Blueberry Refrigerator Pie - Margaret Ullrich

Yippee!!! It’s almost July!

Time for folks north and south of 49th parallel north to celebrate their home and native lands.

Holidays like Easter, Thanksgiving and Christmas come with their own menus.

Skip an item and the family never lets you forget it.

New ideas don’t stand a chance against years of tradition. Really.

But the July holidays are a bit more free wheeling.

For starters, there’s the weather.

If you have nice weather, it’s time to fire up the barbecue.

If you don’t, it’s time to fire up the broiler, or oven.

And - yes, it finally happened - the kids have finished another school year.

Schedules, books and lists have been tossed out the window.

The mood is totally spur of the moment.

A friend calls and says she’s having a pot luck.

You laugh uproariously and offer to bring the dessert.

Yeah… What were you thinking?

Don’t panic.

Right about now blueberries are on sale, or in your freezer.

The other ingredients are usually on your kitchen shelves or in your fridge.

This recipe is easy. You can do it. Really.

Throw it together and par-tay!!

Hint:

In a rush? Use 1 1/3 Cups graham cracker crumbs.

A 9 inch springform pan is just as good as the tart pan.

This recipe also works with Saskatoon berries, or any other berries that are in season… or in your freezer.

Don’t like lemon? You can also use orange zest and juice.

Don’t have zest? Use another tablespoon of juice or a teaspoon of extract.

Thawed whipped topping is also good with this.

Taking this to a pot luck? 

Don't add the topping until you get there.

Or you can add a scoop of vanilla ice cream on each serving. 

Or leave as is. They'll never know.

                        Easy Blueberry Refrigerator Pie

Finely crush

50 Nilla Vanilla Wafers

You need 1 1/3 cups of crumbs.

Place in a medium bowl.

Melt

6 Tablespoons butter

Add the melted butter to the crushed wafers and mix well.

Heat oven to 350°F. 

Press the crumb mixture onto the bottom and up the sides of a 9 inch tart pan with a removable bottom. 

Bake 10 minutes, or until golden brown. Cool. 

Combine in a small bowl

2 Tablespoons corn starch 

3 Tablespoons water 

Place in a large saucepan

1 1/2 Cups blueberries

2/3 Cup sugar 

2 Tablespoons water 

Stirring constantly, bring to boil over medium high heat. 

Whisk the cornstarch mixture into the blueberry mixture. 

Stirring constantly, simmer over low heat 2 minutes, or until thickened. 

Remove from heat. 

Add 

1 Tablespoon butter
1/4 teaspoon lemon zest 

1 Tablespoon lemon juice

Stir until the butter is melted. 

Stir in 

3 1/2 Cups of the blueberries 

Pour the blueberry mixture into the crust.

Top with 

1 Cup blueberries 

Refrigerate 4 hours, or until firm. 

Remove side of pan before serving. 

Top with

1 1/2 Cups whipped cream (more or less)