Wild Blackberry Pie

I don't know about you, but for me summer is somehow incomplete without at least one delicious fresh berry pie in my kitchen! Hard to go wrong with a deliciously jammy filling of fragrant sweet summer berries and a cookie-like buttery crust (that's incidentally butter-free!).

This delightful pie I'm sharing here today features wild blackberries (or dewberries), which grow in abundance around our house, alongside black and red wild raspberries. These berries are shared by us, our pups (who love to nip some off the bushes on our daily hike), the birds, deer, bears, and all kinds of little creatures of the forest -- and somehow there's still always plenty for everyone, even our neighbours! With so much abundance, it's always fun to think up new ways to put these berries to good use. And this pie is my go to this summer.

If you don't have access to wild blackberries, it's all good, this pie works just as well with wild raspberries, or even with small-sized store bought berries if you prefer. Note: I'm not sure large store bought blackberries will work as well here due to their size, but you might be able to chop them a bit smaller if you're feeling adventurous and want to give that a try.

In this particular recipe I accented the blackberries with a bit of lemon flavor -- a combination that I always adore -- and some cinnamon for good measure. The result is an extra fragrant pie that smells lovely as it bakes, and tastes even lovelier.

I also highly recommend serving it with some vegan vanilla ice cream of your choice for the ultimate tasty experience.

Note: I went a little goofy freestyling the top of this pie. Feel free to work out any decorating pattern you like, be it a more classic lattice, some cut out shapes, or some other fun pattern right out of your head! My two cents: don't take it too seriously and just have fun flowing through your decorating. Even if you don't end up with a masterpiece, the process and taste will be most enjoyable either way!

Lastly, this recipe is for a small 6" pie, which makes about 4 servings. If you wanted to make it in a larger 9" pie plate you'll need to triple this recipe.

Wild Blackberry Pie

Print Recipe

This delicious vegan & gluten-free wild blackberry pie recipe is a great way to enjoy the abundance of fresh summer berries.

• Author: Audrey @ Unconventional Baker
• Prep Time: 30 minutes
• Cook Time: 45 minutes
• Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
• Yield: 6" Pie
• Category: Pie
• Method: Baked
• Cuisine: Dessert
• Diet: Vegan

Ingredients

Pie Crust:

• ¾ cup white rice flour
• ¼ cup cashew butter
• ¼ cup dark maple syrup
• 2 tsp lemon extract
• ¹⁄₈ tsp salt

Red Currant Filling:

• ¾ cup wild blackberries
• 3 tbsp dark maple syrup
• 2 tbsp tapioca starch
• juice of half a lemon
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/16 tsp salt (aka the tiniest pinch of salt)

Optional Topping

• a teaspoon of raw sugar crystals to sprinkle on top of the pie crust

Instructions

1. Pre-heat oven to 350F. Oil a 6″ pie plate (or baking dish of a similar size) and set aside.
2. Process all pie crust ingredients in a food processor until combined into a dough. Gather the dough and form into a ball, kneading it lightly. Divide this dough in half, and roll each half into a ball. Take one of the balls and flatten it into a disk with your hands. Place into the prepared pie plate and press and shape it down into a pie shell with your hands, covering the base and sides of the dish with the dough. Set aside.
3. Prepare the pie filling by mixing all ingredients together with a fork in a small bowl. Transfer this mixture into the prepared pie crust, and smooth it out into an even layer.
4. Place the remaining half of the crust dough in between two sheets of parchment paper and roll it out roughly into an ⅛” thickness. Use this dough to decorate the top of the pie with a design of your choice (feel free to cut out shapes, strips*, hand shape bits of dough into a desired pattern, etc. -- I used a mixture of ½" strips to divide the pie into a cross and then fill in each quarter with smaller strips, as well as some hand shaped leaves and dots to create a flower pattern in the center). If you need to create more strips or cut up more shapes, gather up the remaining dough and roll it out again to create more strips. Once finished creating a design of your choise, fill in any gaps along the edges of the pie with some of the remaining dough. Then seal the edge all around with a fork.**
5. Optional: sparingly sprinkle some raw sugar crystals over the pie crust strips (note try to get the sugar just on the dough as much as possible, as anything that falls into the filling will not be visible / palpable on the crust once the pie bakes).
6. Bake in a pre-heated oven for approximately 45 minutes (until the edges are nice and golden and the filling bubbles and sets. Cool off on a wire rack, and enjoy!***

Notes

*I used this kind of pastry cutter which works well for straight or fluted edges. But a pizza cutter or a regular knife will do for straight cuts if you prefer.

**Note: you’ll likely have a tiny bit of dough remaining at this stage. I usually roll it out into 2-3 small cookies (roll into a ball, then flatten with a fork) and bake them for 7-9 mins along with the pie.

***Note: a hot pie will always be a little runny when sliced. The pie filling will firm up as it cools off completely.

Keywords: Wild Blackberry Pie (Vegan, Gluten-Free)

Happy Baking!

x Audrey