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Blueberry Pie Filling

A thick and juicy blueberry pie filling is essential to a great blueberry pie. Learn the basics for a perfect blueberry pie filling that works every time.

Blueberry Pie Filling
A great blueberry pie starts with a filling that’s balanced in flavor and sets up well.

Blueberry Pie Filling: What You’ll Love

  • This blueberry pie filling is consistently rich, thick, and juicy all at the same time.
  • You only need a few basic pantry ingredients for your perfect blueberry pie filling.
  • This blueberry pie filling can be made ahead of time and chilled until ready to use.
  • The flavors of this blueberry pie filling are brilliantly balanced – it’s sweet, slightly tangy, and loaded with juicy goodness. It’s truly one of the best easy blueberry recipes ever!
  • It’s SO delicious, you can use it over yogurt or ice cream.

How to Make Blueberry Pie Filling: Key Tips

  • Start with the ripest, sweetest fresh blueberries you can get. We definitely recommend using fresh blueberries versus frozen blueberries.
  • Do yourself a favor and grate a granny smith apple to include in the filling. It provides a balanced tart-sweetness, as well as a natural thickening agent in the form of pectin.
  • Regarding the grated apples, be sure to wring them dry with a clean cloth, as this prevents excess moisture from creating a runny filling. We always have plenty of flour sack cloths on hand, as they’re great for cleaning and straining tasks.
  • Freshly squeezed lemon juice is a must, as its flavors can’t be matched by bottled lemon juice. You’ll want fresh lemons anyways, as you’ll need lemon zest.
  • Cornstarch is the thickener of choice here; it’s both gluten free and has twice the thickening power as flour does.
Blueberry Pie Filling
A flaky butter crust is perfect for pouring blueberry pie filling into.

Blueberry Pie Filling:
Commonly Asked Questions

How do you thicken blueberry pie filling?

There are several thickening agents that can be used, but our go-to is always cornstarch. It’s ready available, it’s cheap, and it has twice the thickening power as flour does.

Will blueberry pie filling thicken more as it cools?

Absolutely, it will. We always recommend letting your finished pie cool completely to room temperature before slicing, as the filling sets up nicely once it’s fully cooled.

Can I use frozen blueberries in place of fresh blueberries?

We highly recommend using fresh blueberries for pie filling, as frozen blueberries contain excess water. The extra water content can lead to a runnier, less flavorful filling.

Can I make blueberry pie filling ahead of time?

Yes, you can make the filling up to several days ahead. After it cooks, let it cool completely. Cover tightly and chill until ready to use. If needed, warm it up slightly prior to using.

More to Bake and Eat

Shop This Recipe

  • Citrus Juicer

    It’s the easiest way to juice lemons, oranges, or limes. Auto-reversing juicing cones provide maximum juice extraction, while straining pulp separately.

  • grater with measuring

    We love the fitted container that catches all your grated ingredients.

  • flour sack cloths

    These flour sack cloths are a daily essential; they are extra absorbent, are great for cleaning as well as straining.

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blueberry pie sliced on a white plate

Blueberry Pie Filling

5 from 3 ratings
A thick and juicy blueberry pie filling is essential to a great blueberry pie. Learn the basics for a perfect blueberry pie filling that works every time.
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 5 minutes
Servings: 8
Author: Amy Dong

Ingredients  

  • 6 cups fresh blueberries, divided
  • 1 granny smith apple, peeled and grated on large holes of a grater
  • 2 tsp freshly grated lemon zest
  • 2 tsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
  • ¾ cups sugar
  • 2 TB cornstarch
  • ½ tsp cinnamon
  • pinch of salt
  • 2 TB salted butter, cut into 1/4 in pieces

Instructions

  • Cook: Place 3 cups of berries in a saucepan and set over medium heat. Mash berries several times to release juices. Continue cooking, stirring often and occasionally mashing, until half of the berries have broken down. Mixture should be thickened and reduced to 1 1/2 cups, about 8 min. Let cool slightly.
  • Combine: Place grated apple in a clean cloth and wring to dry. Transfer apples to large bowl and add cooked berries, the remaining uncooked berries, lemon zest, lemon juice, sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon, and salt. Toss to combine.
  • Fill: When ready to use, use rubber spatula to transfer filling into pie shell, scattering butter pieces on top of filling, prior to sealing with upper pie dough. 

Notes

Filling can be made in advance; cover tightly and keep chilled. If needed, warm it up slightly to easily fill pie shell. 
For our full blueberry pie recipe including all-butter crust, see here
If you enjoyed this recipe, please come back and give it a rating ♡

Nutrition (per serving)

Calories: 292kcal | Carbohydrates: 66.2g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 3.3g | Saturated Fat: 1.8g | Cholesterol: 7.6mg | Sodium: 4.8mg | Fiber: 3.5g | Sugar: 31.1g
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Diet: Gluten Free
Method: baking

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Recipe Rating




4 comments

    • Jean

    Hi,
    So I’m tripling the recipe but it still only says to put 3 cups of berries in medium pan, I’m assuming this is incorrect and I should use 9 cups?
    Or should I just use the 3?

      • Amy Dong

      Jean, you’ll use the remaining berries later in the recipe. Total of 6 cups. Hope you love it!

    • Laura
    • 5 stars

    Great!

    • catherine santiago jose
    • 5 stars

    That is so easy and delicious!
    Yum!

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