it is officially fall. the days are noticeably shorter, and the early morning air has begun to have the slightest nip of cold. I do love all of the root vegetables that come with fall, and I am looking forward to apple picking next weekend, but I will certainly miss the fruits of summer.
earlier this year, I made my first slab pie, using perfectly summer-ripened strawberries. my favorite part of pie is the crust, so slab pie, with double the crust, is the best version of a fruit pie, in my opinion! this blueberry rendition is not too sweet and bursting with fruit flavor.
I also think slab pies are perfect for gatherings. they are so easy to cut and serve, and slices can be cut as large or as small as you want. the last photo is from a gathering with friends, where we enjoyed one of the last beautiful sunsets of the summer.
makes one 9•13-in pie
490g (3 1/2 cups) all-purpose flour
2 tbsp sugar
2 tsp kosher salt
454g (4 sticks) unsalted butter, cold
4 large egg yolks (~80g)
90g (6 tbsp) whole milk
filling
800g (1 3/4 lb) frozen blueberries
100g (1/2 cup) granulated sugar
1 tbsp finely grated lemon zest
3 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/4 tsp ground ginger
3/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground cardamom
1/4 tsp kosher salt
1 large egg, beaten
demerara sugar, for sprinkling on top
vanilla ice cream, for serving
claire saffitz. dessert person. new york: clarkson potter, 2020.
joanne chang. pastry love. new york: houghton mifflin harcourt, 2019.
2 in a small bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and milk, then add all at once to the flour-butter mixture. mix briefly, just until it all comes together (~30 seconds). the dough will look shaggy and more like a mess than cohesive dough.
3 dump dough onto a clean, lightly floured work surface and gather it into a tight mound. lightly flour your hands, then, using the heel of your hand, smear the dough, starting at the top of the mound and sliding your hand down the slides of the mound along the work surface, until most of the butter chunks are smeared into the dough. (this technique is called fraisage and results in very flaky pie dough.)
4 divide the dough into two balls (~555g each), then wrap each ball of dough tightly in plastic wrap and press them down into 1-inch thick disks. refrigerate for at least 1 hour before using. dough can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 4 days and in the freezer for up to 1 month.
assembly and filling|1 generously flick flour over work surface and roll out dough into a rectangle large enough to line the bottom and sides of a rimmed 9•13-in quarter-sheet pan. line the bottom and sides of the pan with dough, making sure to press the dough into the corners. refrigerate pie shell for at least 30 minutes.
2 meanwhile, roll out the other half of the dough large enough to cover the whole top of the pie. place the rolled-out dough on a parchment-lined baking sheet and refrigerate.
3 preheat oven to 350ºF. line pie shell with parchment paper and fill with pie weights, dried beans, or uncooked rice. blind bake until pie shell is matte and pale golden brown (20-30 minutes). remove from oven and let cool on a wire rack.
4 meanwhile, make the filling. in a large bowl, combine the blueberries, granulated sugar, cornstarch, lemon zest, lemon juice, vanilla, ginger, cinnamon, cardamom, and salt. mix with a large spatula or serving spoon until well-combined. set aside.
5 once the pie crust is cooled, add the filling, then remove the rolled-out dough from the refrigerator. press dough gently along the rim of the pan to adhere it to the edges of the bottom crust. trim any excess dough so there is just a slight overhang. whisk the egg for egg wash, then use a pastry brush to lightly brush the top of the dough with the egg wash. sprinkle the top evenly with the demerara sugar. slit the dough decoratively in 6-8 places to allow steam to escape while baking. bake until the top is dark golden brown and no pale spots remain, rotating the pan halfway through the baking time (40-50 minutes).
6 remove pie from oven and let cool on wire rack for at least 2 hours. this pie is best served warmed; reheat the pie in a 300°F oven until the top and bottom crisp up a little bit, 15-20 minutes.
fort juniper 