BLUEBERRY PIE // elspeth

Every day I want to get here, and every day something (or someone small) pulls me in another direction. But I can't sleep until I say this: it's one of the best wild blueberry (and huckleberry) seasons I've seen in years. Wherever you see bushes head into the woods, pick all you can, and treat yourself. Pie! Let's savor it while we can.

BLUEBERRY PIE

My mom has made this recipe for years, from her tattered Joy of Cooking. I know I could make it myself, but this year, as usual, I waited for her to show up. It tastes better when we're together. Big, high bush berries are excellent for many things—eating fresh, freezing for muffins and pancakes and smoothies—but for pie I think wild berries are best.

crust for bottom and top of 9-inch pie
5 cups fresh blueberries, preferably small and wild
3/4 cup sugar
3 1/2 to 4 tbsp quick-cooking tapioca
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp grated lemon zest
1/8 tsp salt

1-2 tablespoons butter

First make the crust. (I like this one.) Set aside to chill, then preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Next make the filling: combine the blueberries, sugar, tapioca, lemon juice and zest, and salt. Stir gently and let stand for 15 minutes.

Roll out your bottom pie crust, drape it over the bottom of a 9-inch pie plate, and spoon in the filling. Dot with the butter, roll out the top pie crust, and drape it over top. Use a knife or scissors to trim the crust so that it has an even 1-inch overhang all around. Roll and crimp the extra hanging dough to form a lip of crust around the edge. Cut vents in the top in a design that pleases you.

Bake the pie at 400 for 30 minutes. Slip a baking sheet beneath it, reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees F, and bake until thick juices bubble through the vents, another 25 to 35 minutes. The original recipe says the pie is best eaten the day it's baked, but I respectfully disagree. It's best eaten the next morning, fully cooled, in pajamas before breakfast.