peach blueberry “pike”
Not quite a cake, not quite a pie…..it’s a “pike”. I know, you think I’m getting all Rachael Ray on you. But I’m not. I just don’t want to be called out for calling a pie a cake or a cake a pie. So I’m giving you a pike.
You see, this lovely cake starts out similar to a pie, with a pastry crust base. Except this crust has way more sugar, baking powder, and an egg. Pressed into a springform pan (please tell me you’ve purchased one by now) and loaded with the sweetest peaches and blueberries you can find, it is one of the best showcases for summer fruit that I have found.
Feel free to play around and use a different combination of stone fruit and berries. Perhaps plum-raspberry?
Peach Blueberry Pike (adapted from Epicurious)
You will need a 9-inch springform pan. The original recipe calls for ground tapioca, which leaves little specks of uncooked tapioca on the fruit. I use cornstarch.
Pastry:
1 1/2 cups (192 grams) all-purpose flour
1/2 cup (100 grams) sugar
1 teaspoon (6 grams) baking powder
1/4 teaspoon (2 grams) salt
1/2 cup (113 grams) cold butter, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
1 egg
1 teaspoon (5 ml) vanilla
Sweetened whipped cream or vanilla ice cream for serving (though it also tastes great on its own).
Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
Pulse dry ingredients in food processor to combine. Add butter and pulse until mixture has pea-size lumps of butter.
Next, add egg and vanilla and pulse until mixture starts to come together. This will be anywhere from 15-30 pulses.
Transfer to a parchment lined springform pan. If you don’t have parchment paper, buy some. If not, butter and flour bottom and sides of the pan.
Press dough to cover bottom and halfway up sides of the pan. Chill in refrigerator while making the filling.
Filling:
1/2 cup (100 grams) sugar
2 tablespoons (16 grams) all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon (8 grams) cornstarch
2 pounds (910 grams) peaches, quartered and pits discarded
1 pint (340 grams) blueberries, washed and stems picked out (reserve 1/2 cup for garnish)
1 tablespoon (15 ml) fresh lemon juice
In a mixing bowl combine all ingredients EXCEPT 1/2 cup of the reserved blueberries.
Toss to combine.
Transfer to pastry-lined pan.
Lay a piece of aluminum foil on top (do not seal or wrap tightly) and transfer to 350-degree oven. Bake 1 3/4 hours. It will look very runny, but the pastry will absorb much of the liquid as it cools. As soon as you remove from oven and remove foil, top with remaining 1/3 of the blueberries.
The fresh blueberries placed on top will cook a bit as the cake cools, but not so much that they are as macerated as the blueberries that baked in the oven. You get a much prettier cake this way. Let cool for 20 minutes, then run a sharp knife around sides and unmold.
Serve warm or room temperature. Can be made one day in advance. Leftovers keep up to 3 days in airtight container in a refrigerator.
chocolate hippos 
One Response to “peach blueberry “pike””
I love this!! I’m always so intimidated by a pie crust, but a pike crust, I can handle. And it was delicious 🙂