Free form cherry and blackberry pies

I got a little carried away with all the beautiful cherries available at this time of the year and ended up buying tons of them: some I ate – delicious! - and some were transformed into baked goods. :)

After some email talk with my friend Ana Elisa – she’d been deciding on whether or not to buy a food processor – I decided to buy one, too. I’ve been using it a lot and even regret not buying it earlier – making the pastry for these tarts was dead easy using my newest toy. :)

Free form cherry and blackberry pies
adapted from Donna Hay magazine

1/3 cup (75g) unsalted butter, cold and chopped
1 cup + 1 tablespoon (150g) all purpose flour
½ tablespoons caster sugar
1-1 ½ tablespoons iced water

Filling:
1 cup cherries, pitted and halved
1 cup blackberries
1 ½ tablespoons corn starch
2 ½ tablespoons caster sugar
finely grated zest of 1 small lemon
2 tablespoons almond meal
1 tablespoon caster sugar, extra

To make the pastry, process butter, flour and sugar in a food processor until mixture resembles coarse breadcrumbs. While the motor is still running, add enough iced water to form a soft dough. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
To make the filling, place the cherries and blackberries in a bowl, sift over the corn starch and add the sugar and lemon zest. Toss to combine.
Divide the pastry in half and roll each piece on a lightly floured surface to 3mm thick. Place the pastry on a large baking sheet lined with baking paper and sprinkle with the almond meal. Pile the berry mixture into the middle of each pastry disc and sprinkle with the extra sugar. Fold over the pastry to form an edge, partially enclosing the berries. Refrigerate for 20 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until pastry is golden and crisp.
Serve warm with vanilla ice cream.

Serves 2