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    Home » Pies

    Published on: July 7, 2014 by Janice; Updated on: October 18, 2021 4 Comments

    Blueberry almond mini pies

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    Blueberry mini pies with frangipane, triangle shaped mini pies

    Want to go straight to the recipe? Click here to go to the blueberry almond mini pies recipe.

    Blueberry mini pies with frangipane, triangle shaped mini pies

    Pairing blueberries with almonds

    If you asked François Chartier why two flavours work well together or why certain foods will play well with each other, he'll tell you that it's because they share a common thread, and that thread is a compound that both foods possess. He's written a book on the subject: "Taste Buds and Molecules," which is a really awesome read and one that I'd highly recommend, especially if you are curious about flavours and molecules and food-wine pairings (it's even been translated into English and is available  on Amazon).

    making-blueberry-almond-mini-pies

    Following that train, we could probably explain why almonds and blueberries work well together. We know benzaldehyde is responsible for that deeply almond flavour, and I'm quite sure it's also present in blueberries, at least to a small extent. Is that why blueberries and almonds work so well together? I guess the short answer is maybe! Almonds go well with apricots, cherries, and many types of berries, all of which contain benzaldehyde.

    blueberry-almond-mini-pies

    In my mind, blueberries and marzipan are a delightful match. The British call pies filled with almond cream or frangipane and fruit (or jam) "bakewells," so I guess that's actually what these are. I'm still calling them pie. If you aren't a fan of frangipane, you can always make these blueberry hand pies. Or you can always make blueberry white chocolate cookies.

    Mini-blueberry-almond-pies

    Almond cream ratio

    Almond cream is made from equal parts by weight of ground almond, butter, and icing sugar. The French baking term for equal parts is tant-pour-tant. There's an egg mixed into this mixture that adds richness, flavour, and also binds the ingredients together, making it more creamy than a straight nut + butter + icing sugar mixture would be on its own.

    Though many bakers use the terms almond cream and frangipane interchangeably this isn't quite true. Almond cream is an ingredient in frangipane. Once you've made the almond cream, you can mix it with pastry cream (crème pâtissière) to make frangipane. In this recipe, we are using almond cream, which is also the filling for a classic galette des rois.

    What to do with pie dough scraps

    Inevitably, when you make a pie, you will be left with a pile of pie dough scraps. Gather them up and press them together to shape them into a disk and use them to make pie crust cookies!

    mini blueberry almond pies
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    Blueberry almond mini pies

    Prevent your screen from going dark
    These mini blueberry almond pies are very similar to the British bakewells: little pies filled with almond cream and fruit (or jam)
    Course Dessert
    Cuisine American
    Keyword blueberry almond pies
    Prep Time 45 minutes
    Cook Time 30 minutes
    Total Time 1 hour 15 minutes
    Servings 30 mini pies
    Calories 158kcal
    Author Janice

    Equipment

    Circle cutters
    Rolling pin
    Pastry brush
    Shop now
    Sheet pan

    Ingredients

    Pie dough

    • 400 grams (3¼ cups) bleached all-purpose flour
    • 200 grams (14 tablespoon) unsalted butter diced and kept very cold
    • 125 mL (½ cup) cold water
    • 1 pinch Diamond Crystal fine kosher salt

    Almond cream filling

    • 100 grams (7 tablespoon) unsalted butter room temperature
    • 100 grams (¾ cup) icing sugar
    • 100 grams (1 cup) ground almonds
    • 1 large egg(s)
    • 2.5 mL (½ teaspoon) pure almond extract

    Assembly and finishing touches

    • 150 grams (¼ lb) fresh blueberries
    • 1 large egg(s) for the egg wash
    • icing sugar for dusting at the end

    Instructions

    Pie dough

    • In the bowl of a food processor, pulse the flour with the butter and salt until the mixture ressembles a fine crumble. Drop in the water, and pulse again. I gave the food processor a good run until the dough wasn't moving.
    • Transfer the dough to your work surface and split it in 2. Give each half a good pressing to form 2 discs of dough, then wrap them tightly and put them in the fridge for 30 minutes.

    Almond cream filling

    • Cream the butter with the icing sugar, then add the ground almonds mixing it in really well, and finally the egg and almond extract (I did all this by hand with a spatula in a medium bowl). Cover the bowl and place it in the fridge.

    Assembly and finishing touches

    • Preheat the oven to 350ºF and line a cookie sheet with parchment. Roll out one half of the dough to about ⅛ inch thick, and cut out 3 ¾ inch circles (almost 4 inches).
    • Place 2 levelled teaspoons of almond cream in the middle of each circle, and top with 3 or 4 blueberries.
    • Brush the rim of each pastry round with egg and pinch into an open-centered triangle.
    • Refrigerate the mini pies for 30 to 45 minutes
    • Transfer the mini pies to the parchment-lined sheet pan. Bake the mini pies on the bottom rack for 15 minutes, then switch to the middle rack and bake for an additional 10 to 15 minutes.
    • Let cool then dust with icing sugar before serving.
    • Reroll the scraps to make more pies, and continue with the second disk of dough.
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    Notes

    I baked these blueberry almond mini pies with Stirling Creamery unsalted butter
    Tried this recipe?Mention @bakesomethingawesome or tag #bakesomethingawesome!

    Nutrition

    Calories: 158kcal

    If you are baking with blueberries and you notice the blueberries turned green or changed colour as they bake, don't panic. That could be the effect of pH on the colour of the berries, but that has zero impact on the flavour of the berries.  

    I do my best to bake with the finest ingredients. Stirling Creamery, a Canadian company, has provided the butter for this post.

    More Pies

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    Comments

    1. Bernice says

      July 07, 2014 at 4:13 pm

      Hmmm fascinating! Of course there is a chemical reason why various tastes mesh...or don't!
      Blueberries and almonds definitely do!

      I have still yet to find stirling creamery 84 here in Calgary 🙁

      Reply
      • Janice says

        July 07, 2014 at 4:15 pm

        Hi Bernice,

        Have you tried at Costco? I know in Quebec, the Churn 84 has been sold at Costco off and on. Hope that helps and thanks for stopping by 🙂

        Reply
    2. Joyce Venard says

      February 27, 2016 at 1:46 pm

      So excited to make for church Downton Abbey tea!!
      400 grams of flour does not convert to only 1 1/4 cups flour, but much more. So what is correct amount?

      Reply
      • Janice says

        February 27, 2016 at 5:25 pm

        Hi Joyce! You are absolutely right! THere's a mistake. I checked my notebook and I definitely used 400 grams of flour, which is 3 cups plus 1/4 cup (3 1/4 cups) all purpose flour. I've updated the recipe to fix the mistake. So sorry about that huge typo! Thanks for catching it. Let me know how these turn out when you do get a chance to make them 🙂

        Reply

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