There are some fruits which, while lovely cooked, are probably at their best fresh: nectarines and peaches, raspberries, mango. But blackberries, as delightful as they are eaten fresh from the bush mid-forage, come alive when cooked. As you heat blackberries, and they break down and give up their juices, begin to smell like violets and wine. They become more complex, perfumed; their sweet-sour flavour is softened into something more elegant, even more irresistible than when fresh.
Normally in a pie, those beautiful juices are a cause for concern. They’re a one-way ticket to a soggy bottom, something we try to avoid with careful blind-baking, or pre-cooking, or layering the base with something like ground almonds to soak up any liquid. Competitors on Bake Off gaze into ovens fearing soggy bottoms, and muttering incantations against such a dismal fate. I have spent more time than I can count making enriched, delicate pastries, carefully lining tins, chilling and trimming edges, worrying about cracks or weaknesses, spills and leaks.
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