Grape Pie Filling

Grapes!  Concord grapes!  Delicious.

I was making some grape pie filling and had a half of a pint left.  I decided to put it in the fridge and knew I would figure out some way to use it.  If not by eating it with a spoon.

I had some leftover dough and decided to make a grape pizza. 

I also had some creme fraiche that I had just made.  Oh, was it a delicious combination! 

I used my regular pizza dough for this.  Recipe here.

I made creme fraiche by adding equal parts of heavy cream and buttermilk and letting it sit on the counter for 24 hours.

The grape pie filling is as follows:

Canned Grape Pie Filling
Original recipe found here at Foodie With Family.

Grape Pie Filling:

22 cups Concord grapes, washed
4 cups granulated sugar
1 teaspoon citric acid
1 cup ClearJel starch (or another brand of the same type of starch)

For the Grape Pie:
1 quart of grape pie filling
Pie pastry for a double crust
1 egg, beaten
raw sugar or granulated sugar for sprinkling over the crust, optional
2 tablespoon small tapioca

To Prepare and Can Grape Pie Filling:

Working over two pots, take a grape in each hand and gently squeeze it over the first pot. Deposit the grape skins in the second pot. Continue until you have separated all of the grape pulps from the grape skins.

Place the pot with the grape pulps over medium heat and bring to a boil, stirring frequently, allowing it to boil for 5 to 6 minutes. Put the hot pulp through a food mill or pour it through a colander, pressing to get as much pulp through as possible. Pour the hot, sieved pulp over the reserved grape skins.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the sugar and Dutch Gel or Clear Gel (and citric acid, if using.) Sprinkle over the grape pulp mixture and use a big whisk or sturdy spoon to mix in thoroughly. Put the pot over medium heat, and bring to a boil, stirring constantly, until thick. It should thicken quickly.  Bring to a boil.

Pour into jars.  Wipe rims clean.  Place lid on jar and screw the ring in place until fingertip-tight.  Place the jars in a canning pot, they should be completely covered with water, bring to a boil and process for 30 minutes.

When the 30 minutes are up, turn off the heat, remove the canner lid and let the jars rest for 5 minutes before carefully transferring to a cooling rack or a towel on the counter. Let cool overnight before removing rings, wiping clean and labeling. Store the jars in a cool, dark place for up to two years.

To Make the Grape Pie:

1. Preheat oven to 425°F. Roll out half of the pie pastry and lay it gently in the pie plate so that it covers the whole plate and drapes a little outside of the top, too.

2. Add tapioca granules to the jar of filling.  Pour the jar of grape pie filling into the crust and spread it with a spatula. Roll out the second crust to just slightly larger than the circumference of the top of the pie plate. Lay it on top of the pie filling and gather the excess pastry, folding it under to form a neat edge.Make vent holes.

3. Brush the pastry with the beaten egg and then sprinkle generously with the sugar.

4. Bake for 15 minutes, then lower the temperature to 350°F and continue baking for another 30-40 minutes, or until the crust is deep brown and the filling is bubbly.

5. Transfer the pie plate to a cooling rack and let cool completely.  It will set up nicely when it is cool.