Blackberry Cream Cheese Pie

Ingredients

• 1 whole Baked Pie Crust, Store Bought, Your Favorite Recipe, Or See My Recipe Box For Mine
• 5 cups Blackberries, Fresh Or Frozen Ones That Have Been Thawed, Divided Use
• ½ cups Water (or You Can Use Berry Juice If You Thawed Frozen Berries)
• 3 Tablespoons Cornstarch
• ⅔ cups Granulated Sugar
• 1 Tablespoon Lemon Juice
• 6 ounces, weight Cream Cheese, Softened
• 1 Tablespoon Milk
• 1 teaspoon Grated Lemon Zest
• Optional Garnishes: Whipped Cream, Additional Berries

Preparation Instructions

Prepare and bake your pie crust according to your recipe or package instructions. Once baked, allow it to cool before filling it.

In a medium-sized saucepan, combine 3 cups of berries with water or berry juice. Bring to a boil. Once you’ve reached a boil, remove from heat and let cool. Once cooled, strain and push the mixture into a bowl through a sieve, just to remove the seeds. Return the syrup to the saucepan. Stir in the cornstarch, sugar and lemon juice. Bring to a boil, stirring and boiling for 2 minutes. Then remove from heat and cool.

Blend the cream cheese, milk and lemon zest until smooth using a mixer if you have one. Spread the mixture evenly into the cooled pie shell. Top with the remaining 2 cups of uncooked berries. Evenly pour the cooled, thickened syrup over the berries. Refrigerate for 1 hour before topping with whipped cream and additional fresh berries for garnish.

Dig in! This is a fantastic, fresh-flavored pie! YUM!