blueberry basil pie

[jinian]

2c blueberries
1 grated Granny Smith apple per Cook's Illustrated (fine side of grater, down to where veins start to show; eat rest down to core and set up a trap for fruit flies with it)

the pectin from the apple is going to need some sugar to jell at all, but we still want bright berry flavor instead of oversweet; try 1/2 c

cook in saucepan on low until berries are juicing all over; the idea here is jam

apple kind of sweet this time, good job getting a lemon too!

cause there to be pie dough

try not to knock shit down too much; it is possible that you take this point of pride where you can cook when the kitchen's a giant mess too far

also possibly reconsider cooking blueberries while wearing just your WHITE bra?

ginger? nah, stick with the basil idea. this also means top crust is better than crumb topping, or I risk spice confusion!

berries are becoming delicious, keep cooking on lower heat until they thicken up some

become increasingly skeptical of Cook's Illustrated's claim that this apple business would work

admire the moon through the kitchen window

wash some dishes

filling is coming along, flour and margarine are chilling

ooh, that looks good. okay. take it off the heat and dry the dishes.

mince the heck out of some basil while singing along to Julia Stone's cover of "Bloodbuzz Ohio" (not quite as good as the original, but I can sing it!)

seemed like that would be more than 2T basil, but it's just right. put it into the cooled saucepan with the jam.

discover the pie cloth has gotten wet somehow. clean up and take a moment to hate the counter's crappiness. this moment may optionally involve umeshu. then roll the bottom crust out on the bare counter instead.

fruit flies like umeshu. not as much as I do, fly! go die someplace else!

mix the basil and another 2c of berries with the jam, which jelled really well, leathery at the edges and stiff but not hard.

well THAT is not enough berries, add one more for 3c total. that's more than the jam was meant to handle, so mix like 1/2c sugar with 2T cornstarch and put it on top.

oops, that's too much on both counts. use like half of the mixture and hope you'll remember later what was in that bowl.

smush berries down into jam and put a little lemon zest on top, probably just a notional amount flavor-wise but obligatory for blueberries. (some people may use limes, but lime and blueberry are better separately, like strawberries and rhubarb.)

roll a top crust and assemble. additional thickening trick: put the floury side inward.

bake 15 min at 450F, then until bubbly at 325F.

consider the high percentage of covers on your outgoing mix CDs while listening to Vienna Teng forget the words to Don McLean.

leave pie in the oven overnight, since it's for a potluck tomorrow. in the oven there are no flies, very few mold spores or bacteria, and enough air space that the pie won't get soggy. the problem is remembering it, but I will deal with that tomorrow.