Homemade desserts evoke feelings of comfort, nostalgia, and warmth. If you are fond of homemade desserts then you must try having pie. The process of making a homemade pie starts with carefully selecting the freshest ingredients, whether it be juicy apples for an apple pie or ripe berries. The crust is often the star of the show, made from scratch with buttery and flaky layers that provide the perfect foundation for the filling. The filling itself is a labour of love, as it involves peeling, slicing, and cooking the fruit to create a deliciously sweet and tangy filling. Now, here in this article, we have mentioned a delicious millet berry pie recipe by Patisserie Chef, Prajit P Kumar, The Ashok, that you can easily make at your home with fewer ingredients.
Ingredients
Short Crust Pastry
Finger millet flour 120 gms
Sorghum Flour 120 gms
Unsalted butter – 125 gms
Liquid Glucose – 15 gms
Pinch of salt
Vanilla Essence – 01 tsp
Castor sugar – 50 gms
Egg (beaten) – 01 Nos
Cold water – 02 – 04 tbsp (As Required)
Berry Filling
Fresh Blueberries – 100 gms
Fresh Strawberries ( Cut into Small pieces) - 100 gms
Liquid Glucose – 40 gms
Castor Sugar – 80 gms
1 tablespoon lemon juice
Instructions
1. Cut the butter into small cubes and add the sieved gluten-free flour i.e. Finger millet flour and Sorghum flour into the electric mixing bowl and rub the butter and flour together with fingers until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs.
2. Add the liquid glucose, castor sugar, vanilla essence and salt and beat with pedal to combine.
3. At low speed, gradually add the beaten eggs or just use a fork to incorporate the egg through the mixture.
4. Add the cold water 1 tablespoon at a time, continuing to mix on a low speed/with a fork until the mixture resembles a non-sticky dough.
5. Make the dough into 2 parts make a ball and wrap the sweet paste up in cling film and refrigerate for an hour.
6. Preheat the oven to 180ºC.
7. Once the dough has chilled, dust millet flour on the working space and roll the 1st round of dough out it should be approx 3-5mm thick and big enough to cover your tin with a slight overhang.
8. Carefully lay the dough over the pie tin. Push the pastry down into the base and sides so it closely lines the tin, then slice away the overhanging pastry with a sharp knife. Prick the base a couple of times with a fork.
9. Remove the second round of dough from the refrigerator onto a lightly dusted space to soften slightly while you toss the filling together.
10. Toss all the filling ingredients together in a large bowl. Pour the filling into the pie base.
11. Cut the dough into desired shapes like stripes or whatever creative design will cover the top of the pie.
12. Fold the edge overhang of the crust over itself and the lattice edges, using your fingers to flute the crust.
13. Roll the remaining dough scraps out and use a cookie cutter to cut out shapes to place on top of your pie. Place them on top of your pie as you desire.
14. Chill the pie for 20 minutes then brush with milk wash or egg wash. Bake the pie on the parchment-lined baking sheet at 180°C for 30-40 minutes until the filling is bubbly and the crust is golden brown. If parts of your crust start to get too brown before the pie is finished, use foil pieces to cover the top of the pie.
15. Let the Berry Pie cool completely before slicing and serving. Serve with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
Each bite is a symphony of flavours and textures, from the crispy crust to the tender fruit filling bursting with flavour. The aroma of a freshly baked homemade pie is enough to bring people together, as the anticipation of digging into a warm slice with a scoop of vanilla ice cream is irresistible.
