Week 39 & 40 - SASKATOON BERRY PIE

Saskatchewan Menu of the Week -- 14 January 2006

Breakfast -- Leftover Saskatoon Berry Pie.
Lunch -- Leftover pasta.
Dinner -- Leftover roast chicken and coleslaw

My husband seems to think pie is an inappropriate food for breakfast. Cake, he's fine with, and I must admit leftover chocolate cake with my morning coffee is delightful. But this morning I walked groggily into the kitchen and there staring at me from the counter was a wedge of saskatoon berry pie, leftover from a family dinner last night. I waited until he was out the door and I very leisurely enjoyed that piece of pie.

If you are interested in making a saskatoon berry pie, you must first secure a source of saskatoon berries. These grow wild in Saskatchewan and I learned to pick them from a very young age. Nowadays, some orchards are growing saskatoons and you can even buy them frozen in the Co-op grocery store. Outside of Saskatchewan, it is called a June berry or a service berry, but I don’t hear about people using them for pies. (Correct me if I’m wrong.) Here, they become pies, jams, syrups, sparkling juice and even covered in chocolate.

To make a saskatoon berry pie, mix four cups of berries with 1/2 cup sugar, 2T of tapioca and a dash of salt. If the berries are frozen, let them thaw a bit to blend with the sugar. Sprinkle in 1 tsp of almond extract. Spread into a pie shell. Place a few dabs of butter on the berries and cover with the top crust. Brush the crust with milk and sprinkle with sugar. Bake the pie at 450 degrees for 15 minutes, then turn it down to 375 degrees for about half an hour.

Post title : Week 39 & 40 - SASKATOON BERRY PIE
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