So this will start out in a surprising way, the hubby had a meeting and he asked me to bake something. He didn’t need a large quantity of treats for this meeting so I looked in my cookbooks and I adapted a recipe from a cookbook the hubby gave me for Christmas, Dorie’s Cookies by Dorie Greenspan. The hubby loves blueberries and I had some in the freezer so I thought I’d find something to make with them so I was happy to find a frozen blueberry recipe although it would work just as well with fresh berries. I’ve made a blueberry angel food cake in the past that was a big hit.
Blueberry Buttermilk Pie Bars
Makes 18 bars
For the Crust
- 3/4 cup all purpose flour
- 1/3 cup brown sugar
- 1/4 cup cornmeal
- 2 TBS cornstarch
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp sea salt
- 1 stick cold butter cut into small pieces
For the Topping
- 1 1/2 TBS cornstarch
- 1 1/2 cups buttermilk
- 4 large eggs at room temperature
- 1/2 cup sugar
- pinch of sea salt
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 TBS unsalted butter melted and cooled
- 1 1/4 cups blueberries
- Grease and 8″ baking pan and line with parchment. Make sure the parchment overlaps on the sides so that it is easy to remove. Spray with cooking spray
- Put the flour, sugar, cornmeal, cornstarch, salt and cinnamon in a food processor and pulse a couple of times to blend.
- Add the butter, and run a few long pulses until the dough comes together and forms clumps.
- Put the dough into the prepared pan and press with your fingers to smooth out into an even crust.
- Refrigerate the dough for the time it takes the oven to preheat
- Preheat the oven to 350°
- Bake the crust for 23- 25 minutes. You want a golden brown crust for the second bake with the custard on time so don’t be afraid of the longer bake time
- Remove the crust and cool completely
Make the topping
- If you turned off the oven while the crust cooled, turn it back on to 350°
- Add the cornstarch to a cup and stir in 1/4 cup of the buttermilk. Stir to mix well.
- Whisk the eggs in a medium bowl until foamy.
- While whisking add the sugar and whisk until the sugar is dissolved. Whisk in the salt and vanilla.
- Whisk in the cornstarch/buttermilk mixture until well combined, then the remaining buttermilk and finally the melted butter
- Scatter the blueberries over the top of the baked crust.
- Carefully pour the buttermilk/egg mixture over top. If the blueberries have clumped all in one area carefully arrange them with your fingers or a spoon if you can.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 42 to 45 minutes until just set at center.
- Let cool on a wire rack for 20 minutes then carefully remove from the pan to cool completely.
- Cut into nine squares and cut the squares on the diagonal for 18 servings.
How Were the Blueberry Buttermilk Pie Bars?
Per usual with these meeting treats, I have no blessed clue. I did not taste one. I probably would not have anyway ’cause I do not care for blueberries.
Hubby like them and I sent 18 in to a meeting where 8 people showed up and only 2 came home so that says something I think. I do try to bake things I think he will like for these meetings. I’ve got two meetings to bake for this week so I’ll be busy! Cookies for one a cake for another. Stay tuned…..
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Blueberry Buttermilk Pie Bars
A buttermilk custard full of blueberries on top of a cinnamon shortbread crust
Ingredients
For the Crust
- 3/4 cup all purpose flour
- 1/3 cup brown sugar
- 1/4 cup cornmeal
- 2 TBS cornstarch
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp sea salt
- 1 stick cold butter cut into small pieces
For the Topping
- 1 1/2 TBS cornstarch
- 1 1/2 cups buttermilk
- 4 large eggs at room temperature
- 1/2 cup sugar
- pinch of sea salt
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 TBS unsalted butter melted and cooled
- 1 1/4 cups blueberries
Instructions
- Grease and 8″ baking pan and line with parchment. Make sure the parchment overlaps on the sides so that it is easy to remove. Spray with cooking spray
- Put the flour, sugar, cornmeal, cornstarch, salt and cinnamon in a food processor and pulse a couple of times to blend.
- Add the butter, and run a few long pulses until the dough comes together and forms clumps.
- Put the dough into the prepared pan and press with your fingers to smooth out into an even crust.
- Refrigerate the dough for the time it takes the oven to preheat
- Preheat the oven to 350°
- Bake the crust for 23- 25 minutes. You want a golden brown crust for the second bake with the custard on time so don’t be afraid of the longer bake time
- Remove the crust and cool completely
Make the topping
- If you turned off the oven while the crust cooled, turn it back on to 350°
- Add the cornstarch to a cup and stir in 1/4 cup of the buttermilk. Stir to mix well.
- Whisk the eggs in a medium bowl until foamy.
- While whisking add the sugar and whisk until the sugar is dissolved. Whisk in the salt and vanilla.
- Whisk in the cornstarch/buttermilk mixture until well combined, then the remaining buttermilk and finally the melted butter
- Scatter the blueberries over the top of the baked crust.
- Carefully pour the buttermilk/egg mixture over top. If the blueberries have clumped all in one area carefully arrange them with your fingers or a spoon if you can.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 42 to 45 minutes until just set at center.
- Let cool on a wire rack for 20 minutes then carefully remove from the pan to cool completely.
- Cut into nine squares and cut the squares on the diagonal for 18 servings.
