2tablespoonchamomile tea packs or 1 loose chamomile tea
1tablespoonhoney or powdered sugar
1teaspoonsvanilla bean or 2 pure vanilla extractseeds only
Instructions
Buttermilk Crust
Place the almond flour, granulated sugar, salt, and all-purpose flour in a large bowl. Add butter and use your fingers to break the butter into the flour until mixture resembles small peas. Whisk egg yolk with 1/4 cup cold buttermilk in a small bowl and then add the egg mixture to the flour mixture. Mix with a wooden spoon, drizzling in more buttermilk as needed (no more than 1 tablespoon at a time), until dough just comes together (a few dry spots are ok). Gently knead dough on a lightly floured surface until no dry spots remain, about 1 minute. Divide dough in half. Shape each piece into a circular disk. At this point you can cover the dough and place it in the fridge for up to one week OR continue on with the recipe...yes, no chilling needed!
To make the pie
Grease an 8-inch pie plate or 4 mini pie plates.
Roll out 1 disk of dough onto a lightly floured surface to a 12-inch round. Carefully transfer the crust to the prepared pie plate (OR cut 4 smaller circles for mini pies). Lift up the edges and allow the dough to sink down into the dish. Trim edges to even out crust if needed, then prick the bottom of the dough with a fork a few times. Now grab the remaining disk of dough and roll it out onto a lightly floured surface to a 12-inch round (or 4 smaller rounds). Transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet. Set aside.
In a large bowl toss together the blueberries, coconut sugar, cornstarch, vanilla extract, vanilla bean seeds and butter. Toss well to coat making sure everything is well mixed. Spoon the filling into the prepared pie plate or plates. Make sure to scrape in all the good juices left in the bowl!
Grab the reserved pie round(s) and place overtop of the blueberries. Push the edges of the top crust into the pie plate and then crimp the edges of the bottom crust together with the top crust. You can crimp fancy or crimp simple...I went with simple and used a fork.
Brush the top crust with the beaten egg and then, using a sharp knife, slice four holes in the top of the crust for air pockets. Cover and chill pie until crust is firm, at least 1 hour or up to 2 days.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Place pie or pies on a baking sheet and bake until juices are bubbling and crust is deep golden brown, about 40-50 minutes (the mini pies cook in about 30 minutes). If the crust is getting too brown, tent with foil. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool slightly before cutting.
Chamomile Cream
Add 1/2 cup of cream to a small sauce pan and bring to a low bowl. Add the tea bags, remove from the heat, cover and steep for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, squeeze any of the cream out of the tea bags. Place the cream in the fridge to cool for about an hour.
Once the cream is cool, add it to a large bowl along with the remaining half cup of cream. Using an electric mixer, beat on high speed until soft peaks form. Beat in the vanilla and honey until combined. Store in the fridge until ready to serve.
Notes
*I purchase my coconut sugar from [Amazon | http://www.amazon.com/Nutiva-Organic-Sugar-Coconut-Count/dp/B009324C0U/ref=sr_1_2?s=grocery&ie=UTF8&qid=1431304135&sr=1-2&keywords=coconut+sugar].