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Saskatoon berry pie
Prairie double-crust pie of saskatoon berries with a hint of lemon and almond
Saskatoon berries grow wild across the Canadian prairies, and in July families in Saskatchewan, Alberta and Manitoba pick them by the pail for pie. They look like blueberries but taste sweeter and nuttier, almost like a cross with cherry and almond, with soft seeds. The city of Saskatoon takes its name from the Cree word for the berry, misâskwatômina. A double-crust saskatoon pie with ice cream is classic prairie summer dessert. Chef's tip: saskatoons are low in acid, so lemon juice is essential to wake up the flavour; outside Canada, use blueberries with a few drops of almond extract.
- Total time
- 95 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 8
Ingredients
For the pastry
For the filling
Method
0/6 doneStep 1: Rub 8 oz cold butter into 12 ½ oz plain flour and ½ tsp salt, leaving pea-sized lumps. Sprinkle in ½ cup ice-cold water and press into two discs, one slightly larger. Wrap and chill for 30 minutes.
30 minStep 2: If using fresh saskatoons, simmer 1 ¾ lb saskatoon berries, fresh or frozen (or blueberries) with 2 tbsp lemon juice and 3 tbsp water for 5 minutes to soften their skins; frozen ones can go straight in. Cool, then mix with 5 ½ oz sugar, 3 tbsp cornflour and ¼ tsp almond extract.
5 minStep 3: Heat the oven to 400°F (375°F fan) with a baking tray inside. Roll the larger disc and line a 23 cm pie dish. Spoon in the filling.
Step 4: Roll out the second disc, lay it over the top, trim, crimp the edges and cut 4 steam slits. Brush with 1 tbsp milk and sprinkle with 1 tbsp coarse sugar.
Step 5: Bake on the hot tray for 20 minutes, then lower to 350°F (325°F fan) and bake 30–35 minutes more until deep golden and thick juices bubble slowly through the slits. Common mistake: cutting before it cools; the filling needs 3 hours to set or it floods the plate.
55 minStep 6: Cool completely and serve with vanilla ice cream.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 420 kcal
- Protein
- 5 g
- Carbs
- 60 g
- Fat
- 19 g
- Fibre
- 4 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does saskatoon berry pie take?
- About 95 minutes in total: 40 minutes to prepare and 55 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 8 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegetarian?
- Yes. It has no meat or fish.
- Can I make it ahead?
- Yes. It keeps well, so you can cook it earlier in the day or the day before and reheat it.
- What can I use instead of plain flour?
- Self-raising flour, same amount (then leave out the baking powder).
- What can I use instead of cold butter?
- The same weight of ghee or coconut oil (for frying and most baking).
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