Anybody who know me will attest- I am not what you would call outdoorsy.  In fact, I’m pretty much the opposite.  I don’t go camping where they don’t have toilets, hiking is my idea of hell, and I do not enjoy being sticky, dirty, and sweaty, I do not like bugs.  Hanging out on a beach somewhere with a cocktail or cutting down a Christmas tree at a tree farm is about as outdoorsy as I get.

And so, there is only one thing in the entire world that will get me out in the hot sun, sweaty and sticky, up to my waist in sticker bushes, getting scratched up, getting bugs in my hair, swatting away bees, and wading through spiders- fresh (free) blackberries.

It used to blow my mind that blackberries were considered a weed.  I mean, they are so delicious.  When I see a tiny little container of them in the grocery store for $4.99, I laugh.  They are everywhere in the summer.  The only guess I have as to why is that they are harder to pick than other berries. (See paragraph above)

Anyway, when we moved to our home a few years ago, I was thrilled to see that there were blackberry bushes everywhere.  My thrill was short lived, for I realized early on that many of the people who live within a one mile radius of me were equally enthusiastic about the fresh (free) blackberries, and they were just out there picking all day- I never got enough for a pie.

God bless my sister in law, who invited me over this year (after hearing me complain) to pick some blackberries at her house.  Boy is she lucky- she has her own little private stash right across the street from her house.  What would I give for that.

This pie is so simple, so wholesome, so delicious.  Just three ingredients in the filling and a pie crust.  I love to use the recipe for Crisco Deep Dish Pie crust.  I think doing a lattice crust is so pretty (see directions here– it’s so much easier than you’d think!) or you can also do a traditional, simple top crust.  I ended up getting so many berries, I made one of each, plus an apple pie for a neighbor to boot while I was in pie making mode.  Serve this pie up with some vanilla bean ice cream and enjoy!

Ingredients:
6 cups of fresh (or frozen thawed) blackberries
1 cup of sugar
3 tablespoons cornstarch

One Crisco Deep Dish Pie Crust (or your favorite pie crust, even refrigerated will work)

Directions:
Place your berries into a bowl (after rinsing thoroughly)  I soaked mine in salt water for two hours beforehand- this gets rid of any bugs that might be in your berries- they will float right to the top.

Mix together the sugar and cornstarch, and then pour over the berries and stir.  Set aside.

Preheat the oven to 375° and make your pie crust.  Pour the berry mixture into the bottom crust and then top with your top crust.  Brush with an egg wash (1 egg beaten with 3T of water) for extra sheen and sprinkle a bit more sugar on the top if you’d like.

Bake for 45-60 minutes until the top is golden brown.  (This will be a messy, bubbly pie, so I always like to place the pie pan on a rimmed baking sheet in the oven.  At the very least make sure the bottom of your oven is rimmed with foil.