Grape pies are popular in our area, the Finger Lakes region of New York state, during the late summer and early fall. They are sold at farm stands and in local bakeries. We found ours at Indian Pines Farm Market in Penn Yan.
They are made with Concord grapes, the kind of grape that is used in grape jelly and grape juice here in the U.S.
We chose one with a crumb crust, but you can also get them with a traditional double pie crust.
Yes, it tastes a little like grape jelly but it is also tart like cranberries. And this particular pie has a good ratio of filling to crust so it isn't overly sweet and cloying as some grape pies can be.
This is a Jeni's Pie from nearby Naples and she says she uses pastry flour, soybean oil, butter, sugar, Concord grapes, and flour.
I asked the woman running the farm stand if she had made a grape pie and she said only one and that was enough!
And that she said to her husband, "I hope you are enjoying that grape pie, because it is the only one that I am ever going to make." I asked her why and she said that it was too much work. You have to separate the skins, boil down the grapes, remove all the seeds, etc, etc, etc.
But in case you do decide to try making a grape pie, the recipe from the late Irene Bouchard, who died in 2015 at age 98, known as the Grape Pie Queen of Naples is featured here on Saveur's website.
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