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deep dish blueberry pie
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Best-Ever Deep-Dish Blueberry Pie

A beautifully textured pie crust and sweet, juicy blueberries with a hint of fresh lemon - this pie is the summer pie you've been looking for.
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour 30 minutes
Chilling Time 2 hours 20 minutes
Total Time 2 hours
Servings 8
Author Jen Leigh

Ingredients

For the dough:

  • 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 tbsp white sugar
  • 1 tsp kosher salt
  • 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, chilled and diced
  • 1/2 cup ice water*
  • 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice

For the filling:

  • 8 cups blueberries
  • 1/3 cup cornstarch
  • 2 tsp finely grated lemon zest
  • 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
  • 1/4 tsp kosher salt
  • 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 3/4 cup white sugar
  • 1 tbsp unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
  • 1 egg, beaten with 1 tsp water
  • Coarse sugar (optional)

Instructions

Dough:

  • In a large bowl, whisk flour, sugar, and salt. Move dry ingredients to a food processor and mix with 1/2 cup of room temperature butter until butter is fully integrated with no visible lumps. Add half of the chilled butter (1 stick) to the mix and pulse the processor about 8 to 10 times in short pulses, until butter is in pea-sized chunks. Add the other 1/2 cup (1 stick) of chilled butter and pulse only 4 or 5 times in brief bursts, leaving larger chunks of butter. 
  • Return dough mixture to the large bowl. In a small bowl, mix ice water and lemon juice.* Drizzle about half of the liquid mixture over the dough and mix with a fork until dough starts coming together in shaggy, clumpy pieces. Drizzle a little more of the liquid mixture and knead the dough in the bowl just a few times; it should still be dry-looking and shaggy but starting to come together. Use remaining ice water/lemon juice as necessary to round up smaller, dry bits. Transfer the dough to a work surface.
  • Divide dough in two equal pieces. Working with the first half, press dough together, being sure to incorporate any dry bits. Form dough into a round and wrap in plastic wrap. Repeat with other half of dough, then chill both rounds for at least 2 hours, or overnight.

Filling:

  • Toss together in a large bowl the blueberries, cornstarch, lemon zest, lemon juice, salt, cinnamon, and sugar. Set aside.
  • Remove dough from the fridge and let rest on the counter at room temperature for 5 minutes. One at a time, roll out the disks on a lightly floured surface into 15- to 16-inch rounds about 1/8-inch thick. Transfer one rolled-out round to a parchment-lined rimmed baking sheet to chill while you cut the other one into a lattice. 
  • Slice remaining round into twelve 1-inch strips. (A pizza cutter works great here.) Retrieve chilling, uncut round and cover with parchment, then transfer lattice strips to the parchment and chill for 10 minutes.

Assembly:

  • Remove pie crusts from the fridge and let sit for 5 minutes. Transfer whole dough round to a deep pie dish. Press dough into edges of dish and then trim, leaving about a 1/2-inch overhang. Spoon in the filling and smooth out across the top. Dot the top of the filling with butter pieces.
  • Lay 6 strips of the latticed dough vertically across filling parallel to each other, leaving about 1/2 inch between them. Rotate pie plate and lay another 6 strips vertically over first set. (For a narrower pattern, turn the pie to about 2 o'clock; for a perpendicular pattern, turn to 3 o'clock.) Weave the lattice strips, if so desired.  
  • Trim lattice ends so strips overhang bottom round by about 1/2 inch. Fold loose ends under the bottom round, pinching to seal each one, then crimp pie edge. Beat egg with 1 teaspoon water in a small bowl. Brush edges and lattice lightly with the egg wash,. Sprinkle with coarse or raw sugar, if using.
  • Chill the pie in the freezer for 15 to 20 minutes. 
  • Preheat oven to 400°F and place rack in lower third of the oven.
  • Take pie out of freezer and transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake for 10 minutes, then reduce oven temperature to 375°F. Continue to bake 60-70 minutes longer, until crust is deep golden and juices are thick and bubbling. Start checking at the 50-minute mark for crust over-browning and loosely tent with foil if necessary. 
  • When pie is done, transfer it to a cooling rack for 4 to 5 hours before serving, though overnight is better, so pie can set. Store at room temperature covered in foil. 

Notes

*Vodka helps tenderize the crust so consider substituting 1/4 cup vodka for 1/4 cup of the ice water.