BETTY'S BERRY PIE

MAKES ONE 9-INCH PIE

This is my mother's recipe for berry pie. You can use any kind of berries. Fresh are always best, but canned can be used by adjusting the recipe as indicated. Use more or less sugar to taste.

INGREDIENTS

1 9-inch pie crust (See Favorite Pie Crust recipe)

BERRY FILLING

3 cups fresh or canned berries (blueberries, raspberries, huckleberries, etc.)
1 cup juice from can, or water (eliminate juice if using fresh berries.)
3 tablespoons tapioca
1 teaspoon lemon juice
2/3 cup sugar
Crumb Topping (See below)

Preheat oven to 425° F. Combine berries, juice, tapioca. lemon juice and sugar in large bowl; stir to blend well. Pour into unbaked pie crust. Bake for 30 minutes. Add crumb topping; bake an additional 15 minutes or until crumbs are brown and pie is bubbly. Cool on rack.

CRUMB TOPPING

1 cup all purpose flour
Dash of salt
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup butter, softened

Combine all ingredients. Mix with hands until large crumbs form. Sprinkle on top of pie after 30 minutes of baking. Bake an additional 15 minutes.

Notes: Substitute top crust for crumbs, if desired. Double pastry recipe, place extra crust on top of berries before baking. My mother is very generous in the amount of berries she uses in a pie. Sometimes, the filling will bubble over onto the bottom of the oven. You might want to place foil or a cookie sheet on the oven rack under the pie rack while baking. If the crumbs brown too much before you think the pie is done, place a piece of foil loosely on top to prevent burning.

Variation: For a more elegant presentation, bake the pie in a 9-inch tart pan with removable bottom. Reduce the berries to 1-1/2 cups and cut the ingredients for the filling in half. Use the same amount of crumbs and pie crust. Place baked pie on a round plate. Garnish, if desired with mint leaves. (The same can be done with a larger tart pan and the full amount of berries.)

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