Finnish blueberry pie
Mustikkapiirakka
Finnish blueberry pie: a soft cardamom base, wild blueberries and a sour-cream custard, baked in a tray.
Recipe by I Want Some Food · Reviewed by the editorial kitchen. Native name preserved: Mustikkapiirakka.
- Prep
- 20 min
- Cook
- 40 min
- Rest
- None
- Total
- 1 hr
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Spice
- No chilli
- Cost
- Weeknight budget$8–16 USD · indicative, not a store price
About
Mustikkapiirakka is a tray pie, not a pastry pie. A soft, cake-like base scented with cardamom is pressed into a tin, covered with a thick layer of blueberries, then a sour cream and egg custard is poured over before baking. The result is somewhere between a cake and a cheesecake with a layer of collapsed berries in the middle. In Finland the berries are wild bilberries, smaller and darker than cultivated blueberries, and they stain everything purple. Cultivated blueberries work; the pie is paler and a little sweeter. Serve it warm with vanilla sauce or cold with coffee.
What you'll need
13 ingredients. Tap each one once it's out on the bench.
- Base
- Filling
- Custard
Ingredients
Base
- Butter, soft125 g
- Sugar100 g
- Egg1
- Wheat flour, plain200 g
- Baking powder4.9 ml
- Cardamom, ground4.9 ml
- Milk50 ml
Filling
- Blueberries, wild bilberries if possible; frozen are fine, unthawed400 g
- Potato starch, tossed with the berries15 ml
Custard
- Sour cream200 g
- Egg1
- Sugar50 g
- Vanilla sugar15 ml
Scaling multiplies the written quantities. Baking still prefers a scale.
Steps
Step 1
Heat the oven to 200°C. Line a 20 by 30 cm tin or a 26 cm round tin with baking paper.
3 min200°C
Step 2
Beat the butter and sugar until pale. Beat in the egg. Fold in flour, baking powder and cardamom, then the milk, to make a soft, thick batter.
8 min
Step 3
Spread the batter over the base of the tin and a little way up the sides with wet fingers. It will be thin.
3 min
Step 4
Toss the berries with the potato starch and spread them over the base. Whisk sour cream, egg, sugar and vanilla sugar and pour evenly over the berries.
4 min
Step 5
Bake 35 to 40 minutes until the custard is set with only a slight wobble at the centre and the edges are golden.
40 min200°C
Watch: Frozen berries add 5 to 10 minutes. Check the centre before taking it out.
Step 6
Cool at least 30 minutes in the tin before slicing. Serve warm or cold, with vanilla sauce, ice cream or nothing.
Nutrition
Per serving · estimate
- Calories
- 264 kcal
- Protein
- 4.4 g
- Carbs
- 30.7 g
- Fat
- 13.9 g
- Saturated fat
- 8 g
- Fibre
- 1 g
- Sugar
- 14.9 g
- Sodium
- 34 mg
Calculated from canonical ingredient data (USDA FoodData Central averages and equivalent published tables). Estimates only.
Allergens
Informational only. Not a medical guarantee. Cross-contamination happens in real kitchens.
- Wheat
- Milk
- Eggs
- Vegetarian
- Nut-free
Adapt this recipe
The original recipe stays as it is. Personal versions are labelled. Serving changes are simple maths.
Adaptations · 0 / 15 used. Resets 13 November.
Substitutions
Sour cream → Quark or thick Greek yoghurt
Quark is the other common Finnish choice. Yoghurt sets a little softer.
Tips
- Wet your fingers to press out the base. It is too soft to roll.
- Frozen berries thrown in unthawed bleed less than thawed ones.
- Lingonberries or a mix of forest berries work the same way; add a little more sugar.
History & culture
Late July and August food, when the forests are full of bilberries and everyone with a bucket goes picking. Summer cottages bake it in whatever tin they have. For the rest of the year Finns use frozen berries, which work fine straight from the freezer. It is standard café fare beside korvapuusti.
Forest berries have been free food in Finland for as long as there have been Finns, protected by the right to roam. The sour-cream custard version dates from the dairy-rich 20th century; older pies were plain berries on a rye or yeast base.
Traditional — Finnish bilberries are assumed. With cultivated blueberries the pie is sweeter and less purple; add a squeeze of lemon to the berries.
Provenance: Editorial adaptation.
Questions about this recipe
Answers taken from this dish's times, amounts, swaps and tips.
How long does Finnish blueberry pie take?
1 hr all in — 20 min prep, 40 min cook. Cook and rest follow the method. Leftover storage and optional extra waits are not included.
How many does it serve?
The recipe is written for 12 slices. Scale the ingredient list on the page if you are cooking for a different number.
How hard is it?
Easy.
How spicy is it?
No chilli.
What allergens should I watch?
This recipe is labelled for Wheat, Milk, Eggs. Labels are informational — check the packets in your kitchen. This is not medical advice.
Does it fit a diet?
The published recipe is labelled Vegetarian, Nut-free.
9 more questionsFewer questions
What does it cost to cook?
Weeknight budget — about $8–16 USD, as a grocery budget for this recipe, not a restaurant price.
What equipment do I need?
Mixing bowl, Baking tray, Oven.
How much salt do I put in?
This recipe does not list a salt amount. We will not invent one.
How much sugar?
100 g of Sugar.
How much sugar?
50 g of Sugar.
What can I use instead?
Sour cream → Quark or thick Greek yoghurt. Quark is the other common Finnish choice. Yoghurt sets a little softer.
What should I watch for?
Frozen berries add 5 to 10 minutes. Check the centre before taking it out.
Any tips from this recipe?
Wet your fingers to press out the base. It is too soft to roll. Frozen berries thrown in unthawed bleed less than thawed ones. Lingonberries or a mix of forest berries work the same way; add a little more sugar.
Can I use an air fryer?
This method is not written for an air fryer. The core technique on the page still applies.
