BLUEBERRY PIE SQUARES
I absolutely love this! It’s an easy to make and easy to adapt recipe - so far I’ve made it with fresh blueberries only. Next is peaches!
If I were a blueberry, I would want to land in this pan. What a way to go out…This picture is one I posted way long ago, when my Instagram page was just a baby. Now it is old, the page I mean…well the blogger is too 🤦🏻♀️🙃.
Thats also why the picture quality is not that great and even the food styling lacks a certain gusto. Like I mentioned its old and I was learning, well I am still learning. My dear grandfather in his last years published a book on his life, " 72 years and still a student". The title of that book taught me a significant life lesson, to ALWAYS remain humble. Also to never forget your roots. You are a paragon of your ancestors.
ANYWAY....GETTING BACK TO THE BLUEBERRY, Such a simple recipe. You mix up a standard quick crust of flour, butter etc. Remove one cup before pressing in the bottom of pan, to use for the crumble on top.Mix up your filling ingredients that include eggs and sour cream …yes sour cream! How clever is that? Us oldies, we got the secrets! Top with that cup of crust mixture you saved, and bake.I used fresh blueberries but you can substitute frozen, just don’t thaw them. Use them frozen or you will have a big blue mess on your hands. It will still taste good but it won’t be pretty. I like pretty.
Ingredients
Crust:
- Nonstick cooking spray, for pan
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, chilled
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- Pinch kosher salt
Filling:
- 1 egg
- 1/2 heaping cup sour cream
- 1/3 cup sugar
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
- 4 teaspoons cornstarch
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 2 cups blueberries
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spray an 8-by-8-inch baking pan with cooking spray. Line the pan with parchment paper so that it hangs over on two sides. Spray the parchment.
For the crust: In the bowl of a food processor, combine the butter, sugar, flour, cinnamon and salt. Process until the mixture starts to come together and clump, 1 minute. Remove 3/4 cup and reserve; press the remaining crust mixture evenly into the prepared baking pan. Set aside.
For the filling: In a medium bowl, whisk together the egg, sour cream, sugar, lemon juice, flour, cornstarch, vanilla extract and cinnamon until smooth. Mix in 1 cup of the blueberries. Pour the filling mixture over the crust, shaking the pan gently to settle the custard and berries. Pour the remaining 1 cup blueberries over the top, spreading them evenly.
Take the reserved crust and sprinkle it over the top of the berries, squeezing the mixture in your hands to encourage large lumps.
Bake for 1 hour. Let cool. Remove the bars from the pan and cut into 9 pieces. Refrigerate until ready to serve.