Saskatoon Berry (Serviceberry) Pie

Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 70 min
Servings: 8
Yield: 8 servings

Description

Saskatoon berries, or serviceberries, are great in pie recipes like this. These deep-purple berries resemble blueberries, but with a subtle, wild flavor.

Ingredients

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup lard
3/4 cup cold water, divided
4 cups saskatoon berries, or as needed
1/2 cup water
3/4 cup white sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon butter, cut into small pieces

Directions

1 Whisk 2 cups flour and salt together in a large bowl until well combined; cut in lard with 2 knives or a pastry blender until pea-sized pieces remain. Add ¼ cup cold water, 1 tablespoon at a time, tossing with a fork, until mixture is moistened just enough to form a ball when squeezed. Divide dough in half, form each piece into a ball, and refrigerate until cold, about 1 hour.
2 Place saskatoon berries and ½ cup water in a medium saucepan; bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer berries until tender, about 10 minutes.
3 Whisk sugar, 1 ½ tablespoons flour, and cornstarch together in a small bowl until well combined; stir into berries, return to a boil, and cook, stirring constantly, until filling is clear, about 2 minutes. Stir in lemon juice. Cool filling to room temperature, about 30 minutes.
4 Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).
5 Roll 1 dough ball out on a lightly floured surface to fit an 8-inch pie plate; line the pie plate with crust. Pour filling into pie crust; dot with butter. Roll remaining 1 dough ball out for top crust, place over filled pie, and tightly crimp edges.
6 Bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C); continue baking until crust is golden brown and filling is bubbly, about 35 minutes more.