Wicked and Wonderful Strawberry Pie

Back in the corn-belt, the measure of a strong crop was corn “knee high by fourth of July.”  In these parts, folks measure and mark by the ripening fruits and this is the time for strawberries.  June’s full moon was, after all, the Strawberry Moon.  Along the coast, the berries have come ripe and the fields opened this morning.  By chance, we were the first ones to arrive and picked about 6 quarts.  E ate handfuls and was very happy.

About one hour inland the berries were ripe almost two weeks ago.  Farmer Martha has gone picking several times.  On one trip she hauled out 48 pounds.   By her permission, we are posting this recipe for a quick and easy summer treat.  The strawberry filling comes from her memory, while the nut crust comes from Martha Stewart’s “Pies & Tarts.”

For the crust, preheat the oven to 350 degrees, butter a pie pan and into a food processor put:

5 oz toasted almonds

Pulse until they are finely chopped, but not to the point of almond butter.  Then combine in a bowl:

2T + 2t granulated sugar

1.5 Cup All Purpose Flour

Add the flour-sugar mixture into the processor and pulse, and then pour into the processor, through the top:

½ Cup unsalted butter, melted

Pulse just until the dough comes together.  Then roll out the dough, nip and tuck to fit into the buttered pan, and bake for 20 minutes or until golden brown.  Remove from the oven and let it cool.

Into the cooled crust slice lots of berries, until the crust is about, say, one-half full.  If you like, add in some ripe mangoes.  In the processor, combine and macerate:

a good handful or two or three of fresh strawberries,

1/3 Cup granulated sugar (or to taste)

3T corn starch

Put all this into a saucepan and heat until it thickens, stirring often.  Pour the macerated berries over the sliced berries and chill.