Triple Berry Pie

We all love to cook in season and right now in my backyard hideaway we’ve been harvesting strawberries, black cap raspberries, and blueberries; the ultimate combination for berry lovers in Triple Berry Pie. Of course, I did spike this lovely lady with some marionberries.

You might notice two different top crusts because I made two triple berry pies. Cutting a few pie dough flowers with cookie cutters placed over broad-cut pie dough strips is almost too pretty to eat! The other pie has the same flaky crust with large granulated sugar baked on top. Go with what moves you; they’re both beautifully delicious.

Today I am sharing with you the method in never having a runny berry pie ever again. Why do we make the oven & berries struggle to make the perfect filling on its own? The answer is using the stove top. The extra step paves the way for a payoff of fresh-picked berries captured in perfectly baked filling in an ultra flaky crust. No watery runny berry pie ever again.

The first step is getting the berries ready and helping them extract their own juices. I use this always use this method with frozen berries; plus, I have extended the process to fresh berries. Measure the berries and toss them with sugar let them sit at room temperature in sieve placed over a bowl about 1 to 2 hours. Remember, measure the frozen berries before they are thawed. For frozen berries, the juice draws out as they thaw. Sometimes I will do this the night before and put them in fridge for baking the next day.

Strain the juice into a sauce pan, add in the thickener, lemon juice and lemon zest. Whisk thoroughly to make sure all the starch is dissolved before you turn on the heat.  Cook while whisking the juice over medium to medium-high heat until it starts to thicken. Depending on how much juice you started with will determine how quickly juice goo thickens. Therefore, it may be 2 to 3 minutes or up to 5 minutes. Once it’s thickened, fold the berries into the juice “goo.” Pour the filling in the prepared crust, top with your top crust design, and bake. That’s it, seriously.

If you are in need of gluten free crust, no worries. Follow the link for my gluten free flour mix; it’s a one to one ratio in replacing all purpose flour. In addition, I have included some notes below in recipe for some tips with gluten free pie crust.

Okay, you’ve done your part, now it’s time for those luscious berries to do their part. Sit back, kick up your feet, and relax while your pie bakes to perfection.

No matter how you design your crust, your pie is already a winner. Flaky crust is a must, but luscious fillings are equally important.

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5 from 1 vote

Triple Berry Pie

Triple Berry Pie captures that fresh-picked berry taste, perfectly baked filling in an ultra flaky crust; no watery runny berry pie ever again!

Author: Portlandia Pie Lady

Ingredients

Berry Filling

• 2-1/2 cups strawberries, thick cut
• 1 cup blueberries
• 1-1/2 cups raspberries or blackberries (or mix of both)
• Juice of one lemon
• Zest of half a lemon
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 cup pure cane sugar
• 1/3 cup Clearjel food starch, cornstarch, or tapioca starch
• Dash or two of salt

Grandma's Pie Crust (makes 1 double crust 9-inch pie crust)

• 2 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1/8 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 cup vegetable shortening (or butter)
• 1/3 to 1/2 scant cup cold water

Topping

• 1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water for egg wash
• Large granulated sugar sprinkles or regular pure cane sugar

Instructions

Pie Crust

• Preheat Oven to 375
• In a large bowl stir together all dry ingredients for pie crust.
• Using a large serving type fork, cut in shortening or butter until crumbly with pea-sized bits of shortening/butter.
• Add cold water all at once and give it about 3 to 4 good stirs and pie crust will come together in a ball. DO NOT KNEAD OR OVER MIX. You want it to be handled as little as possible leaving pockets of shortening/butter.
• Roll out half of dough, place in 9-inch pie plate. Add filling and top with other half of dough (see remaining directions below).

Filling:

• Place the berries into a large bowl and set aside
• Stir the starch of choice together with the sugar and salt. Sprinkle and fold into berries. Stir in the lemon juice and zest.
• Pour the berry mixture into the prepared pie shell and dot with butter.
• Brush the edges with water or egg wash, place on top crust. Pinch & crimp to seal. Use flower cookie cutters if desired, and cut vents for steam to escape while baking.
• Brush top with egg wash, sprinkle on sugar, and bake 375 for 55 to 60 minutes.

Notes

Frozen Berry Instructions: 

Toss the frozen berries with the sugar & salt and place in a sieve over a bowl to draw out the juice (about 1 to 2 hours). Save the liquid/juice. (If berries don’t release juice, follow instructions above in recipe.)

Place the strained juice into a sauce pan, add the starch of choice, lemon juice, and zest, whisk until no lumps. Heat over medium to medium-high heat whisking constantly until thickened. Remove from heat and gently fold the berries into the goo. 

Place in prepared pie crust shell, dot with butter and bake as above. 

Double Crust

Gluten Free Crust Instructions:

Use my gluten free flour mix at a one to one substitution.  https://portlandiapielady.com/gluten-free-pie-crust/

Use butter instead of shortening.  Make the pie dough the same as above, but roll it out onto a GF floured parchment or wax paper, invert onto pie plate and peel off paper.  If it tears, it will simply push back together. 

Use egg wash to seal the top and bottom crust instead of water, and make sure to use egg wash on top for baking (otherwise it will be “light” and won’t have that beautiful baked look).