Double, Triple or Quadruple Berry Pie

You know, this IS called the That Means We Get Pie blog.  You'd think I'd be posting more pie recipes.  Well, that will be rectified today.  Because this is the perfect time of year to make a great berry pie!

A ton of different berries are in season and are criminally cheap right now.  We're lucky to have over a dozen farmer's markets within driving distance this time of year so we can get almost any type of berry we want.  Also, we can take a day trip up to Brigham City's famous Fruit Row and find almost any type of fresh fruit we'd ever need.

But even without farmer's markets around, you can find great deals at the local grocery store... and even the warehouse stores.  Strawberries are extremely cheap at Costco and they'll occasionally have raspberries and blackberries on sale at ridiculous prices.  Buy a bunch of whatever you like and build a pie of your own.

But let's say you're reading this and it's the dead of winter.  In many cases, frozen berries will work almost as well.  Especially when you're making a berry pie like this.  Just watch for the sales and buy some large bags.  Two extremely good buys are the the triple berry mix at Costco and the frozen fruit at Winco, which is what we use to make our Mango Peach Berry and Triple Berry Smoothies as well.

But enough about money, let's focus on the pie.

The assembly is simpler than you'd think.  You can use any combination of berries you want, but I like using equal parts of strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, and blackberries.  If you only have access to two or three, that fine.  Use any combination that equals 5-6 cups.  And to top off the pie, make some Homemade Vanilla Ice Cream and drop a dollop on top of a slice after placing it in the microwave for 30+ seconds.

Double, Triple, or Quadruple Berry Pie

Two uncooked pie crusts
1 1/2 cups raspberries
1 1/2 cups blackberries
1 1/2 cups blueberries
1 1/2 cups strawberries
juice from one lemon
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch or tapioca flour


If using fresh fruit, wash all of the berries.  Slice your strawberries into quarters.  Pour all of the berries into a large mixing bowl.  Add the lemon juice and stir to coat.  Next, add the sugar and mix it in thoroughly. Shake the cornstarch over the top of the berry mixture, then stir it up one last time.  Allow the mixture to sit while we prep the crust.

Roll out one of the crusts so it overlaps the outside edges of a 9 inch pie plate by about 1/2 inch.   Lay it in the plate and roll out the second crust.  Using a pastry cutter or a knife, cut it into long strips so we can create a lattice on top of the pie.

Preheat your oven to to 375 degrees.

Now let's create a lattice effect across the pie.  Lay the strips across the pie in one direction, then pull back every other strip.  Lay a new strip across the pie in the opposite direction.   Now lay the strips you pulled back onto the pie and pull back the others.  Lay another in the opposite direction.  Repeat this process until you've worked your way across the pie.

Fold those overhanging edges back over the ends of the strips you've just laid down and crimp the edges to make it look pretty.

Place the pie in the oven for 45-50 minutes.  Remove it when the crust is golden brown and smells to die for.

Let it sit on the counter for at least three hours, because it needs to cool to room temperature and set.  Go into another room, chain yourself to the bed, vacate the house if necessary, just DON'T cut into the pie until the waiting time is up.  Because if you cut into it too soon, you'll have a berry soup.  After the three longest hours of your life, cut and serve with whipping cream.  Or better yet, nuke in the microwave for 30-60 seconds and plop a scoop of homemade vanilla ice cream on top.  Give it 2 minutes to slightly melt into the pie crevasses and blend into a heavenly dessert.

So whenever you have access to a slew of fresh or frozen berries, make one of these pies and enjoy a summer treat.

Blueberry Muffins at Bargain Prices

Five dollars for a 2 pound carton of blueberries...  That's the bargain I found at the local grocery store.  That's pretty much the lowest I've ever seen, so we had to grab a carton and bring it home.

My oldest had never tried a raw blueberry, so we washed one and handed it for him to try.  Yeah... there's a big difference in a cooked and raw berry to the kindergartener's palette.  So for the whole family to enjoy it, we had to use them in a number of dishes.  First option, we added them to the smoothies we're been making.    Second, I froze a few cups so I could make one of our Superberry Pies, for which the recipe will be posted in the next few days.  You'll have better results freezing berries if you wash them, then lay them out flat in single layers on cookie sheets or in ziploc bags so they don't stick together.  Once they're frozen, place them in those ziplocs and store them anywhere you want.  Third, we crushed a few, added a few whole berries and poured them over ice cream. You could make ice cream using the blueberries, just know that they will most likely break if you place them in whole.  It's probably best to crush half of them and add them at the beginning of the churning process, then add any whole berries at the end.  Some may survive, but there are no guarantees.

But after all that, we still had about a cup of them left.  So I threw together a batch of blueberry muffins.  The recipe is pretty simple and since we're using fresh whole blueberries, a few will pop and ooze blueberry juice all over the place.  It makes them look great and taste even better.  

When making any type of muffin, there are some specific rules that must be followed for the best outcome.

1.  Mix the dry and wet ingredients in different bowls - Mixing them all together at once will turn the batter will cause everything to congeal into a mass more like a roll than a light airy muffin. 

2.  When you add the wet to dry, stir no more than 30 times - The key to a light muffin is not over mixing them.  It's OK to have some lumps, even a few small dry areas.  The more you stir, the more it becomes like bread.  Overworking a flour dough creates more and more gluten, the protein that makes good pizza dough chewy and french breach crunchy on the outside.  That's the last texture you want for your muffin.  So stir it enough to combine, but not enough to beat it together.

3. GENTLY fold in the fruit - Especially with blueberries, delicate fruit has a tendency to pop.  The juices will spill into the batter and color it.  So unless you want a baby blue batter, gently fold the batter just enough so the berries are mixed in, probably about 10 strokes.

This recipe does include a strussel topping, which is completely optional.  I think it makes them look better, but some people don't like it.  So use it if you'd like.  Also, they will keep in a ziploc bag for a few days, so you can make some on Sunday morning, then have a great breakfast to go for the next couple of days... if they make it past Sunday morning. 

Blueberry Muffins

Makes 9 regular sized muffins

Muffins
1 1/2 cups flour
3/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup milk
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 egg
1 cup whole blueberries

Strussel topping (optional)
3 tablespoons sugar
3 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons flour

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.  Clean and strain your blueberries.

Combine the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in one bowl and mix.  In another bowl, add the milk, oil and egg.  Beat it together for a few seconds until it's loosely blended together.

Pour the wet mixture into the dry mixture and stir it about 30 times, no more.  Add the all but about 15-20 blueberries into the mix and just fold them into the batter, careful to not rough the berries, keep them intact.

Line the cupcake tin with cupcake papers.  Add enough batter into the cups to almost fill them.  Decoratively place the blueberries you held in reserve on top of the muffins.

If you want the strussel, add the sugars and the flour to a bowl and mix.  Cube up the butter, add it to the mix and break it up with your fingers like you would a pie crust.  Coat it in the mixture, then press the butter into small bits.  Keep doing it until the whole mixture is the consistency of cornmeal.

Sprinkle the strussel on top of the muffins.  Place the muffins in the oven for 20-25 minutes until they look the way you want.

Remove and serve with lots of butter.

So make a batch of these muffins and enjoy some great muffins for breakfast.  Make two batches if you can, one for the morning and then rest for other days. 

Triple Berry Smoothie and My Weight Loss Program

I've never been what you would call svelt.

I was always a large kid, but not always chunky. I had my growth spurt early, so I was 5'4 and 140 pounds in 7th grade, al least 5 inches taller and 35 pounds larger than the rest.  Not chubby, just husky.  Let's just say that when I played center fullback on my competition soccer team, I put the fear of God into all the other kids.  The opposing teams only scored 3 goals over the 12 games that year, due in part that it's very hard to focus on bending a shot past the goalie when Mongo is barreling down on you at 65 miles an hour.

The closest I've ever come to being fit was in High School, where I was 15 pounds over the average. And that, according to my doctor, was because I have a very large skeletal structure.  My doctor, like Cartman's mom, said, "You're not fat, you're big-boned!"

But when I stopped growing on the x-axis around 10th grade, I expanded across the y- and z-axes.  The second and third dimensions slowly crept up over a few years until when I was finishing college, I had packed on 40 extra pounds since high school graduation.

Now I lost those 40 pounds an another 5 in the fall and winter of 1998 due to the most surefire weight loss program I know, the stress hell known a divorce.  Trust me, you DON'T want to go that route, it's not a permanent solution.  Well, divorce CAN be a good long-term solution for many other aspects of your life, just not for your waistline.  The worst part is that it all came back within a year and a half. 

After getting married for a second time and having a couple of kids, I literally became "fat and happy" to where I reached my heaviest: 70 pounds past high school, offically "festively plump".  A state where I really started to feel the physical consequences.  Couldn't keep up with the kids, too much salt in a meal would cause cramping, and eating way too much in a single seating would give my heart a nice warm hug.  My family has history of heart disease, diabetes, and stroke, none of which are aided by extra tonnage around the stomach.  And worst of all, I was diagnosed with high blood pressure and had to start taking pills to control it.

So I had to make a few changes.  First, try to cut out some salt.  You'll notice that I try to not add more salt to most of my recipes.  Some of them already have natural salt built in, through the meat or tomatoes or other ingredients.  There's no need to add more salt, so I'll try to use other spices to enchance the flavors instead.  Second, portion control.  I've tried to keep my personal serving sizes smaller for me.  We've even experimented with using smaller plates so I can fool my mind.  Come on, it looks like a full plate, I should feel full when I'm done...  Third, avoid massive amounts of fat. especially when eating out.  You know, there are times where you really don't need the fries in the combo meals.  Maybe you want the fries, but you don't need a bucket of them.  So I'll order a sandwich and a drink, which is usually a light lemonade or a Coke Zero.  And if I'm craving the fries, I'll buy the size off the value menu (what used to pass as the small or medium about 10-15 years ago).

Now over the space of three years, this has worked.  I've lost 15 pounds and have managed to keep it off.  But like all great loss, I hit a plateau.  So I had to do something different. 

In the past few weeks, Liz and I have started to make fruit smoothies and I have to say that these are kickstarting the weight loss once again.  I'll blend one up, pour it in an insulated mug and then cart it into work.  They have ton of benefits.  They're filled with fruit and fiber.  So when I drink them, I get something to satisfy my sweet tooth and the fiber helps keep me fuller longer.  Also, preparing breakfast on the go makes the stop for two Carls Jr Sausage Biscits unnecessary.  That alone saves me from a wheelbarrow full of fat and salt.  And they don't get boring because I can use any type of juice, fruit, or sherbet/yogurt.  The flavors can be mixed up at will.

I know, I know, they're not exactly low calorie or low sugar.  But what I've found for my personal weight loss, replacing the fat-filled options available on-the-go with a smoothie is just the trade-off my metabolism needed.  I've lost 4 pounds in a month.  I physically feel better and have more energy (probably due to the extra vitamins and fiber, and yes the sugar).  And the craving I've had for fast-food breakfast is now almost non-existant.

We've already discussed the Rules of Smoothie Making when we posted  about the Mango Peach Berry Smoothie.   And these aren't just for breakfast.  They can become alcoholic party drinks by adding 2-4 ounces of your favorite flavored rum or vodka, but the recipe below is my old morning standby.  I like raspberry and blackberries the best, so I'll use them as my fruit base.  I'll just switch up the other fruit and juice if I want some variety.  Do whatever you'd like to make your own personal combination.  Just try to follow the proportions so the blender doesn't continually seize up on you.

Triple Berry Smoothie

Makes 32 ounces

10 ounces concentrated lemonade (made by mixing one can of lemonade concentrate and 1 1/2 cans of water)
6 ounces grape or berry juice
1 cup crushed ice
1 large scoop sherbet or frozen yogurt
8 ounces frozen raspberries
4 ounces frozed blackberries
4 ounces frozen straweberries

Add the juices, ice, sherbet/yogurt and the blackberries, then blend on a low speed until the ice and fruit are broken up. Next add the strawberries and blend again. Start out on a slow setting, but then increase the blender speed until you get a nice vortex rolling around. Stop and add the raspberries. Start up the blender at low or medium speed, then ramp it up until you reach vortex stage. If you're make alcoholic versions, add the flavored rum or vodka here. If you start getting "the bubble", add more liquid to dilute the mixture.

Once that vortex stage is reached, pour out into glasses and garnish any way you'd like

So take the 5 minutes in the morning to make a smoothie for breakfast. Avoid the sausage biscuits, no matter how good they sound.  Maybe you'll see a pound or two melt away and you'll no longer be "big-boned".

Mango Peach and Berry Smoothie and the Rules of Smoothie Making

Liz and I have been on a smoothie kick recently.  Why?  Well, it's getting warmer and they're cool and refreshing.  It's a better, healthier option for breakfast than a pair of sausage biscuits.  Maybe they're not as warm, salty and greasy in a good way, but I can't argue with the 3 pounds I've lost in the past two weeks.  They're a fat-free option when you need a snack anytime of day.  And if you want to turn it into a party drink, add just a little bit of alcohol and you're good to go.

Now using fresh ingredients is nice, but I've found that using frozen fruit work much better in the blender.  Room temperatue fruit can absolutely vaporize after just a few seconds in the blender.  But frozen fruit becomes miniature sweet ice crystals. 

What Liz and I will do is go to the freezer section of the grocery store and buy a ton of differnt fruits and juices.  I admit it, I'll go to Winco because we can get bags of fruit for only $2.00 and frozen concentrated juice for a little more than a buck.  So you can forget about going to Jamba Juice and paying almost $5.00 for a 22 ounce smoothie.  Spend $12.00 on ingredients and you can make 8 smoothies over the week for about a $1.50 a piece.

Now we like our smoothies with a little bit of a sour kick, so we'll make some double-strength lemonade.  Just mix up some lemonade from frozen concentrate, but use only 1 1/2 cans of water instead of the requisite 3 cups. 

Smoothie making isn't an exact science. But I've found this ratio works pretty darn well...

4 parts juice or liquid
2 parts ice
2 parts sherbet or frozen yogurt
3 parts fruit

You can mix and match any ingredient so it matches your taste palatte perfectly.  Don't feel like you have to be completely loyal to a flavor.  Experiment a bit.  But when you are building a smoothie, here are a few tips that will make your life easier...

1. Don't throw all of your ingredients in the blender at once - Part of it will blend up well, the rest will stay giant chucks that won't make their way through the straw.

2. Speed kills - Don't jump into the highest speed on your blender.  If you start at a low or medium speed when everything is large, the frozen ingredients will have a better chance of being chopped smooth instead of running into the problems listed in point 3.

3. Beware the bubble - If you spin too fast or don't put enough liquid in, the spinning blades will try to pull the ingredients above them down.  And if food doesn't fill up the space, air will.  It'll suck enough air down to create a bubble around the blades, causing your blender to rev up and preventing the blender from doing any work.  If you get a bubble, stop the blender and stir with a spoon.  Then start again on a low speed and work your way back up to the higher settings.

4.  Keep liquid handy - If the blender keeps bubbling up and you can't get that nice little vortex inside, add another ounce or two of juice.  It'll dilute the mixture just enough to spin perfectly.

This specific recipe is Liz's favorite.  She's a mango freak, and loves the sourness of the lemonade. 

By the way, if you want to make this into a party drink, add 2-4 ounces of flavored rum or vodka, and maybe a little more ice or fruit to keep the consistancy.  Add an umbrella and a little fruit on the rim of the glass and imagine yourself sitting on a beach in the Caymans.

Mango Peach and Berry Smoothie

Makes 32 ounces

12 ounces double-strength lemonade - see above for instructions
4 ounces orange, pineapple, or orange/pineapple juice
1 cup crushed ice
2 scoops (roughly 1 cup) pineapple, mango, or orange sherbet
1/2 cup frozen mangos
1/2 cup frozen peaches
1/2 cup frozen strawberries

Add the juices, ice, sherbet and the mangos, then blend on a low speed until the ice and fruit are broken up.   Next add the peaches and blend again.  Start out on a slow setting, but then increase the blender speed until you get a nice vortex rolling around.  Stop and add the last fruit.  Start up the blender at low or medium speed, then ramp it up until you reach vortex stage.  If you're make alcoholic versions, add the flavored rum or vodka here.  If you start getting "the bubble", add more liquid to dilute the mixture.

Once that vortex stage is reached, pour out into glasses and garnish any way you'd like

So make a batch of smoothies for your health... or for your snack... or for your party.  Just don't make the party smoothie before going to work in the morning.  There will be problems...

Attack of the Fruit-cupine!!!!

The Family Birthday Party.  A Johnson staple.  About every month, we throw a little bash for everyone who had a birthday that month.  It can be for one person, it could be for 4-5, all depends on the time of year.  We've got to feed on average 16-20 people each time, so we farm out food assignemnts to everyone.  This time, my job was an fruit appetizer.  Wanted to do something more than just a fruit bowl and thought about doing something that the kids would think is awesome. We needed something large so I created this....

BEHOLD the FRUIT-CUPINE!!!

It's a porcupine made out of fruit.  Yes... it's big.  For reference, I have a big head.  I wear an 8 1/8 size baseball cap.  It's like an orange on a toothpick.  It's got it's own weather systems!  Things go wrong and I cry myself to sleep on my huuuuuuge pillah....

So in reference, you can see how large this piece can get.  This came from an idea from an appetizer Liz made.  She took half a pineapple and stuck large toothpicks covered in fruit all over it like a pin cushion.  I just made it a little larger and added the face, because kids think it's cute.

And the best part is that you can have your kids help build it.  Give them a few skewers and bowls of fruit and let them go to town.  The portions and suggestions of fruit are approximate, except you must have at least 2 pineapples to make the body and still have some to serve to guests.  And you can use any type of fruit you want.  The ones listed are just what I like and what I had available this season.

The Fruit-cupine

Serves 16-20 as an appetizer

2 large pineapples

2 lbs grapes

4+ pounds strawberries

1 lb blackberries
30-40 10-12 inch wood/bamboo skewers

Slice the top off of one pineapple at least 2 inches down at a slight angle to create the head. Set aside the remaining pineapple to cube later.   Slice down through the second pineapple just outside of the core.  Lay the body of the pineapple on a large serving tray, cut side down.  Then set the top of the first pineapple in front of the body to create the head and slide it into the cavity of the body.  Use either whole fruits or slices of fruit to make the features of the face, like sliced grapes for the eyes,  the tip of a strawberry for the nose, a half slice of pineapple for the mouth, etc..  When adding the faical features, hold the fruit in place, press the toothpick through the fruit and into the pineapple behind.  To hide the toothpick, use the flat edge of a knife to press the tip in so it is flush with the fruit's skin.

Prepare the fruit, such as washing everything, topping the strawberries, cubing the pineapple, etc. Take the skewers and add fruit in any order you wish, leaving about 2-3 inches at the end of each skewer.  Then stick the skewers into the pineapple body far enough so they will stay rigid and not bend.  Continue to add skewers until the body is completely covered.  Lay thre remaining fruit on the tray around the body for decoration and snacking.

So the next time you have to bring a creation to the party, bring life to your own Fruit-cupine and watch the people's reactions.