taste delicious when whipped up, for the best results, buy pasteurized heavy cream. Heavy cream has a higher fat content than heavy whipping cream and it holds air for longer. Try to find regular pasteurized instead of ultra-pasteurized because the flavor will be better.
The pie has to be bubbling in the middle so that the cornstarch thickens and sets. It doesn’t have to be boiling, but look for a few slow bubbles.
I call for covering the pie loosely with foil during baking so that the blackberry mixture doesn’t dry out. This is also why I have you gently smush the berries halfway through baking time.
It’s important that you grind the lavender as finely as possible for the whipped cream. If you don’t, it will taste gritty.
If you’re nervous about whipping cream, chill down the bowl, the beater, and the sugar in the fridge for about 10 mins before you start whipping. Make sure your bowl and beater are clean and dry. Water will make the cream weep and separate. So will oils from your skin, so don’t stick a finger in the cream to taste it. (If you haven’t guessed, I learned this the hard way.)
The story
This is controversial, I know, but fruit pies always taste like they’re missing something unless they’re fresh out of the oven and covered in vanilla ice cream. Maybe it’s because I think all fruit flavors go better with cream. When I order gelato, I’ll get one sorbet flavor and one scoop of vanilla, and if I’m eating strawberries, I’ll top them with whipped cream. The other problem with fruit pies is that it’s hard to get people to finish a whole one while it’s still warm, even at a party, so I steered away from tradition in this pie. I made something that would taste good at room temperature, keep for a few days on the counter, and have its own creamy element built in, hence the whipped cream for topping.
The lavender flavor is because of my husband. He challenged me to come up with a unique flavor combination since I tend to stick to just one flavor or to more classic combos, and he’s an adventurous eater. Whenever we go out to dinner he looks for the watermelon, pickled jalapeño, and coconut appetizer and opts for that.
And you can’t beat lavender whipped cream. It tastes special and fancy, it’s a novelty to most people because we’re used to eating the stuff that comes out of a can, and it only takes ten minutes of effort on your part. I don’t know what more you could want in a dessert topping.
Spread the snob
If you like this recipe, please recommend Confessions of a Cake Snob to someone you know! Also feel free to share this newsletter with a friend, comment on the website, or bake it and let me know how it went for you. Email me with comments, things you’d like to see, and suggestions at confessionsofacakesnob@substack.com. I’m excited to hear from you!