Maine Wild Blueberry Pie: New England's Official Summer Dessert

Wild blueberry pie is Maine's official state dessert — and one of the few state foods that earns its title. The wild lowbush blueberries (Vaccinium angustifolium) that carpet Maine's barrens and coastal headlands are half the size and twice the flavor of cultivated highbush berries: tiny, intensely sweet-tart, and deep purple-blue through and through. According to Wikipedia, blueberry pie is a fruit pie with a blueberry filling that needs no pitting or peeling, that berry pies were documented in New England as early as 1872 in the Appledore Cook Book, and that blueberry pie made with wild blueberries is the official state dessert of Maine. Yankee Magazine's New England publishes the classic regional recipe, and every August, Maine's wild blueberry barrens turn scarlet and the pie count rises accordingly.

A proper wild blueberry pie is a double-crusted affair — the wild berries are juicy and need the containment — with just enough sugar, a touch of lemon, a little thickener, and a whisper of spice, so the berries themselves carry the pie. Sliced while still warm, it is summer in a pie pan.

About the Ingredients

Wild blueberries — small lowbush berries, fresh in August or frozen year-round; frozen wild berries are picked at peak and work beautifully, no thawing needed.

Cornstarch or instant tapioca — a light hand; the wild berries are small and their juice should thicken to a glossy, barely-set flow, not cement.

Lemon and cinnamon — a squeeze and a pinch; the pie should taste of blueberries, with the spice as a shadow.

Ingredients (serves 8): - 1 double recipe of your favorite pie crust (or 2 store-bought 9-inch crusts) - 5 cups wild blueberries, fresh or frozen - 3/4 cup sugar - 3 tbsp cornstarch or instant tapioca - 1 tbsp lemon juice - 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon - 1/4 tsp salt - 2 tbsp butter, cut into small pieces - 1 egg beaten with 1 tbsp water, and coarse sugar for the top

Instructions: Preheat the oven to 400°F. Line a 9-inch pie plate with the bottom crust. In a large bowl, combine the blueberries, sugar, cornstarch, lemon juice, cinnamon, and salt, tossing gently so as not to crush the berries. Pile into the crust, dot with the butter, and lay on the top crust; seal, trim, crimp, and cut a few steam vents. Brush with the egg wash and sprinkle with coarse sugar. Bake 45–50 minutes, covering the edge with foil once it browns, until the crust is deep golden and the filling bubbles through the vents. Cool at least 3 hours — a warm blueberry pie is soup — and serve in generous wedges, with vanilla ice cream if it is August in Maine.

The Mimosa Pairing Logic: There is a mimosa born for this pie. The blueberry lavender mimosa is a literal echo — berry meeting berry, with lavender's floral lift above the buttery crust. A lavender-elderflower mimosa is the softer alternative, all summer-garden florals. This is the county-fair blue-ribbon brunch.

Reference Links: - Blueberry pie (1872 Appledore Cook Book, Maine state dessert): Wikipedia - Maine Wild Blueberry Pie Recipe: Yankee Magazine's New England

Make-Ahead: The pie keeps a day at room temperature, covered, and is best within 24 hours while the crust stays crisp. Baked a day ahead and briefly rewarmed (20 minutes at 300°F), it slices cleaner than fresh-from-the-oven. Filling made from frozen berries can be assembled and frozen unbaked for a month.

Pro Tips: Don't thaw frozen wild berries first — toss them frozen and add 5 minutes to the bake. Taste the berries and adjust the sugar: wild berries vary batch to batch. Cool fully before cutting; patience is the difference between a wedge and a flood. Protect the crust edge from minute 25 — it browns fast over that long bake.