Let me just say that I had no intention of baking at all today.

But then… I saw blueberries at the local ShopRite. And not only they did look sweet and succulent, but THEY WERE ON SALE! I mean, how often do blueberries go on sale in the winter? You tell me, I’ve never really bought blueberries before.

So, since the ice cream canister was already in use today (I made graham cracker and speckled chocolate ice cream today too!), and I’ve already made blueberry muffins, I decided to make my foray into the world of tart making.

I’ve never made a fruit tart. Did you know that?

So I’d say that this came out pretty darn well.

That’s surprising considering I used a toaster oven too.

Then again, I guess this isn’t your traditional fruit tart. Instead of that creamy, custard-y filling, I used…

You guessed it. Pumpkin! (The only canned pumpkin they had on sale was 28oz. Considering how my pumpkin cheesecake only needs like half that amount, I looked for a recipe that would incorporate both).

Amazingly, one existed! Apparently pumpkin and blueberries go quite well together! This is one of Oprah’s recipes. What I love about it is how…

1. Easy, as in the pastry crust. No food processor, no fancy smansy machine, just a good ol’ grater. Let me tell you, the guy who created this recipe is a genius for thinking that one up (grating the butter!)
2. Unsweet. Literally, 3 tablespoons of sugar for the whole thing (excluding the light dusting of confectioner’s sugar). That sugar goes into the crust so technically you can even omit that. This is all naturally sweetened through honey (or maple syrup) and the blueberries themselves. That makes this a guilt-free, God praising, hallelujah dessert!
3. Fatfree!! Generally, you’d have cream, cornstarch, eggs, etc… This? Just the butter and egg in the pastry shell!
4. Photogenic. Seriously, nothing I bake ever comes out good looking, especially on my first try. These were born to be studs.

So if you’re still unsure of what to make for Thanksgiving dinner and want to end off that epic meal with a guilt-free conscious, I’d suggest seriously taking this “pie” into consideration!

Blueberry & Pumpkin Pie
Adapted from Michael Nischan, as seen on Oprah

Serves 10 or three 4 by 4 square tart pans

Ingredients:

Recipe:

To make pastry: Place butter in freezer for 15 minutes. In a large bowl, whisk flour, sugar and salt to combine. Using the large holes of a grater, grate butter into flour mixture; combine until they form a coarse meal. Drizzle with egg, and stir with a fork until dough forms. Shape dough into a ball, then divide into four equal pieces. Place each portion of dough on a lightly floured work surface and flatten with the palm of your hand to blend; gather dough up and repeat. Gather all dough together into a ball and press into a disc; wrap and refrigerate until firm enough to roll, about 30 minutes. If using small tart pans, you’ll want to portion out the dough into amount you’ll need for each shell to provide for easier rolling.

On a lightly floured work surface, with a floured rolling pin, roll dough into a 13-inch circle. Drape dough over rolling pin and ease into an 11-inch tart pan with removable bottom. Gently press dough against sides of pan and trim excess by running rolling pin over rim; refrigerate 20 minutes.

Preheat oven to 475°F. Line tart shell with foil and fill with dried beans or pie weights. If you don’t have dried beans or pie weights, poke a few holes on the bottom of the dough and cover with foil and bake. While this won’t ensure the pastry from rising, it will help reduce the bubbles. Bake until edge begins to brown, about 15 minutes. Remove foil and beans. Bake until bottom of shell is golden brown, 3 to 5 minutes; let cool on rack 15 minutes.

To make filling: Reduce oven temperature to 350°F. Mix the vanilla with the pumpkin along with the nutmeg, pumpkin spice, and group cinnamon. Spoon pumpkin mixture into tart shell and spread evenly. Top with blueberries in a single layer. Bake 6 to 7 minutes; let cool.

When cool drizzle maple syrup all over the blueberries to give them a glossy coating. Honey is also fine. The original recipe recommends that you heat up this mixture, but I liked it at room temperature. Right before serving, sprinkle the top with a generous coating of confectioner’s sugar. Use a sieve!

You should also check out:

• Five minute salty & nutty dark chocolate bark
• O clementine olive oil ice cream
• Chocolate coffee & pumpkin spice cupcakes
• Blueberry + strawberry muffins (with crumble topping!)
• ICE CREAM!!! (and cupcakes!)

◄ Back

Next ►

Picture 1 of 4

Take a side view

Whether it’s cheesecake or pie, the part that I always look forward to is the crust. I have a soft spot for graham cracker crusts, but unfortunately, that would be blasphemy on a pie. What I always wonder about, is, how can people gulf down portions of pie loaded with a over-sugared filling, especially those that lack a proper portion of pastry crust?

I have this distant aunt who always brings my grandmother pies during Christmas. Each year, I am the lucky recipent of the pie (everyone knows how much I love dessert) and each year, I throw out a good chunk of the filling, simply because my teeth cannot muster the strength to stand the sugar. This year, in honor of the recession, I felt it would be too wasteful to throw expensive blueberries away, no matter how over-sugared they may be. Instead, I scooped half the filling out and left it aside to bake with.

So I thought to myself, could I recreate another blueberry pie, but in a different form? Since the fund I work for started cutting expenses, I’ve been left to fend for myself at lunch. It’s always nice to enjoy a dessert of some sort at lunch, so I wanted to create a blueberry pie on the go.

What I ended up with were pop tart looking and tasting creations. The crust has crushed almonds, giving it an explosive nutty flavor while a thin layer of leftover blueberry pie filling provides just enough sweetness for the average sweet tooth. Topped off with almond flakes, this bar is surely ready for its debut.

The following recipe, baked in a 13 x 9in pan, makes 30 bars.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup almonds
• 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp nutmeg
• 1 1/4 confectioners’ sugar
• 1 1/2 stick unsalted butter (softened)
• 3 egg yolks
• 1 1/4 cups of pie filling (blueberry, preferably!)

Topping:

• 1 egg, beaten
• 1 tsp clear honey
• 1/2 cup sliced almonds (flakes)
  

Recipe:

1. Grind the almonds in a food processor and put in a bowl. Sift the flour, spcies, and sugar.
2. Add the softened butter and egg yolks. Using your hand, mix and knead until a dough forms. It’s going to get messy and sticky, but it’s still worth it.
3. Cover the dough with plastic wrap and chill for 30 minutes. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
4. After dough is chilled, split the dough in half. Roll out one half to fit into base of the pan. Spread the pie filling evenly over the dough and roll out the remaining dough to place on top of the filling.
5. To achieve a shiny and somewhat cracked look for the topping, beat the egg and honey together. Brush over the top of the dough and sprinkle the almond flakes evenly over the top.

Side Notes:

• I’m sure this recipe will work with any pie filling and with just about any type of nut. Originally, this was a recipe for Hazelnut and Raspberry Bars out of “The Cookie and Biscuit Bible.” Obviously, I’ve butchered the star ingredients.
• Bake for 10 minutes then lower the oven temperature to 350 degrees F and bake for an additional 20-30 minutes. The bars are ready when they are golden brown.

You should also check out:

• Five minute salty & nutty dark chocolate bark
• O clementine olive oil ice cream
• Chocolate coffee & pumpkin spice cupcakes
• Blueberry + strawberry muffins (with crumble topping!)
• ICE CREAM!!! (and cupcakes!)