Joanie’s Italian Plum Pie
The whole pie!
This story actually begins with grapes. Joanie was a colleague of mine at a previous school, and in fact her daughter, Gina, was a colleague of mine at another school before that. Such things happen around here, where you know often know a person from various different parts of your life.
(Side story – I once was at a birthday party when my kids were young, and there was another parent there who looked quite familiar, but I just couldn’t figure it out. So I asked him how I knew him, and he replied, “You’re Box 362. I work at the post office.”)
Although Joanie and I hardly ever see each other anymore, especially now due to the pandemic, she follows my blog faithfully. Several days ago, she emailed me with a request. A friend had Concord grapes, she told me, and she remembered a delicious Concord grape pie she had several times, a specialty of the Finger Lakes region of New York State. If she got the grapes to me, she wondered, could she pay me to make her that pie?
After all four of us tasted it; Joanie tells me they finished it the same day!
Joanie went on to explain that she used to cook a lot, but her eyesight has been diminishing and she really cannot cook anymore, but would really love to taste that pie again. I told her I could give it a try. But then it turned out there weren’t enough grapes.
Joanie went on to wax nostalgic about another pie with Italian plums that her mother’s friend used to make. When I saw them at Guido’s yesterday, I decided to make her a pie. I had never made or even tasted a plum pie before, but researched a bunch of recipes and, of course, followed none of them exactly.
Hank and I brought the pie over to Joanie this morning, and had a lovely socially-distant visit with her and her husband, Gino, on their back porch. We all tasted the pie together and enjoyed Aperol spritzes – even though it was still mid-morning! The pie was delicious, although it was a bit tart. I’m sure it depends on the plums, and one batch could be sweeter than another, but I will probably increase the sugar to 1¼ cups (total of both sugars) next time. There will definitely be a next time, and to me, this will always be Joanie’s Italian Plum Pie, because she inspired me to make it!
Joanie’s Italian Plum Pie
Aperol spritz made it feel like a brunch!
1 recipe for a two-crust pie (I use this recipe from my friend Alana Chernila), or store-bought refrigerated pie crusts
2 pounds Italian plums
½ cup brown sugar
½-¾ cup white sugar
3 Tablespoons instant tapioca
¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
¼ teaspoon fiori di Sicilia (available from King Arthur here), or use an additional ¼ teaspoon vanilla
Pinch of salt
1 Tablespoon of butter, cold, cut into small pieces
1 egg, beaten with 1 Tablespoon water to make an egg wash for the crust
Make the pie crust according to the recipe given, or your favorite recipe. Allow to chill in the refrigerator for at least an hour.
Preheat the oven to 425°.
Pit the plums and cut into wedges. (No need to peel them!) Sometimes a bit of the pit may stick to the flesh of the plums and if so, trim away the tough sections.
In a large bowl, combine the plum wedges with both sugars, tapioca, both extracts, and salt. Gently toss to mix and let sit.
Place a pie plate on a foil-lined half sheet pan. This will catch any drips when the pie bakes.
Roll out the bottom crust, or unroll if using refrigerated store-bought crust, and line a pie plate with the dough. Allow the excess to hang over the edges. Roll out the top crust.
Fill the bottom crust with the plum mixture. Press down gently to make everything fit nicely in the pie crust. Dot the plums with the butter pieces.
Cover the pie with the top crust. Trim as necessary and seal the edges as desired. Brush with the egg wash and cut several slits for venting.
Bake for 55 minutes. Allow to cool fully before serving.