| Hope Fawcett with her grape pie. (Photo: Enoch Wu/Sentinel-Tribune) |
RUDOLPH – Hope Hopkins-Fawcett has a great recipe for grape pie, but she’s only able to indulge her taste
for this special seasonal treat due to the kindness of family friends and a key relative.
"It was my grandma’s favorite pie, but my mom didn’t have the recipe, so we got it from the cousin
down the road," Fawcett said, referring to Christina Shinew. "When my mom and I have cooking
questions we always go to her."
That’s what they had to do for the grape pie, "since Grandma Eva Shinew is no longer here to
ask."
They knew Christina’s version of the recipe would be authentic since she learned to cook from their
grandmother, having the advantage of living just down the road.
Fawcett, by contrast, grew up in Bryan. Because her mother was born and raised in Wood County, Fawcett
spent her childhood making frequent visits here, often staying at her grandparents’ place for a week at
a time.
"I came over a lot when I was in junior high."
She appreciated her grandmother’s cooking style, describing it as "mostly good old-fashioned home
cooking."
Of course, to make the grape pie, more than a trusted family recipe is necessary. There’s also got to be
a guaranteed supply of concord grapes.
That’s where the family friends come into play.
"The pastor of the Bradner United Methodist Church, Jeff Ridenour, is a friend of ours from way
back.
"At the parsonage they had this grape arbor and didn’t know what to do with them."
The Ridenours knew Fawcett’s mom did a lot of canning, so five years ago they asked her how the grapes
could be used.
She responded, "Well, grape pie is good," and the rest is history.
Now, Fawcett’s family and the Ridenours get together and "have a ‘Grape Day’ every Labor Day
weekend, when we make grape jelly, grape jam, grape juice and the grape pie filling."
The grape juice, said Fawcett, goes back with Ridenour for use in the church’s communion services.
Fawcett’s mom is a traditional farm wife, who benefited from the knowledge of Fawcett’s paternal
great-grandmother, "who lived with us until I was in fourth grade, and she canned a lot. They did
everything – vegetables, fruits, even meat."
Even though grape pie was her grandmother’s favorite, Fawcett never had it growing up. "I would
guess mom never had access to the grapes," she gives as the likely reason.
But since they’ve instituted Grape Days, they’re all able to enjoy grape pie year around by freezing some
of the pie filling.
"We did three bushels this year. They have a very large, very well producing grape arbor" at
the parsonage.
What does grape pie taste like?
"It’s like eating grape jam in a pie," Fawcett said enthusiastically. "So, if you like
grape jam, you would like it.
"And it’s something different. I like things that are unique."
Since the families have been holding Grape Days, Fawcett, a special education teacher at Elmwood High
School, has taken grape pies "to school and church and all over."
Fawcett has been on the faculty at since 1998. "I teach math" to children in grades 9-12,
"but I also tutor in any subject they need help with."
She and her husband have one son, 7.
When Fawcett gets in the mood for a grape pie, she usually saves the project for the weekend.
"It’s not so much difficult, it’s time-consuming. Because you have to separate the skins from the
pulp. It’s not something you just throw together when the mood strikes, like pumpkin pie.
But "we make it all at one time and freeze the extra."
The recipe as listed makes two pies.
"Or, I’ve made little grape pie tarts in little muffin tins" as a fun alternative.
If you decide to make the tarts instead of the pie, keep in mind that the baking time is shorter.
"You bring the pie filling to a boil on the stove first, and then spoon it into the tart shell and
bake for 25 minutes."
Besides teaching, Fawcett is active in her church, Cedar Creek.
"My husband and I lead a Life group – a Bible study – and I fix dessert every Friday night for the
Life group. So they’ve been through the grape pie and lived to tell the tale," Fawcett teased.
Grape pie filling
8 c. concord grapes (washed and stemmed)
2 c. sugar
1/2 c. flour
2 tsp. lemon juice
1/4 tsp. salt
Pinch grapes to separate skins from pulp. Put the skins into a large dish and the pulp into a heavy pan.
Set skins aside. Place pan on stove over medium high heat and bring to a boil. Stir occasionally. Boil
until most grape seeds have separated from the pulp. Remove from stove and run through a food mill to
remove seeds and large pieces of pulp. Pour milled grapes into the dish of skins and add sugar, flour,
lemon juice, and salt. Stir well. Pour into 2 large unbaked pie shells. Dot with butter. Bake at 350*
for 50-60 minutes.
The filling may also be divided into two 3-cup portions and frozen for future use.
Grape tarts
Here is the recipe that I use for the grape tart shells. It’s from Pampered Chef. It only takes about a
cup of pie filling to make 2 dozen tarts.
Quick Cream Cheese Pastry
1/2 c. butter or margarine
1/2 c. cream cheese
1 c. all purpose flour
Put ingredients into a food processor and pulse until a soft dough forms. Form dough into ball, wrap in
plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.
Spray mini-muffin pan with cooking spray. Shape dough into 1 inch balls and place into mini-muffin pan.
Use tart press to form individual pastry shells. Fill with pie filling. Bake 25 minutes at 350*
