Concord Grape Pie Recipe
This Concord Grape Pie recipe is a vintage late-summer tradition in grape-growing regions. The juicy filling has a hint of vanilla and is thickened just enough to slice cleanly. Start to finish it’s about 2-3 hours, most of that hands-off. It works just as well with frozen grapes as fresh, so you can bake it in January if you stock your freezer in September.
Why you’ll love this vintage recipe
Concord Grapes have an intense flavor, amazing aroma and striking deep-purple color. There’s a reason that this is the grape used to make the quintessential grape jelly and grape juice. The flavor is so…..grapey.
When we get them in our farm share I’m happy to pop them in my mouth and eat them, skins, seeds and all. But even more fun is the chance to cook and bake with these amazing purple gems.
If you get a big batch of concords, this pie is what you’ll want to make. In the late summer I do see concord grapes in our local market. If you see them, buy a bunch and bake this pie.
Ingredients
- Pie Crust – for a 2 crust pie. Use your favorite recipe or, no judgement, store bought.
- Concord grapes – Concords are “slip skin” grapes. Meaning, if you squeeze the grape the pulp will slip right out of the skin. You can make this pie filling using either fresh or frozen concord grapes. See the freezing section below for more information.
- Cornstarch – There’s just enough starch in the filling to thicken the grape pulp without making a pasty filling. Pre-cooking the filling ensures the starch is activated.
- Granulated sugar – Concord grapes are quite sweet and the filling doesn’t need a lot of sugar. I found 1 1/4 cups exactly enough. You can adjust to your taste between 1 cup and 1 1/2 cups.
- Vanilla beans – Reinforce the aroma and flavor of the grapes. Vanilla bean adds a full and rounded vanilla flavor, but you can add a teaspoon of vanilla extract instead.
How to make Concord Grape Pie
Here’s what the recipe process looks like at each stage. Refer to the recipe card below for measurements and exact instructions.
- Slip the the grape pulp out of the skins and into a pan. Save the skins in a separate bowl.
- Puree the grape skins with water.
- Cook the grape pulp with a split vanilla bean until the flesh is very soft.
- Use either a fine strainer or a food mill to strain out the seeds.
- Return the pulp it to the pan.
- Add the skins and cornstarch to the pulp. Bring the mix to a full boil to activate the cornstarch and thicken the filling.
- Transfer the pie filling to a bowl and allow it to cool completely before pouring it into the pie shell.
Why Pre-Cook The Filling?
Cornstarch gelatinizes — thickens the liquid — between 144°–180°F when mixed with water alone. But sugar raises that activation temperature, which means the filling needs to reach a full boil to gel properly. We pre-cook the starch with the grapes to ensure the starch is fully activated. This is insurance against runny pie filling.
- Use a small cutter to create the grape cluster design. I find the back end of a piping tip the perfect size.
- Work on a flexible cutting board or parchment paper to easily transfer the crust to the pie.
- Place the top crust on the pie, crimp the edges, brush with egg white and sprinkle with sugar before baking.
- Bake until the crust is golden brown.
- The pie must cool for at least 2 hours before serving or the filling will be runny.
Recipe Tip
- The filling must be cooled before it’s poured into the unbaked pie shell. To quickly cool the filling you can spread it into a rimmed baking sheet and slide it in the freezer.
How to Work Ahead
- The dough can be made ahead and refrigerated for 2-3 days or frozen up to 3 months.
- The pie shell can be rolled several hours or a day before assembling the pie.
- The filling can be made up to a day ahead and held in the refrigerator.
Can You Freeze Concord Grapes?
Yes, wash and stem the grapes then place them in a single layer on a parchment lined sheet pan. Place the pan in the freezer until the grapes are frozen solid. Transfer the grapes to a freezer bag and freeze up to 6 months. To make this pie filling recipe, allow the grapes to thaw and continue with the recipe as written.
Two of the best uses for your frozen (or fresh) concord grapes is homemade Concord Grape Sorbet or Concord Grape Ice Cream.
The only thing better than a slice of this pie, is a slice of this pie with a big scoop of Vanilla Ice Cream or Buttermilk Ice Cream.
If you love this recipe as much as I do, I’d really appreciate a star rating and a quick comment. Ratings and comments help my recipes show in search results. Thanks!
Concord Grape Pie
Ingredients
- 1 recipe Perfect Pie Crust
- 2 ½ pounds Concord grapes (weight after stemming)
- 4 oz water (½ cup)
- 1 ½ oz cornstarch (¼ cup)
- 10 oz granulated sugar (1 ¼ cups)
- ½ vanilla bean (split)
- ¼ teaspoon table salt
Instructions
- Roll half the dough to line a 9" deep dish pie pan. Roll the other half of the dough to a 12" circle. Sprinkle a little flour over the circle and fold it in half. Sprinkle with flour again and fold in half again. Wrap the folded dough and set it into the lined pie pan. Refrigerate the pie dough while you make the concord grape filling. The dough can be rolled up to a day ahead.
- Separate the grape skins from the pulp, reserving both. In a food processor or blender, pulse the grape skins with 4 oz water until you have a chunky puree. Transfer the skins to a small bowl and stir in 1 ½ oz cornstarch. Set it aside while you prepare the pulp.
- In a large saucepan over medium heat cook the pulp with 10 oz granulated sugar, ½ vanilla bean and ¼ teaspoon table salt until soft, about 10-15 minutes, stirring frequently. Run the mixture through a food mill or strainer to remove the seeds, pressing on the solids to get as much pulp as possible through the strainer.
- Return the strained pulp to the saucepan. Scrape the the seeds from vanilla bean and add them to the pulp.
- Bring the mixture to a full boil. Stir in the grape skin/cornstarch and cook until it returns to a full boil and begins to thicken. Transfer the pie filling to a large bowl and cool completely before assembling the pie. Refrigerate the pie filling until ready to use, up to 1 day ahead of baking.
- Preheat the oven to 350 °F. Remove the pie plate from the refrigerator and remove the top crust from the pan. Pour the grape filling into the pie plate. Unfold the dough round for the top crust. Use a small round cutter to cut a holes in the middle of the crust in the shape of a cluster of grapes. Use the tip of a small knife to cut a "stem" at the top of the cluster.
- Brush the edges of the bottom crust with egg white. Lay the top crust over the filling with the cluster design centered on the pie. Pinch the two crusts together to seal. Trim the excess dough and crimp the edges for an attractive crust. Brush the top of the pie with egg white and sprinkle with granulated sugar.
- Bake until golden brown and the fruit in the middle of the pie is bubbling, about 55 minutes.
Would you like to save this recipe?
We’ll email this post to you, so you can come back to it later!
Equipment
As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs, I earn from qualifying purchases.
That is gorgeous and my grapes are ripe. I am torn between the jam and the pie. Sadly my kitchen is halfway through a reno so no cooking happening here. I would give your post 5 stars for inspiration, lol Will try soon and will rate then.
Do you grow your own Concord Grapes?