National Blueberry Pie Day: April 28th

Today is April 28, and on this day in history, we celebrate something so simple yet profound – the blueberry pie. National Blueberry Pie Day reminds us that sometimes the most ordinary pleasures carry extraordinary wisdom.

A pie that speaks to our collective memory with its circular form, endless and complete, mirrors how we experience time – always returning, always circling back. The Indigenous peoples of North America knew the power of these tiny blue orbs long before European settlers arrived. They called blueberries “star berries” because of the five-pointed star shape that forms at the blossom end of each berry. They believed these fruits were sent by the Great Spirit to relieve children’s hunger during famine.

Standing in my kitchen this morning, rolling out dough and watching wild Maine blueberries tumble into the waiting crust, I can’t help but think about all the hands that have performed this ritual before me. Generations of people mixing flour and butter, adding water just so, until the dough forms that perfect consistency – not too wet, not too dry. There’s a certain magic in these inherited gestures, these movements our bodies remember even when our minds forget.

The blueberry itself is a small miracle. It survived the last ice age, adapting and evolving, much like we’ve had to do through our own historical winters. When settlers arrived on these shores, the native blueberry taught them something about resilience. It showed them how sweetness can emerge from the most unyielding soil.

The pie cooling on the windowsill is more than dessert. It’s a time machine. One bite and suddenly it’s 1942, and someone’s grandmother is making do with rationed sugar. Or it’s 1976, and families are gathering for Bicentennial celebrations, passing plates across picnic tables. Every blueberry pie carries these echoes.

Perhaps what makes this day worth noting isn’t the pie itself but what it represents – the way food connects us across time and space. How something as simple as flour, butter, and wild berries can become a bridge between generations, between strangers, between past and future.

National Blueberry Pie Day, I’m reminded that history isn’t just what happens in legislative halls or on battlefields. Sometimes history is what bubbles over in our ovens, what stains our fingertips purple, what brings us together around a table to share something sweet after a long day.

And isn’t that, after all, what we’re all searching for? A moment of sweetness in this brief journey, a perfect circle of belonging.

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Classic Wild Blueberry Pie Recipe

For the crust:

• 2½ cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 cup cold unsalted butter, cubed
• ¼ to ½ cup ice water

For the filling:

• 5 cups fresh or frozen wild blueberries
• ¾ cup sugar
• 3 tablespoons cornstarch
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
• Pinch of salt
• 1 tablespoon butter, cut into small pieces
• 1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water (for egg wash)
• Coarse sugar for sprinkling (optional)

Instructions:

1. For the crust, whisk together flour, salt, and sugar. Using a pastry cutter or your fingertips, work the cold butter into the flour until the mixture resembles coarse meal with some pea-sized pieces.
2. Sprinkle ice water over the mixture, 1 tablespoon at a time, stirring with a fork until the dough begins to form. Gather into a ball, divide in half, flatten into disks, wrap in plastic, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
3. Preheat oven to 425°F. In a large bowl, gently toss blueberries with sugar, cornstarch, lemon juice, cinnamon, and salt.
4. Roll out one disk of dough on a floured surface and fit into a 9-inch pie plate. Pour in the blueberry filling and dot with butter.
5. Roll out the second disk and either place it whole on top (cutting vents) or cut into strips for a lattice pattern. Seal and crimp edges.
6. Brush with egg wash and sprinkle with coarse sugar if desired.
7. Bake at 425°F for 20 minutes, then reduce heat to 350°F and bake for another 30-40 minutes until golden and bubbling.
8. Cool completely before slicing to allow filling to set.

Enjoy your slice of history.