Concord Grape Pie
from Betty Crocker Cookbook, 1950 edition

You know that you 've eaten a grape when you 've had a Concord grape. That robust flavor makes this wonderful and unusual pie a taste treat. It is prepared as part of the harvest time traditions in Western New York, including the Finger Lakes region, Pennsylvania and other areas of the United States where the grape is grown. The Concord grape was developed in 1849 by Ephraim Wales Bull in Concord, Massachusetts.

Vineyards in the Northeast that grow the grape includes Westfield, New York, "Concord grape juice capital of the world" on the southern Lake Erie shore, and Naples, New York, host of the Naples Grape Festival where Grape pie is a specialty. Naples is located at the southern end of Canandaigua Lake, the westernmost of the Finger Lakes. The traditional recipe using Concord grapes, is said to taste like wine due to the inclusion of tannins. Grape pie is part of the traditional cuisine of German immigrants to the region.

Brian and I made this and it tastes just like Concord grapes. The filling is a bit tart from the skins used in it, but you can taste the sugar. I don't think I would want more sugar. The filling was somewhat runny and could use a bit of tapioca added.

5 1/3 cups Concord grapes
1 1/3 cups sugar
4 tbsp. flour
1 1/3 tsp. lemon juice
dash of salt
1 1/3 tbsp. butter
Pastry for 9" 2-crust pie

Remove the skins from the grapes and set aside. Put the pulp into a saucepan without water and bring to a rolling boil. This will help release the juice and break down some of the fruit. While hot, rub through a strainer to remove the seeds. Mix the strained pulp with the skins.

Mix the sugar and the flour and mix lightly through the grapes. Sprinkle with the lemon juice and salt. Pour the grapes in a pastry-lined pie pan and dot with the butter.

Cover with top crust and cut slits in the top to allow steam to escape during baking. Bake at 425° F. for 35 - 45 minutes until the top is nicely browned and the juice begins to bubble through the slits in the crust.

Serve cool or slightly warm, not hot.