2 Pies R Square

This is a recipe for a blueberry pie and a banana cream pie

I used the same kind of basic pastry dough crust for both pies

For the banana cream pie I used 1 1/2 cups flour, 1/4 teaspoon salt, 1/2 cup of cold butter cut into small cubes, 3-5 tablespoons cold water.

For the blueberry pie ( top and bottom crusts) I used 2 1/2 cups flour, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 3/4 cup cold butter cut into small cubes, and 6-8 tablespoons cold water.

If you are making both pies at once, you can make all the dough together in a large bowl, but it might be a lot to work with.

Begin with mixing the flour and salt in a large mixing bowl.

Next with a butter knife cut the butter into small pieces (somewhere between a pea and a penny) and drop into the flour mixture.

with you finger tips squish the all butter pieces with flour, till its mostly incorporated- but with small bits. but do not over work it, picture a flaky crust in your mind.

slowly add a tablespoon of water, and mix well with a fork or hands. repeat this until your mix is wet enough to form a ball.

form 1 ball for the banana cream pie.

form 2 balls for the blueberry pie- one slightly larger than the other.

with a rolling pin ( or a wine bottle)

roll out the dough

flour your working surface lightly

put a ball on the table and squish it down in the middle with the rolling pin

rolling out from the middle create the shape that will nicely fit in your pan.

Lay the dough into your pan.

for the banana cream pie- prick the dough in a few places with a fork (once in the pan) place in the oven at 350 for about 10-20 minutes or until it is slightly cooked or lightly brown

The blueberry Pie filling: wash a couple pints of blueberries and pick the bad ones out. In a large bowl mix 1 cup sugar, 3 tablespoons flour and a dash of salt. pour the blueberries, and 1 tablespoon fresh squeezed lemon juice into the dry mix and toss well. Pour into crust lined pie pan, slice a couple pads of butter on top and lay top layer crust on top. you can crimp the edges of the pie and cut some vent hole in the top.

The banana cream pie filling: separate 4 eggs- lightly beat the yolks in a large mixing bowl. Add 2/3 cups sugar, 3 tablespoons flour, 1/4 teaspoon salt and mix well. In a pot, scald (bring just to a boil) 2 cups whole milk. slowly add milk to egg mix, and stir. Pour back into pot, and on medium heat, stir constantly until somewhat thickened. stir in 2 teaspoons vanilla. slice bananas and lay onto pre cooked crust. Refrigerate.

bake at 425 for ten minutes, then lower the temperature to 350 and bake for 30-45 minutes.

you can sprinkle some cinnamon and/or sugar on top before you bake it.

in a large mixing bowl, or using and electric mixer, pour whipping cream, confectioners sugar and vanilla and mix on high or very fast until small peaks form.

*Whip cream can be its own art. you dont need to add sugar, or vanilla. placing the bowl and whisk in the freezer before using can help. If you are new to making whip cream- be careful of over mixing.

If you want to make a cookie crust (ahem like- using a chocolate wafer cookie with cream filling)

for the banana cream pie.

crush up a package of cookies, melt a stick of butter, mix well and press into pan. dont cook it- but refrigerate it