Blackberry Custard Pie

 Grandpa also hates cakes.  I'm not sure what it is about the consistency of cake, but he's never liked it.  It's probably the one sweet thing he's doesn't enjoy.  But the man LOVES pie.  I'm pretty sure that pie is probably his second favorite food group, especially berry pies.  I can remember being a little kid and Grandma would make elderberry pie, Grandpa's favorite.  Well being short of elderberry bushes here in State College, I decided raspberries would make a delicious pie.  So I found what looked to be a scrumptious looking raspberry custard pie.  However, when I went to the grocery store to pick up raspberries, $3.99 a package was a little out of my price range.  Instead of turning to frozen, I looked at the blackberries, which were much more manageable at $1.99 a package.  (I splurged a little, I figure you only turn 89 once.)
With an alteration or two and some combining, the Blackberry Custard Pie was born.  It's gorgeous and delicious and not a lot of work.  I will warn you though, the baking process took much longer than expected.  The recipe says to bake for 10 minutes at 400 degrees, which I did, but then it says to turn it down to 350 and bake for 40-50 minutes.  Mine ended up taking an hour and a half!  I'm not sure if I used a bigger pan than the original recipe did or what, but my best advice is to cook until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. 
I also changed the top of this pie if you look at the recipe versus my pie.  I decided that instead of a crumb topping I wanted to try a fruit glazed topping.  So go ahead and either try the crumb topping or the fruit glazed top.  I'll give you my recipe for the fruit glazed top, but feel free to try the recipe with no changes, it will still be delicious.

Before baking

Blackberry Custard Pie

 Ingredients

• Pastry for single-crust pie (9 inches)  (I used store bought since I'm not a great pie dough roller)
• 3 eggs
• 2 cups sugar (My berries were pretty sweet so I only used 1 1/2 and it was sweet enough, don't be scared to taste it to see if it needs more before you add the eggs)
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/3 cup evaporated milk
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• Dash salt
• 5-1/2 cups fresh or frozen blackberries  (or your favorite berry)

Topping

2 cups of fresh blackberries

1/2 cup sugar

1 cup water

After baking before adding the fresh berry topping

2 Tbsp cornstarch

2 Tbsp corn syrup

Directions

Line a 9-in. pie plate with pastry; trim to 1/2 in. beyond edge of plate. Flute edges; set aside. In a large bowl, beat eggs. Add the sugar, flour, milk, vanilla and salt; mix well. Gently fold in blackberries . Pour into crust.
 Bake at 400° for 10 minutes. Reduce heat to 350°; bake 45-50 minutes longer or until a knife inserted near the center comes out clean.  While still warm, press the blackberries into the top of the pie, pushing down gently so that the berries sink gently into the pie. 
Meanwhile, bring the water, corn syrup, cornstarch and sugar to a boil in a pan.  Let cool for a few minutes (just so it's not boiling) and then coat the berries with the glaze using a basting brush.  Let the pie cool for several hours and then slice and serve.  Don't forget to refrigerate it after eating!
This pie looks so elegant but is really very easy to make. 

yummmmmm 

Raspberry Custard Pie Recipe