Blueberry crumble pie

SERVES 8

320g pack ready

● rolled shortcrust pastry 180g plain flour 1 tsp

● ● baking powder 115g

● cold unsalted butter, cut into small cubes 60g

● white caster sugar 60g

● light brown sugar ½ tsp

● salt 1 small egg, beaten

●

1 tsp vanilla extract

●

For the filling 600g

● fresh blueberries 120g

● white caster sugar 2 tsp

● lemon juice 1 tbsp

● cornflour 2 tbsp

● plain flour

1. Preheat your oven to 200°C/ 180°C fan/gas mark 6.

2. Unroll the pastry and use it to line a round 22cm pie dish.

3. Trim the edges and use a fork to pierce several holes in the pastry base.

4. Cover the pastry with a large piece of baking parchment and fill with baking (or dried) beans.

5. Blind bake the pastry base in the oven for 20 minutes.

6. Remove the pie dish from the oven, allow to cool a little, then remove the baking beans and parchment and set aside to cool.

7. Once the base has cooled completely, preheat your oven to 190°C/170°C fan/gas mark 5.

8. To make the crumble topping, place the flour, baking powder and cold butter cubes in a large bowl.

9. Using your fingertips, rub the butter into the flour until it resembles breadcrumbs. Don’t worry if you have large chunks in there – it adds to the texture.

10. Add the sugars, along with the salt, egg and vanilla extract, then mix it all together with your hands. You should have some fine crumbly bits and some big clumps.

11. Now make the filling. In a medium-size bowl, mix together the blueberries, sugar, lemon juice, cornflour and flour.

12. Spoon the mixture into the pastry-lined pie dish.

13. Sprinkle the crumble mixture over the top of the blueberries.

14. Place the pie in the oven and cook for 45 minutes. You may need to cover the dish with foil after the first 25 minutes, to prevent the topping from browning too much.

15. Remove from the oven and leave to cool.

16. The pie needs to cool at room temperature for 3-4 hours to allow the blueberry mixture to thicken. If you prefer to serve it warm, you can just leave it to cool for 30 minutes – but the filling will be a lot juicier.