Strawberry Vanilla Crumb Pie

By srumbel

This got a great reaction out of my roommate who doesn't care for fruit desserts (except peach crumble. At least the boy's got some sense ;) ). It disappeared quickly at work, too!
from whisk-kid.com

Ingredients

• Pie Crust
• 6 Tbsp (85g) butter
• 2 Tbsp (30g) shortening
• 1 c (142g) flour
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 4 Tbsp cold water, more if needed
• Crumble adapted from Nicole at Sweet Peony
• This crumble is great! I made a double batch and stashed the extra in my freezer.
• 1/2 c (100g) brown sugar, packed
• 1/2 c (71g) flour
• 3/4 tsp cinnamon
• 4 Tbsp (60g) butter, frozen and cubed
• 1/4 c (25g) oats
• Strawberry Vanilla Pie Filling
• 3/8 c (74g) sugar
• Scrapings of one vanilla bean
• 1/4 c (35g) flour
• 2 Tbsp cornstarch
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 1/2 qts strawberries, hulled and halved

Preparation

Step 1

Pie Crust
Cube the butter and place it and the shortening in the freezer for fifteen minutes.

In a medium bowl, combine the flour and salt. Add the frozen butter and shortening, and press with your fingers (or a pastry blender or a fork or a pair of knives or however your grandma taught you) until it is the texture of coarse meal. Add the water a little at a time and mix/knead just until incorporated. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 30 minutes.

After 30 minutes, place the dough on the counter to soften for 5 minutes. On a well-floured surface, roll the dough until it is large enough to fit in a 9" pie tin - about 11-12" in diameter. As you roll, check often to see that the dough is not sticking to the counter and apply more flour as needed.

Roll the dough around your rolling pin and lay it in the pie tin. Form a decorative boarder, if you wish. Place in freezer.

Crumble
Combine all ingredients in a medium bowl and press until the texture of coarse crumbs. Place in freezer briefly while you prepare the pie filling.

Strawberry Vanilla Pie Filling
Preheat the oven to 350F.

Combine the sugar and vanilla seeds in a bowl. Press with fingers to incorporate, then stir in the flour, cornstarch and salt. When well-mixed, add the berries and toss to coat. Pour into frozen crust and top with crumble. Bake until you see juices bubbling through the crumble in the center, about 1 hour and 15 minutes.