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Gingery Mixed Berry Pie
![Gingery Mixed Berry Pie](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2017/07/21/dining/21COOKING-BERRY_PIE1/21COOKING-BERRY_PIE1-articleLarge.jpg?width=1280&quality=75&auto=webp)
- Total Time
- 1 hour 50 minutes
- Rating
- Notes
- Read community notes
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Ingredients
- ⅔cup/140 grams granulated sugar
- 1teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
- 5tablespoons/40 grams cornstarch
- 2teaspoons very finely grated, peeled fresh ginger
- 1tablespoon candied ginger, finely minced (optional)
- 4cups/592 grams blueberries
- 2cups/288 grams blackberries
- 2cups/246 grams raspberries
- 1tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
- Pinch kosher salt
- 1egg for egg wash
- 2teaspoons turbinado sugar
- ¼teaspoon flaky salt, like Maldon, not table salt
- A double batch of all-butter pie crust, refrigerated
For the Filling
To Finish
For the Crust
Preparation
- Step 1
In a large bowl, combine the sugar and lemon zest. Rub the zest into the sugar with your fingertips until well combined and fragrant. Stir in the cornstarch, fresh ginger and candied ginger (if using). Add the blueberries, blackberries and raspberries to the bowl. Sprinkle the lemon juice over the top, but don’t stir quite yet. Let sit while you make the dough.
- Step 2
Place one disk of the pie dough on a lightly floured surface. With a lightly floured rolling pin, roll the dough into a 12-inch-wide circle ⅛ to ¼ inch thick. Fit it into a 9-inch pie dish, trim any rough edges, leaving a 1-inch overhang, and set it in the fridge while you roll the other crust and cut the lattice.
- Step 3
Roll the second disk of pie dough into a circle roughly 12 inches wide and ⅛ to ¼ inch thick. Use a pastry wheel or knife to cut the dough into strips about 1½ inches wide.
- Step 4
Gently stir the filling together until well mixed and pour it into the pie dish. Press gently to pack down the berries into the dish.
- Step 5
Weave the dough strips into a lattice. Trim off any excess dough and fold the edges of the bottom crust up and over the lattice strips. Crimp together the edges. Slide the whole pie into the freezer until the crust is very firm, about 15 minutes. While the pie is chilling, heat the oven to 400 degrees and set a rack in the bottom third of the oven.
- Step 6
After the pie has chilled, place it on a baking sheet to catch any drips. Beat the egg, then brush the top of the pie with the egg wash and sprinkle with turbinado sugar and flaky salt.
- Step 7
Bake the pie until it is deep golden brown and the juices are bubbling, 45 to 55 minutes. If the crust begins to burn before the filling bubbles, tent it with aluminum foil. Cool before serving.
Private Notes
Cooking Notes
I personally cannot stand the gluey taste and texture that cornstarch creates. So in recipes that call for berries, I generally use frozen berries. I thaw them overnight and drain away all the juice (it's great to drink up, or mixed in with lemonade); there is no need for cornstarch any more. Or if you're using fresh berries, macerate them with some sugar and place over a sieve (mash them a bit to help release the juices) and remove the juice.
I always use quick-cooking tapioca rather than tapioca starch, again, 3 TBS for a berry or rhubarb pie. The few times of tried cornstarch or flour I haven't been very happy.
(The candied ginger idea sounds good; a little bit of cloves in a berry pie can be a nice subtle variation as well - thought courtesy of the blueberry pie recipe in an old standby that is excellent for pies - The Spice Cookbook (1964)).
Followed the recipe as written. Chose not to use candied ginger, just the fresh stuff it calls for. The pie is fantastic. I was concerned the ginger might be too spicy, but it added just the right amount of warmth to the recipe. The berries are not tart. It's great with vanilla ice cream. Used Melissa Clark's pie crust recipe.
To avoid the soggy bottom, I used the blind baking instructions for Sam Sifton's Blueberry Pie (Step 3) for a great result! No gluey, pooling mess. Blind-baked at 375. Lattice strips chilled in freezer during blind baking. While cooling, oven went to 400 and lattice strips became pliable at room temp. After filling the pie and forming the lattice top, I just egg washed and sugar sprinkled and popped back in the oven for 55 min. Let cool and enjoy!
I followed the instructions, but ended up with the dreaded "soggy bottom." However, the filing was fantastic! If I decide to try this again, I will do a blind bake of the bottom, then fill & top.
Sub 3TBS Tapioca starch instead of the corn starch . Otherwise exactly per recipe; just a personal preference.
Instead of a regular crust, I did a ginger snap cookie crust and did a crumble on top. Rave reviews from the recipients!
This is my technique for achieving a crisp bottom crust: Place baking stone on bottom shelf of oven. Lay a sheet of parchment over the stone to catch any drips. Preheat oven to 450 for at least half an hour. Place chilled pie (in *metal* tin--not glass or ceramic, which might break) directly on hot stone. Bake for 10 minutes. Reduce heat to 350 and continue baking until juices are bubbly. Top and bottom crusts are beautifully crisp, but I have no problem with a burned top crust.
Great flavor but beware of how much liquid is in the pie. The cornstarch did not combat the fresh berries enough at all for us. Pie crust was great… wouldn’t take this pie to a party baking it the way it was instructed. Almost needed a straw
Amazing how just two teaspoons of ginger can permeate a whole pie! A little too powerful for my taste, but I appreciate the recipe.
I’ve made this recipe twice and both times I needed to bake the pie for an extra 30 minutes before the juices started bubbling. (It’s not my oven either, I have an oven thermometer). I laid tin foil over the top to keep it the crust from burning. After a total of 1.5 hours in the oven, with bubbling juices, the pie came out perfect both times with a perfectly crisp bottom as well.
Made this last night, and shocked at what a wildly massive success it was! We did add the candied ginger and I can safely say do not skip. My only “issue” was I think my berries were a little too wet after rinsing, because it came out pretty liquidy but I was able to lightly drain the excess liquid around minute 35 and then put it back in the oven under foil and it came out perfect!
This was one of the best pies I've ever made--and I've made quite a few in the last 30 years! The crust was perfect and will now be my go to for every pie recipe. I followed the recipe exactly, except for an added 5 minutes bake time to get the filling really bubbling. I tented it at 30 minutes. What a hit at our dinner group! There were no leftovers--and I'm tempted to make another one for just my husband and me!
Just made this, exactly as written. Turned out beautifully. The ginger is a fun little surprise when eating.
Apples have enough pectin to thicken berry pies - no cornstarch required. Made a single pie with six cups frozen blackberries and one granny smith plus all the ginger and lemon and 1/2 cup sugar. Baked on the bottom rack about 1:45 until I saw bubbling, let it cool overnight. What a breakfast!
Followed the recipe. Wonderful taste but ended up with pie soup.
This came out a tasteless, soupy mess, and I am not a novice pie baker. Used Melissa Clark's crust and blind baked it it. Used fresh berries. A disappointing waste of time.
Good pie. I liked the texture, although I used 1/2 less tablespoon of cornstarch to leave it a little runny. Followed the directions (although I only put the pie in the freezer for 5 minutes before baking) and no issues with a soggy bottom. I did use the recipe for crust that was linked by this recipe. My only complaints: Not my favorite pie dough. It would go well with a pot pie. The candied ginger also needs to be chopped really finely or left out, a bit overwhelming to come across it.
Replaced blueberries with peaches and cut sugar to 1/2 cup - absolutely delicious!
This has become a Thanksgiving favorite since many family members dislike pumpkin pie. I followed the recipe pretty closely (except for the ginger- used cinnamon instead; again taste preference). I thought the cornstarch would be too much but it was fine. I had a lot of blackberries and blueberries. Next time I might cut the cornstarch back by 1/2 tablespoon. Definitely needed the sheet pan since there was a lot of juice bubbling as the pie cooked.
Alright this is the first time I’ve ever written a comment on a recipe, but I definitely think it’s necessary here. This pie is SO DELISH, but I’ve made it twice with drastically different results. The first time, I followed the recipe to a T and the bottom crust was sog city. The second time, I followed another commenter’s tip to follow Sam Sifton’s NYT recipe for blueberry pie to blind bake the bottom crust first and it turned out exquisite. Also, it baked better in a metal tin. Amazing!
Wonderful berry pie! Used instant tapioca as noted. Crystalized ginger can be hard to find. For some reason ginger marmalade is much more available and makes an excellent substitute in recipes calling for crystalized. Use same amount of either.
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