How Many Olallieberries Does It Take to Fill a Pie?

Wild blackberries haven't yet arrived in the Indian Valley, but there were plenty of the cultivated class in Chico, where I sampled my way about the stalls of Saturday's Farmer's Market. I selected some A+ olallieberries, grown by a Hmong family in nearby Paradise.

Three pints of glistening olallieberries, now filling a pie.

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Olallieberry Pie

Olallieberries are cross between a loganberry and a youngberry, a hybrid of hybrids! Grown mainly in California and parts of Oregon, they resemble an elongated blackberry, a little sweeter, but tart. 

If you can't find them, you can -most nobly- substitute standard blackberries or any varietal.

one recipe dough for a double-crusted pie

6 c olallieberries or blackberries

3/4- 1 1/4  c sugar, depending on sweetness of berries

pinch of salt

juice and zest from one lemon

3 tbl minute tapioca

2 tbl butter, cut into small pieces

one yolk

1 tbl milk

sugar

Preheat oven 425 degrees.

Combine berries with sugar, salt, and lemon. Taste for sweetness, adding more sugar if you like. Add tapioca and let sit for 15 minutes.

Line a 9" pie plate with dough rolled out to 14", letting the dough hang over the rim of the plate. Fill with berry mixture, smooth to the edges, and dot with butter. Cover with second piece of dough and with a pair of scissors trim the dough so it extends an inch beyond the rim of the plate. To seal, fold dough under so it sits on the edge of the plate. Pinch into a  into a decorative border, or crimp with a fork.

Whisk together yolk with 1 tbl milk, making an eggwash. Brush dough with wash, sprinkle with sugar, and with a sharp knife cut a few vents into the dough.

Bake for 25 minutes at 425 degrees. Reduce heat to 350, place pie onto baking sheet, and bake for an additional 30 minutes, or until crust is dark and olallieberry juice is bubbling through the steam vents.

Comments

[loulou]

I adore Olallieberries!
My sister lives near Capitola/Santa Cruz and makes Olallieberry jam every year and sends me some for Christmas. The wild blackberries that we find around here resemble Olallieberries so this is a perfect recipe to try.

[mitzy]

i vaguely remember you telling me about these berries once.

[shuna fish lydon]

thanks for the link! I am my happiest when stone fruit AND berries are in season. High like a kite.

[Madeleine]

I'd never tasted an olallieberry until I had a piece of olallieberry pie at Duarte's Restaurant in Pescadero CA. Topped off with vanilla ice cream--what a wonderful treat! Your recipe brought back great memories of our trip there and then on to Santa Cruz. I'd love a piece of your pie right about now.

[Patty]

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[Patty]

Tried Tajine Restaurant today for some take out merguez sandwiches. Delicious! Thanks for the tip. We'll be heading there this weekend for lunch too.