4 & 1/2 cups berries (even amounts blackberries, blueberries and sliced strawberries)
4 or 5 additional fresh strawberries for slicing on top
3/4 cup unrefined golden cane sugar
1/2 cup flour
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/8 tsp. nutmeg
2 ready rolled pie crusts (I use Jus-Rol)
several knobs of butter
milk for brushing
more sugar to sprinkle on crust
This is my off the cuff method for making a quick 3 berry pie. It was created when my son and his friends picked wild blackberries and wanted me to make a pie, but there simply weren't enough berries to fill the pie. I threw in some store-bought blueberries and strawberries that I'd washed and had in the freezer and used some fresh strawberries from my fridge on top. I just used some basic fruit pie methods and ended up with this. Apologies for the photos. I've never been known for the aesthetic beauty of my pies and making food look pretty is not my forte, but I promise they do taste good! If you had the time and didn't have 4 kids helping you in a tiny kitchen, you could of course make a from scratch crust to make it even fresher. I also like to make Chantilly cream (whipped cream with vanilla and sugar added) to serve with my pies.
Method:
Take the ready rolled crusts and roll them both out a little more to allow for use in a 10 inch pie dish. Make sure that you make ventilation holes in the one that you want to use as a top crust. You can do this in whatever shape you like and 3 or 4 holes should be enough. I often use a small cookie cutter or apple corer to make the holes - anything with a pretty shape. Line the dish with the first crust and make sure you have a little excess hanging over the edges to help seal it to the top crust. Mix all of the berries (except the 4 or 5 strawberries) with the 1/2 cup of flour, the 3/4 cup of sugar, the cinnamon and the nutmeg. Pour this filling into the bottom crust. Slice 4 to 5 fresh strawberries and place on top of the filling. On top of this, place several knobs of butter dotted around evenly. Next, place the top crust on. Pinch around the edges to join the overlapping bottom crust with the top crust. When this is done, press around the edges with the back side of a fork to neaten it up and give it a better look and texture. Brush the top with a little milk and sprinkle with a small amount of sugar. Place into a 220 C (430F) oven for 15 minutes and then reduce the temperature to 190C (375F) and bake for a further 40 minutes or until it is golden brown, looks well cooked and the filling is bubbling out of the vents.
Serve hot with cold Chantilly whipped cream on top and enjoy!
