Marion Berry Pie with Disaronno Liqueur

Disaronno is an amaretto flavored Italian liqueur that I like to use in place of extract at times. It adds a very mellow background to this pie, which makes it interesting enough that people wonder what you did differently, but not so much so they can pinpoint the changes.

A note of caution: I think I ate nearly the whole pie! It’s delicious and dangerous all at the same time. Make sure you have friends and family around when you make this one. Or not...

Ingredients
7 cups frozen Marion berries (or blackberries)
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup cornstarch
¼ cup Disaronno Liqueur
2 Tablespoons butter, cut into pieces
Prepared or purchased pie dough
1 egg white mixed with a small splash of water
1 Tablespoons sugar for sprinkling the topInstructions

1. Set the oven rack to the lower third and preheat to 425 degrees.

2. Roll out purchased pie dough between wax paper to stretch and even out. Place on the bottom of a 9 ½” Pyrex pie dish. Brush with egg white.

3. In a small bowl mix together 1 cup sugar and the cornstarch. Don’t skip this step it helps the pie consistency.

4. In a large bowl toss together the Marion berries, sugar mixture, and liqueur. Arrange in the pie dish and dot with the butter. Cover with the second crust and press gently to seal the edges. Tuck the edge pieces into the pie dish leaving enough to flute the edges. Crimp the edges together.

5. Brush the top crust lightly with egg white and sprinkle with granulated sugar. Make slits on the top for venting.

6. Bake for 50 to 55 minutes until the crust is deep golden brown. If the edges start to get too brown cover them with foil or a pie crust shield. Move to a cooling rack and cool completely.

Notes:
1. Purchased pie crusts need to be pretty deep golden brown before they are really done. Lightly golden will leave you with raw dough on the bottom.
2. Instructions for fluting pie crust at http://www.wikihow.com/Put-a-Fancy-Edge-on-a-Pie-Crust.

Recipe by Laura Flowers