Red White & Blue Pie
My Red White & Blue Pie is the perfect summertime dessert and you don’t have to wait for a holiday to indulge in this delicious treat. But I will admit that Memorial Day and the Fourth of July certainly provide a good excuse to take advantage of blueberries, strawberries and a cool, creamy layered dessert like this one.
I used to make this pie quite a bit when my children were little and then it kind of disappeared into the archives of my vast and somewhat disorganized collection of really old favorites…until now. It’s one of those simple recipes that remind me of church pot lucks and neighborhood block parties. Very retro and really really good.
The red syrup is sugar, water, cornstarch and strawberry gelatin powder. Other than that, all of the ingredients are shown in this photo – plus a teaspoon of lemon juice that I tossed over the blueberries:
You will need to make the pie in a couple of steps allowing the first layer of blueberries and half of the syrup to cool before topping with a mixture of the cool whip, powdered sugar and cream cheese. Then top with strawberries and the remaining syrup followed by a few dollops of plain cool whip and a sprinkling of blueberries for presentation.
It’s hard to resist cutting into this pie the minute you’re finished putting the final touches on top but it needs to come together in the fridge for at least a half hour so plan ahead…it’s definitely worth the wait!
- 1 pie crust prepared
- 1 pint or 2 cups blueberries (plus a few more for topping)
- 1 pint or 2 cups strawberries sliced
- 1 tsp. lemon juice
- 1 1/2 cup sugar
- 1 1/2 cup water
- 4 1/2 tbsp cornstarch
- 4 1/2 tbsp strawberry jello powder
- 4 oz. cream cheese softened
- 1/3 cup powdered sugar
- 4 oz. cool whip plus more for topping
- Bake the pie crust and set aside. In a sauce pan prepare the syrup by bringing the sugar, water and cornstarch to a boil, then simmering and stirring until it's thick and clear. Stir in gelatin powder until blended. Set aside.
- In a bowl toss the blueberries with the lemon juice, pour half of the syrup over the blueberries. Pour the berries in the bottom of the pie crust, place in the refrigerator and let cool for at least 30 minutes.
- Blend the cream cheese, cool whip and powdered sugar with an electric mixer until smooth. Remove the pie from the fridge and spread the whipped cream mixture over the top.
- In another bowl combine the strawberries with the remaining syrup. Pour the strawberries over the whipped cream layer.
- If you don't have a pastry bag, put cool whip into a plastic baggie and snip off the end with a pair of kitchen scissors. Squeeze out the whipped cream around the edges of the pie and in the center. Decorate with blueberries on top.
- Let chill for at least another 30 minutes.
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