Strawberry Pies for Father's Day

I made these after we picked 33 pounds of strawberries at Sauvie Island Farms. The recipe for the crust is a slight variation from Pie by Ken Haedrich, and I adapted the filling from Katrina’s Best Bluberry Pie, a recipe from my sister’s mother-in-law in Raleigh, NC.

In a food processor, pulse to combine:
1 ¼ cups flour
¼ cup cornstarch
1 ½ teaspoons sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
Drop in eight pieces of
½ cup cold butter
Pulse until all the butter is broken up and the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
¼ cup ice cold water

Add to processor and pulse repeatedly until the dough just begins to hold together.
Pour dough out onto a sheet of wax paper. Form into a thick round disc with hands, wrap in the wax paper, and let it rest in the fridge for 10-15 minutes. Take it out, unwrap, and flour the top a little and roll out big enough to fill a deep dish pie pan. Place in the pan, being careful not to stretch the dough, and flute the edges. Refrigerate 10-15 minutes while preheating the oven to 400°F.

When the oven is hot, remove crust from the refrigerator and prick all over with a fork. Place a piece of foil loosely on top of the crust and fill with about three cups dry beans. Bake 15 minutes. Remove the foil with the beans and return the crust to the oven. Turn down the heat to 375°F, and continue cooking another 15 minutes or so, until the crust is completely cooked and turning golden brown. Remove, turn off oven, and cool crust completely.

Reserve:
5-6 cups perfect whole ripe strawberries, washed, drained, stems removed

In a medium saucepan, place:
2 cups additional strawberries, smashed thoroughly as for jam
1 cup sugar
dash salt
3 tablespoons cornstarch
Stir together well and cook until it is a thick glaze—about 3-5 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in:
1 tablespoon butter
Stir until the butter is completely melted. Let the mixture cool.

1-2 ounces cream cheese
Spread in the bottom of cooled pie crust to keep it from getting soggy. (plus it tastes great!) Top with reserved berries. Arrange them evenly so they look good. Pour the slightly cooled glaze over all the berries. . Ideally, you would eat the pie within a few hours of making it., but this pie will keep at room temperature for two days. Or, refrigerate immediately after making to buy another day.