Cardamom-Blackberry Pie
Ingredients:
- 1 Recipe Pie Filling (See Below)
- 1 lb + 2 oz (4 Cups) All-Purpose Flour
- 2 Tablespoons Sugar
- 1 1/2 Teaspoons Kosher Salt
- 8 oz (2 Sticks) Butter, Cut Into 1/2-Inch Pieces and Chilled
- 5 oz (1/2 Cup +2 Tablespoons) Lard, Cut Into 1/2-Inch Pieces and Chilled
- 2 Teaspoons Apple Cider Vinegar
- 3/4 Cup cold Water
- 3 Tablespoons Cream or Milk
- 1-2 Tablespoons Turbinado, Demerara or Sanding Sugar (Regular Old Sugar Will Work, Too)
For The Filling:
- 1 ¼ Cups Sugar
- 2 ½ Tablespoons Cornstarch
- Pinch Salt
- ¼ Teaspoon Cardamom
- ¼ Teaspoon Cinnamon
- ¼ Teaspoon Ground Allspice
- 1 ½ lbs (6 Cups) Blackberries
- 1 ½ Teaspoons Lemon Juice
In a Large Bowl, Mix Together The Flour, Sugar and Salt. Separate The Pieces of Chilled Butter and Toss Them in The Flour Mixture to Coat. Do The Same With The Lard. When All The Pieces of Fat Have Been Coated in Flour, Pick Up a Piece of Butter or Lard Between Your Thumb and First Two Fingers. Slide Your Thumb Over The Butter or Lard While Pressing Down on It in Order to Form a Long, Thin Strip. Drop This Strip Back Into The Bowl So It Becomes Coated With Flour. Continue Until All The Pieces of Butter and Lard Have Been Flattened. Some of The Flakes Will Break and The Dough Will Take on a Slightly Crumbly or Sandy Appearance, Which is Just Fine. Place The Bowl in The Freezer for 10-15 Minutes to Re-Chill The Fat.
Drizzle The Cold Water and Vinegar Onto The Chilled Flour and Fat Mixture, Tossing Constantly With a Flexible Silicone or Rubber Spatula or a Large Spoon. Continue Adding Water Until The Mixture is Moist Enough to Form a Dough When You Pinch It Together. If You Have Used ¾ Cup of Water and The Dough Seems Dry, Give it a Few More Turns With Your Spatula or Spoon and Then Pinch Off a Golf Ball Sized Piece of Dough. Squeeze it and See If It Wants to Come Together Into a Dough. If It Is Too Crumbly and Won’t Form a Dough. Add a Bit More Water, a Couple Teaspoons at a Time, Until The Mixture Forms a Dough When You Pinch it Together.
Turn Out The Dough (It Will Be Shaggy) Onto a Large Work Surface and Gather it Together Into a Ball. Do Not Knead it as This Will Toughen The Dough. Divide it in Half With a Bench Scraper or Knife. Form Each Half Into a Ball and Then Flatten Each Ball Into a Disk About 1 Inch Thick. Wrap Each Disk in Plastic Wrap and Chill for at Least an Hour Before Rolling. (The Dough Can Be Refrigerated For Up To 2 Days, or Placed in a Ziploc Bag and Frozen For Up To 2 Months. If Frozen, Thaw The Dough in The Refrigerator Overnight and Soften Slightly at Room Temperature Before Rolling Out).
Roll Out One Disk of Dough to Roughly 1/4-Inch Thickness. Place The Dough Into a Pie Plate. Lift and Press It Into The Edges of The Plate. Do Not Stretch The Dough Into The Edges as This Will Make Your Crust Shrink as It Bakes. Trim and Crimp The Edges of Your Crust and Place The Pan in The Freezer For at Least 15 Minutes.
On a Lightly Floured Work Surface, Roll Out The Other Disk of Dough to Roughly 1/4-Inch Thickness. Cut Out a Circle Roughly 1 Inch Larger Than The Top Diameter of Your Pie Plate. For a Latticed Pie, Cut This Circle Into Wide Strips. Place The Strips on a Plate and Refrigerate While You Make The Filling.
In a Large Bowl, Combine The Sugar, Cornstarch, Salt, Cardamom, Cinnamon and Allspice. Stir to Evenly Distribute The Spices. Add The Blackberries and Lemon Juice. Stir to Combine and Set Aside.
Arrange a Rack in The Middle of The Oven and Preheat to 425 Degrees.
Remove The Pie Pan From The Freezer and Pour The Berry Mixture Into The Bottom Crust. Place The Dough Strips From The Refrigerator on Top of The Berries, Weaving Them Into a Lattice Pattern. Trim The Edges to Overhang By ¾ Inch. Fold The Top Edges of The Lattice Over The Bottom Crust, Tuck The Edges Under and Crimp. Place The Filled and Topped Pie Back in The Freezer to Chill for 15 Minutes.
Brush The Top Crust With a Cream or Milk and Then Sprinkle With Sugar. Place the Pie on a Sheet Pan and Bake Until The Crust is Lightly Browned, About 30 Minutes. Reduce The Oven Temperature to 350 and Continue Baking Until The Crust is Dark Golden Brown, About 45-60 Minutes Longer.
