Fraughan Pie (Irish Blueberry Pie)

Mrs B's Note:

This recipe comes from “The Ballykissangel Cookbook”,which was leant to me by my friend Joan. Fraughan is the old Irish name for wild bilberries or blueberries. According to the cookbook, the first Sunday in August was the traditional day for picking fraughans. These days, your nearest supermarket is probably a more convenient place to find the main ingredient! And if you read bayou-mimi's review you'll see that you can also makethe filling with frozen blueberries. I haven't made this pie as written, but having read bayou-mimi's review I just had to try the filling! I too used frozen and also followed her excellent suggestion to add some cornstarch, which worked very well indeed. I’m posting the quantities as written in the book, but I suspect that the filling might be a bit tart for some, so I’ve written a taste test into the directions to check the sweetness. I also doubt if I'd be clever enough to to roll out the specified amount of pastry into such large circles (although no doubt the point is to achieve a super-thin crust), so I used another recipe for my pie crust. However Joan says she follows the recipe exactly and it's one of her favorites.

• Total Time: 40 mins
• Prep Time: 20 mins
• Cook Time: 20 mins

Ingredients:

Serves: 4-6

Yield: 1.0 pie

PASTRY

• 4 ounces all-purpose flour (plus extra for rolling out)
• 2 ounces butter (plus extra for greasing)
• 1 -2 tablespoon cold water
• 1 pinch salt
• extra flour , for rolling out pastry dough

FILLING

• 1 lb blueberries (fraughans)
• 4 ounces light brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons clear honey
• 2 fluid ounces lemon juice (about 2 lemons)

TO FINISH

• 1 egg , beaten
• caster sugar (superfine)

Directions:

1. Pre heat the oven to 200 C, 400 F, gas mark 6; lightly grease a 10 inch ovenproof pie plate.
2. To make the pasty: sieve the flour and salt together in a bowl, then rub in the butter to a breadcrumb consistency; gradually add enough water to bind the ingredients.
3. Divide the pastry into two and on a lightly floured pastry board roll out both halves to 1/8 inch thick circles to fit the pie plate; place one circle onto the greased pie plate, prick with a fork and bake blind for about 10 minutes; remove from oven and allow to cool while you make the filling.
4. To make the filling: combine all filling ingredients and check for sweetness, adding extra sugar if desired; pour filling on top of the cooked pastry; then cover the entire plate with the second circle of pastry and press the edges together; trim the edges then prick the top with a fork and brush with beaten egg.
5. Place the pie back in the oven for about 20 minutes or golden brown; when cooked sprinkle with sugar and serve with whipped cream or ice cream.

Reviews

[Shroom Chef]

I haven't made a pie from scratch in 25 years, but I had to try this recipe. Just pulled the finished product out of the oven and I am amazed at how well it turned out! The blueberries in California are at their peak, so I omitted the brown sugar - just used honey and a touch of vanilla. Even the piecrust behaved - a miracle. My husband will claim I was possessed by the Demon of Domesticity, but I'll say no, it was Mrs. B. Thanks!

[bayou-mimi]

I'm so glad I picked this one. Blueberry anything is my Dh's favorite. He's a tough sell. He gave this 10 thumbs up (has nothing to do with my being all thumbs). I had never made a blueberry pie with brown sugar before, and was a curious; but the taste was heavenly. I did make a couple of changes though, 1st, I used a refrigerated roll out pie crust as I just can't make a decent crust. I also had to use frozen berries as the fresh were astronimically high, so I added a little cornstarch to take up the juice. I will be making this one with fresh berries when they are in season again. Thanks Mrs B for a great new favorite.