I am fortunate for I have blackberry bushes in my yard. There’s nothing quite like picking a few and enjoying a burst of their sweet and tangy flavor. When I first moved to this house, that’s about the amount they produced- just enough for all of us to eat as a tiny snack. Then my husband and I decided to put a little time into clearing out the area around the bushes, and the next year we had many more blackberries. The question then became- how shall we use them?
I made an assortment of items with our blackberries: blackberry chutney, blackberry bruschetta, macerated blackberries, and more. The next item I wanted to try was a dessert, not merely a dessert topping, and a pie seemed like the best delivery vehicle. A blackberry or blackberry/blueberry pie would have been fine, but I really wanted to try adding an assortment of flavors. So, why not make a two-layered pie with a delicious base of sweet cream cheese?
This pie could be made with a regular pie crust, but I’m not a fan of it. I much prefer a graham cracker or other cookie crust. I think they have much better flavor. You choose the crust that is best for you. This pie doesn’t take long to make, but it does need a few hours for chilling, so plan appropriately.
- 1 Tb. water
- 2 cups blackberries
- 2 cups blueberries
- 1 cup sugar, divided
- 3 Tb. cornstarch
- 1-1/2 Tb. lemon juice
- 8 oz. cream cheese, at room temperature
- 1-1/2 tsp. vanilla
- graham cracker pie crust
- Put 1 cup blackberries and 1 cup blueberries in large saucepot.
- Add water, 3/4 cup sugar, cornstarch, and lemon juice; mash well.
- Place over medium heat, and bring to a boil, stirring occasionally.
- Continue boiling and stirring until thickened; remove from heat and allow to cool.
- Combine cream cheese, remaining sugar, and vanilla, and beat until smooth.
- Spread cream cheese mixture on pie crust.
- When berry mixture is cooled to room temperature, add remaining blackberries and blueberries.
- Pour berry mixture over cream cheese.
- Cover and refrigerate for at least 3 hours.
- Raspberries could be used in place of either berry, as well as one type of berry could be used on its own.
