Blueberry sour cream pie

I make this delicately creamy blueberry pie with a crisp crumb topping almost every Fourth of July. I love the flavor combination of almond extract and a crunchy pecan streusel topping, but there are plenty of good substitutions (see notes below). Adapted from Bon Apétit.

Pie ingredients

• 1 unbaked pie crust – your favorite recipe or store-bought (Trader Joe’s has a good one in the frozen section)
• 1 cup sour cream (low fat versions work just as well)
• 1/2-3/4 cup sugar (more for tart berries, less for sweet)
• 2 1/2 tablespoons flour
• 1 egg, beaten
• 3/4 teaspoon almond extract
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 3 cups fresh blueberries

Topping ingredients

• 1/3 cup flour
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) cold butter, cut into pieces
• 1/3 cup chopped pecans

Directions

1. Place pie crust in 9-inch pie pan and freeze for at least 10 minutes.
2. Preheat oven to 400°F.
3. Mix sour cream, sugar, flour, salt, beaten egg and almond extract in medium bowl to blend.
4. Mix in blueberries. Spoon into prepared chilled crust.
5. Bake until filling is just set, about 25 minutes.
6. While pie is baking, mix topping. Use a pastry cutter, two knives or fingertips to cut cold butter into flour and sugar until crumbly. Mix in pecans.
7. Spoon topping over pie. Bake until topping browns lightly, about 15 minutes.
8. Cool pie to room temperature or chill before serving.

Notes

• Substitute 1 teaspoon vanilla extract for almond extract if you prefer.
• Substitute almonds or walnuts for the pecans. Or use rolled oats instead (and vanilla extract) for a nut-free version.
• Substitute other fruit if you like; just consider the sweetness/tartness of your fruit when determining amount of sugar to use.
• Works well with frozen blueberries, but they bleed more than fresh. Thaw and drain before adding to filling.

Here’s a link back to the post and pictures.