MADDIE DAY here, wishing the spirit of Amelia Earhart a very happy birthday!
Yes, our intrepid feminist pilot was born today in Kansas in 1894. As I was writing A Case for the Ladies, I envisioned a fictional reality for Amelia as a sidekick to lady PI Dot Henderson in1926 Boston, where Amelia actually lived and taught in a settlement house. After a short stint teaching English to immigrant factory workers in my very own town of Amesbury, Massachusetts, north of Boston on the New Hampshire line, Amelia landed a job as a social worker and teacher at Denison House in what is now Boston's South End. She is shown here with some of the children at the establishment. In real life, mostly she taught adult women, although she did coach the Chinese girls' basketball team.
I loved researching Amelia's early life and the path that brought her to the Boston area along with her mother and sister, who lived in West Medford not far from my best friend's home.
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| The former Earhart home on Brook Street in recent years. |
Amelia was already a devoted aviator and flew out of an airfield south of Boston on the weekends.
I don't believe Amelia cared much about cooking. In A Case for the Ladies, Dot's Aunt Etta employed a wonderful housekeeper and cook named Georgia, who often baked with fruits in season. I have scenes in the book where the two young investigators enjoy Georgia's pastries. The season being July and August, blueberries were often on the menu.
I don't use lard in my pie crusts, but butter was a common alternative, and I can't think that the process has changed much except for my ability to closely regulate my gas oven temperature with electronic controls. I hope you enjoy Amelia's birthday pie!
Note: I had one more quart of blueberries in my freezer from last year as this year's picking season began last week, so I hunted down a recipe calling for frozen berries. They weren't quite enough, so I supplemented with fresh berries. I know the recipe would be equally successful with only fresh blueberries.
Blueberry Pie for Amelia
Adapted from BakingwithButter.com
Pie Ingredients
2.2 pounds frozen blueberries
1/2 cup granulated sugar (can be decreased if blueberries are very sweet, or increased if tart), plus more for sprinkling
1/4 cup cornstarch
2 tablespoons lemon juice
½ tablespoon lemon zest
½ teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon butter
1 egg + 1 tablespoon water
1 two-crust pie crust, store-bought or homemade (I use the no-fail food processor recipe, "Pâte brisée fine, électrique," from From Julia Child's Kitchen, 1975)
Instructions
In a large saucepan, combine the frozen blueberries, cornstarch, lemon zest, lemon juice, sugar, and salt. Don't add the butter yet. On very low heat, stir until the frozen blueberries release some of their liquid.
Once they've released their juices, turn the heat up to medium and keep stirring regularly until the mixture heats thoroughly and comes to a bubble. Don't forget to stir, or the cornstarch mixture will begin to cook prematurely at the bottom of the pan. (Sorry, forgot to photograph this stage.)
Once the mixture begins to bubble, let it boil while continuously stirring. Do this for a full minute until it's thick and glossy. It will lose its cloudy appearance and become clear and thick.
Once it's cooked, remove it from the heat and stir through the tablespoon of butter.
Pour the hot blueberry mixture into a large bowl and let it cool to room temperature. (The filling can also be made a couple of days in advance and stored in the fridge in an airtight container.)
Add filling to the bottom crust. Cover with top crust, and fold top under bottom all around.
Crimp the edges between index finger and thumb on one hand and index finger on the other, all the way around. Cut steam vents in the top in any pattern you like.
Whisk together the egg and water. Using a pastry brush, brush the dough on top of the pie with egg wash.
Sprinkle the crust with sugar.
Place the unbaked pie in the fridge for at least 30 minutes and preheat the oven to 425°F (220°C.)
Once the oven is at temperature, place the pie on the middle rack in the oven, and add a rimmed tray underneath to catch any spills.
Bake at 425°F (220°C) for 15 minutes, then turn the heat down to 375°F (190°C) and continue baking for a further 45 minutes until the pie crust is thoroughly browned and the purple blueberry filling bubbles through the gaps in the top crust.
If the crust is showing signs of excessive browning, you can cover the top of the pie with a piece of aluminum foil or silicone crust protectors.
Once baked, remove the hot pie from the oven and let it cool on a wire rack for at least 4 hours. For a firmer filling, let the pie cool completely and refrigerate it for a few hours once it is chilled.
Serve and enjoy with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
Readers: What's your favorite summer fruit dessert? Do you have an attachment to Amelia Earhart? I'll send one lucky commenter a copy of A Case for the Ladies as a birthday present to the aviator.
🛩🎂🌎
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Maddie Day (aka Edith Maxwell) is a talented amateur chef and holds a PhD in Linguistics from Indiana University. An Agatha Award-winning and bestselling author, she is a member of Sisters in Crime and Mystery Writers of America and also writes award-winning short crime fiction. She lives with her beau and sweet cat Martin north of Boston, where she’s currently working on her next mystery when she isn’t cooking up something delectable in the kitchen.
