Blueberry agar pie - experiment time!

A friend has been living with us for the past week or so and she brought with her a big box of goodies. In it was a bag of agar-agar, the same type used in chinese style jello desserts.

So now we must do some agar experiments!

We received lots of great food magazines and fliers over the past few weeks and this one is the inspiration for the experiment. For vegan option, substitute whole milk and condensed milk with soy milk/almond milk and condensed vegan soy milk or sugar. Also substitute pie crust for one that is vegan.

Ingredients:
1 9-inch Tenderflake pie crust, baked according to manufacturer's instructions
400 mL whole milk (3.5% MF)
7g dried agar
125g condensed milk
1 tsp vanilla essence
500g wild blueberries (if using fresh berries, dry them on a paper towel to absorb all the moisture)
250mL 35% whipping cream, whipped

In a skillet, heat up milk and agar until bubbling, then reduce heat to let mixture simmer. Add in condensed milk and vanilla and stir until agar dissolves entirely. Remove from heat and let cool for about 5 mins.

Add blueberries and stir gently to combine. I actually used some frozen wild berries which held a lot more moisture so I first cooked it down into a jam, then added the agar, condensed milk and vanilla, and whole milk (which should be heated separately first, then incorporated slowly into the berry mix to prevent curdling).

Let cool for 5 more minutes and spoon onto pie crust. Let it set in the fridge for at least 1 hr then spoon whipped cream over and serve.

Enjoy!