American Berry Pie

Sometimes when we’re developing a recipe in the Test Kitchen, we know from the get-go that the recipe we’re working on is going to be a team favorite. This American Berry Pie was definitely one of those recipes! After we held our tasting panel, we were all talking about how it would be the perfect recipe to serve at our 4th of July parties. Based on one of our favorite berry pie recipes, we’ve given it a twist of Americana and added stars and stripes. The crust is unique in that it has ground almonds, which pair nicely with the tenderness of the buttery, flaky crust and the almond flavor of the fresh fruit filling. 

The recipe itself is pretty easy–if you’ve made a double crust pie before, this isn’t much different. The crust begins with flour, finely chopped almonds and salt. Cut in butter until it resembles coarse crumbs, and stir in enough ice water until the dough comes together.

Divide the dough in half, and flatten slightly (this will make it easier to roll out). Wrap one half in plastic food wrap and keep in the fridge until the rest of the pie is done.

Roll out the other ball of dough into a 12-inch circle and fold into quarters for easy transporting.

Press the dough into a pie plate and trim to within 1/2-inch of the edge of the pan. You can either flute the edge at this point, or after the crust goes on top. Our favorite way to flute a crust is with thumb and pointer finger and the end of a wooden spoon.

Rinse and drain the berries, placing the sliced strawberries and raspberries into one bowl, and the blueberries in another. Combine the cornstarch and sugar in a bowl. Add 1/4 cup of the mixture to the blueberries with 1/4 teaspoon of almond extract in each bowl, and add the rest of the sugar/cornstarch mixture to the strawberries and raspberries. Toss together until well-coated.

Fold a piece of aluminum foil into a 2-inch wide strip, and place in the crust to divide it into 1/2 and 2/3 sections. This will help the colors stay separate. Press slightly into the crust and pour the blueberry mixture into the smaller half, and the raspberry/strawberry into the larger area. Once the fruit is in the crust, remove the foil.

Roll out the remaining dough, cutting out 1-inch strips for stripes on the flag, and stars for other half of the pie.

Place the stripes on right side of the pie (over strawberry raspberry mixture), and stars on the left (over the blueberry mixture). Fold the extra dough over the edges, trimming as needed, and crimp or flute the crust. Personally, I think the more rustic-looking, the better.

Brush the top with egg wash and sprinkle with sanding sugar–we didn’t think it was possible to make the pie more beautiful than it already was, but this does the trick!

Bake for 40-50 minutes or until the crust is lightly browned and juices begin to bubble up. If your pie is getting too brown to fast, just cover with aluminum foil.

Make sure to cool the pie for about an hour before serving–this will make it a lot easier to cut.

I’m definitely serving this American Berry Pie at my 4th of July picnic – you should too! Make sure to share your 4th of July baking Instagram shots with us – tag @landolakesktchn when you’re in the kitchen.