This grape juice pie is a unique vintage dessert made with Concord grape juice, butter and sugar for a silky smooth filling. It’s an easy pie recipe with a sweet-tart flavor that tastes like a classic concord grape dessert.
What is Grape Juice Pie?
This purple pie goes by several different names. Some you might see it masquerading as are frozen grape pie, concord pie or concord grape pie or jelly pie.
It is a no-bake pie, but does require some skill in making the filling by thickening the juice and then tempering with an egg. Plan for a minimum of 4 hours in the fridge to chill before serving. Without chill time, the filling will just plop out of the pie crust.
It tastes like amplified grape jelly, but with a buttery pastry crust and jammy filling, all slathered with fluffy whipped cream. It’s a light dessert, but packed with tongue tingling flavors.
Why You’ll Love This Concord Grape Juice Pie
There’s so much to love about this juicy pie, but here are just a few of my favorites.
- Simple to make but bold flavor – This grape juice pie is a simple dessert that delivers bold grape flavor with minimal ingredients.
- No peeling or slicing fruit – Unlike traditional fruit pies that require peeling and slicing fruit, this recipe uses grape juice to create a smooth filling that comes together quickly.
- Perfect flavor and texture – The result of the smooth filling is a sweet, slightly tart pie with a creamy texture that pairs perfectly with whipped cream.
Recipe Essentials
This sweet grape juice pie only requires a handful of ingredients. A full list of ingredients with measurements for this recipe is available in the printable recipe card below.
- Concord grape juice – I personally like the flavor of Welch’s grape juice. Avoid using a diet variety for the best flavor.
- Refrigerated pie crust
- Sugar
- Cornstarch
- Egg
- Unsalted butter
- Lemon juice
- Coarse kosher salt
- Whipped cream
How to Make this Grape Pie Recipe (Step-by-Step)
This pie comes together so quickly, you’ll want to make it over and over again.
- Prepare oven and crust. Preheat oven and roll out the refrigerated pie crust into a 9-inch deep dish pie plate. Prick generously with a fork. Bake until lightly browned. Remove to a wire rack to cool.
- Combine sugar, cornstarch and juice. In a medium saucepan, whisk together the sugar and cornstarch. Turn on heat to medium and whisk in the grape juice. Bring to a low simmer for a minute. Mixture will thicken to the point that it gives resistance when whisked. Remove from the heat.
- Temper eggs with hot juice mixture. Whisk the egg in a small bowl. Ladle in a few tablespoons of the hot grape juice mixture while whisking. Whisk well and then add the egg mixture back into the grape juice mixture, whisking well. .
- Add the butter, lemon juice and salt, whisking until the butter melts and mixture it smooth and glossy. Mixture will be thick enough that you can draw a line down the center of the pan and it holds
- Add filling to crust. Transfer the filling to the baked pie crust. Allow to cool at room temperature for 1 hour, then cover and place in the refrigerate for a minimum of 3 hours or until fully chilled.
- Top with whipped cream. Spread the whipped cream over the grape juice filling and serve.
Tips for Perfect Grape Juice Pie
While this pie is quite simple to make, I’ve got a few tips to ensure it comes out perfectly.
- Use 100% concord grape juice – The bold flavor of Concord grapes is what makes this pie special.
- Cool filling until thick – The mixture should coat the whisk and hold a line when dragged across the pan.
- Chill the pie fully – Allow the pie to chill for several hours so the filling sets properly before slicing.
Common Questions About Grape Juice Pie
The grape pie filling tastes a lot like the juice itself but with an elevated version of jammy flavor. The sweet whipped cream on top mingles well with the jammy filling and the flaky, buttery crust.
Concord grapes, native to North America, are larger and have larger seeds than any European grape variety. Concord grape skins (which are slip skins) are also much thicker.
In the 1960s in Naples, restaurateur Al Hodges collaborated with Irene Bouchard to create the pie which he then sold at his restaurant and she sold out of her home.
More Homemade Pies
There’s nothing quite like a homemade pie, especially if you make your own crust. Here are some of my favorites.
Grape Juice Pie Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 refrigerated pie crust
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/4 cup cornstarch
- 1 1/3 cups Concord grape juice (not diet)
- 1 egg
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter , cut into smaller pieces
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1/2 teaspoon coarse kosher salt
- 1 cup whipped cream
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 450°F.
- Roll out the refrigerated pie crust into a 9-inch deep dish pie plate. Prick generously with a fork. Bake for 8-10 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove to a wire rack to cool (and turn off the oven). (These are general instructions for a refrigerated pie crust, read the instructions on yours to be certain!)
- In a medium saucepan, whisk together the sugar and cornstarch. Turn on heat to medium and whisk in the grape juice. Bring to a low simmer for 1 minute. Mixture will thicken to the point that it gives resistance when whisked. Remove from the heat.
- Whisk the egg in a small bowl. Ladle in 2-3 tablespoons of the hot grape juice mixture while whisking. Whisk well and then add the egg mixture back into the grape juice mixture, whisking well. .
- Add the butter, lemon juice and salt, whisking until the butter melts and mixture it smooth and glossy. Mixture will be thick enough that you can draw a line down the center of the pan and it holds
- Transfer the filling to the baked pie crust. Allow to cool at room temperature for 1 hour, then cover and place in the refrigerate for a minimum of 3 hours or until fully chilled.
- Spread the whipped cream over the grape juice filling and serve.
- If you tried this recipe, come back and let us know how it was in the comments or star ratings.
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Made the other night for game night. Well recieved by most – a few too skeptical to try. I’d say it’s good and delightfully different. It’s lite. I’d make again.
I’d read the comments ahead of making the pie and was prepared for a long congealing session, but mine came together pretty quickly as I would have expected based on similar recipes I’ve made (err, or maybe that is just my thoughts from making my Gram’s gravy that uses corn starch – gotta stand there there with it). This didn’t happen in a minute as the recipe states, but definately in under 5. The juice flavor came through (used Knudsen’s Concord Grape Juice), but I wish it had been a bit stronger and the color more vibrant.
Been trying to find a pie filling recipe to use just juice not the fruit as i made cherry pit juice from a all the discards and pits from the fresh cherries i prepped, bagged, and froze this fall. Well was only expecting a small amount but ended up with a 64 oz bottle of concentrated juice/simple syrup. Gonna try this recipe.
I wonder how this would taste if you layered it over a peanut butter pie filling….
Probably pretty amazing!