Summer

Blueberry Corn Crunch Pie

August 28, 2023
5
1 Ratings
Photo by @ostreetkitchen - Becca Jacobs
  • Prep time 1 hour
  • Cook time 3 hours
  • makes 1 9-inch pie
Author Notes

Fresh corn is so rich and sweet at the height of summer that you could almost argue it's dessert. Since I am not one to deprive you of everyone's favorite third course, we're not going to pretend raw corn is a dessert, but we will make it one!

We're giving sweet summer corn the dessert treatment it deserves in this beautifully layered pie. The pie crust is a foolproof shortbread recipe with crushed cornflakes and an extra pinch of salt. Making for the perfect crunchy counter to the fruity and creamy layers we will layer on top. Inspired by Alison Romans's blueberry cornmeal tart, the pie crust recipe doubles as a crumble layer we'll use to finish the pie. Next up is a dead simple blueberry pie filling punched up with a whole lemon's worth of zest and juice. Then, a thick layer of corn-infused pastry cream crests the top of the pie pan. Finally, the shortbread cornflake crumble is scattered along the edges of the pie to make for a beautiful border.

It all sets up in the fridge and, when sliced, reveals two distinct layers that celebrate some of the best flavors of summer. —Becca Jacobs

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Ingredients
  • Shortbread Cornflake Crust
  • 1 1/2 cups cornflakes
  • 1 1/4 cups all purpose flour
  • 1/2 cup powdered sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter
  • Corn Custard & Blueberry Filling
  • Corn Custard
  • 2 1/2 cups whole milk
  • 2 corn cobs, kernels removed from cobs and saved
  • 4 egg yolks, cold
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 3 tablespoons flour
  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cubed
  • Blueberry Filling
  • 3 cups blueberries
  • 1/4 cup water
  • 1/3 cup granulated sugar
  • 3 tablespoons all purpose flour
  • 1 lemon, juiced and zested
Directions
  1. Preheat oven to 350° F.
  2. Add the cornflakes to the bowl of a food processor and pulse until the flakes are about pea size. Alternatively, you can crush the cornflakes in a sandwich bag with the bottom of a pan or other heavy flat item.
  3. In a medium mixing bowl, combine all the shortbread cornflake crust ingredients: crushed cornflakes, flour, sugar, salt, and melted butter. Mix until thoroughly combined. Put a loose ½ cup of the crust to the side.
  4. Press the crust into a 9-inch pie pan; the edge of the crust doesn’t have to be too neat, as we’ll be covering it with custard and crumbs. Take the remaining ½ cup of crust dough, crumble it between your fingers, and scatter it across a small pan.
  5. Place the pie shell on a baking sheet and move it into the preheated oven along with the crumble. Take the crumble out after 20 minutes when golden brown. The pie crust will take another 5 to 10 minutes (25 to 30) to reach golden brown.
  6. While the pie is baking or cooling, make the corn cream. In a medium pot over low heat, add the whole milk, corn kernels, and corn cobs. Cook until the milk has just started to bubble at a simmer, and then turn off the heat. This should take about ten minutes.
  7. Pour the corn and milk mixture into a heat-proof bowl and refrigerate until cold. To speed up the chilling process, the mixture should cool fully in the freezer for thirty minutes.
  8. Set a fine mesh strainer over a medium pot and strain the cold corn milk mixture. Save the corn for use in something else. To the pot, add the cold egg yolks, sugar, and flour and whisk until thoroughly combined. Have the cubed butter nearby when you start to heat this mixture. Place the pot over medium heat and whisk constantly until the mixture thickens. This should take about 8 minutes. When the mixture thickens and starts to bubble, hold it at the bubble for one more minute, continuing whisking. Turn the heat off and whisk in the cubed butter until combined.
  9. Set a fine mesh strainer over a heat-proof container and strain the corn cream, pressing the mixture with a rubber spatula. Place plastic wrap directly on top of the corn cream to prevent a skin from forming, and refrigerate until cool, or similarly to the milk mixture, use the freezer to speed up the cooling process. Just don’t forget about it!
  10. To make the blueberry filling, combine blueberries and water in a medium pot and cook on medium-low heat until the blueberries start to break down, becoming a deep blue and shiny. Add the sugar, lemon juice, and lemon zest. Cook for about 2 minutes, stirring occasionally, and then add the flour. Bring the heat down to low and cook, stirring occasionally, for another 5 minutes. Pour the filling into a heat-proof container and cool completely.
  11. To assemble the pie, pour the blueberry filling into the shortbread cornflake pie crust and spread it out in an even layer. Then, spoon the corn cream over the blueberry layer, starting with dollops in the center, and work outward to avoid mixing the blueberry and corn layers. Smooth out the corn custard with the back of a spoon or an offset spatula. Scatter the crumb topping around the pie to create a border.
  12. Refrigerate for at least an hour before serving.

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1 Review

Liesje27 September 14, 2023
Yum! So delicous. Was a hit and is being added to the family recipe binder!

Some notes;
- make sure you make the crust nice and thin (I made mine a little too thick)
- bake less than 20 mins for the crumble on top I burned mine and had to redo it
- would do less lemon juice as it over powers the delicate corn cream
- had to add a table spoon of corn starch to thicken the blueberry filling