Pie And Ice Cream

Daddy (who is already in another state after a couple of nights here) asked for blueberry pie for dessert yesterday. Of all the pies we've made_peach cobbler, apple pie, chocolate chip pecan pie, peanut butter pie, etc.–he wanted one that neither Mommy or I had ever made. We didn't have a tried-and-true recipe. But it was Father's Day! How could she tell him no? So it was Google to the rescue. Mommy found a recipe with 158 reviews, most of them 5-stars. She figured it would have to be good.

And it was delicious! What we didn't think about was that when you make a blueberry pie, you don't have to peel peaches or apples. This turned out to be super easy in addition to being super delicious. This has been added to our "keeper" recipe list.

The ice cream recipe is the one that my parents used for years and years. I grew up in a family that would make ice cream at the drop of a hat. Ours was usually made with fruit of some sort, but this is the base recipe that the others come from. Again, with no fruit to peel or prepare, it's quick to stir together. It turned out to be a perfect summer dessert.

BLUEBERRY PIE

5 cups fresh blueberries
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 (15-oz) package refrigerated pie crusts
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
2 tablespoons butter
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon sugar

• Sprinkle berries with lemon juice; set aside.
• Fit half of pastry in a 9-inch pie plate according to package directions.
• Combine 1 sugar, flour, salt and cinnamon. Add to berries. Mix well.
• Pour into pastry shell and dot with butter.
• Unfold remaining pastry shell on a lightly floured surface; roll gently with rolling pin to remove creases.
• Place pastry over filling; seal and crimp edges.
• Cut slits in top of crust to allow steam to escape.
• Brush top of pastry with beaten egg and sprinkle with 1 tsp. sugar.
• Bake a 400 degrees for 35 minutes or until golden brown.
• Cover edges with foil to prevent overbrowning, if necessary.
• Serve with vanilla ice cream, if desired.

HOMEMADE ICE CREAM (for 4 or 5 quart ice cream churn)

3 (12-oz) cans evaporated milk

2-1/2 cups sugar

Egg Beaters to equal 3 eggs 

2-1/2 tablespoons vanilla

1/2 teaspoon salt

Fresh whole milk

Mix first 4 ingredients.  Stir until sugar is completely dissolved. Pour into 4 or 5-quart ice cream churn container.  Add fresh milk to the “fill” line.  Freeze according to churn directions.

You can use this vanilla recipe and one of these add-ins for other flavors.

For all of the following flavors, use 2 tablespoons vanilla instead of 2-1/2 and add the fruit to the vanilla recipe.

Strawberry, Peach, or Banana--3 to 4 cups fruit, mashed (I stir part of the sugar into the mashed berries or peaches and let it sit until the juices have released)

Peanut Butter---Substitute a 12- oz. jar of peanut butter (regular or crunchy) for fruit.  Leave out eggs.  Mix jar of peanut butter with one can of milk before adding to remaining ingredients.

Cherry---Substitute 2 jars of maraschino cherries and juice for fruit.

Years ago we made ice cream with raw eggs. There are now health concerns about that practice, so I switched to Egg Beaters, which is a pasturized egg product. If you have compromised health, use your own judgement about the Egg Beaters. You might want to look for a recipe that starts with a cooked custard or a recipe with sweetened condensed milk and no eggs.