Apple & Grape Tart, for a Beautiful Holiday Pie Table
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Autumn is here and we are enjoying what everyone loves about this time of year, the crispy air and the beautiful leaves. It’s time to bake a pie, and in this recipe, I’ve reinvented the mother of all pies, apple pie, and add black seedless grapes to the mix, and bake it in a tart pan. This is similar to the apple pie baked in a cast iron pan that I did a few years ago.
If you love how an apple pie baking in the oven smells, you will love this pie, because the grapes give it that extra sweet yet tart aroma that is unlike any other fruit.
Apple pie is such a favorite around here that we can hardly wait for September to bring apple season on. I used Mutsu apples for this tart.
Mutsu apples, also known as crispin, are a mixed breed, of the Indo apple and the Golden Delicious, making them a perfect baking apple. They are sweet, tart and remain firm in baking. This is the apple you can use for a deep dish pie, hand pie, or tart.
I found the most amazing organic black seedless grapes at my local grocery store. They stayed fairly firm. This tart screams Autumn, as the grapes add a layer of complexity, in texture, flavor and aroma as the grapes remain juicy and maintain their grape (almost wine) flavor.
Apple Grape Tart is a New Tradition
This apple and grape tart will show up again at the Thanksgiving table and will probably become a new tradition. It’s a surprise and it’s stunning .
You can make this as a deep dish pie, a regular size pie or make it as a tart. Whichever way you choose, be sure to have the grapes peaking through the pie. In one version, I cut the grapes in half lengthwise, but I preferred when I left them whole. Either way works.
This was the tart version, using fall leaves as the topping. This needs to be on the Thanksgiving dessert table.
This is the deep dish version which had a full pound of grapes in it. It disappeared quickly. Those grapes almost look like cherries and had a very strong cherry flavor, but were still juicy like grapes are. This might be my new favorite pie!
You may also like this festive Christmas Apple Pie
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Apple & Grape Tart
Ingredients
- Prepare Pie Crust see notes
- 1 pound seedless grapes darkest you can find
- 8 cups apples peeled, sliced 1/2 inch (gala or crispin, see note)
- juice of one lemon
- 1 tablespoons sugar
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons instant tapioca
- pie crust see below
- leaf pie cutter or any decorative cutter you think would be fun
- 1 regular pie pan
- milk and a pastry brush milk helps the top crust turn golden
- raw sugar for dusting
Instructions
- Peel, core and slice apples. If apples are especially tart, slice medium thin.
- Mix with lemon juice, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, tapioca.
- Set apples aside. Slice grapes in half, lengthwise.
- Roll slightly more than half dough out and place in pie pan or tart pan. This recipe is enough for an average sized pie. If making in tart pan, you may have apples and dough left over, perfect for making a few small hand pies.
- Fork the dough all over bottom.
- Fill pie with apples and and add grapes on top, randomly.
- Roll remaining dough, use cookie cut out for topping, making sure that you can see grapes through the openings.
- Brush cream or milk over the top dough and sprinkle with raw sugar.
- Bake at 400 degrees for 50 minutes. Check at 30 minutes. You may need to cover loosely with foil if the top is browning too quickly.
- Remove from tart pan when completely cool.
Notes
3/4 teaspoon salt
12 tablespoons cold unsalted butter
4 tablespoons iced cold water
1 teaspoon sugar (optional) Mix salt, sugar and flour together. Freeze.
Cut cold butter into small pieces. Freeze for 15 minutes minutes.
If using food processor, put flour mixture in bowl and freeze blade.
Remove from freezer and place small pieces of butter evenly over flour and mix for 10 seconds at a time, stopping as soon as flour and butter combine to small pea size granules. Stream in cold water two tablespoons and then one tablespoon at a time, no more than 4. If using kitchen aid type mixer, use paddle attachment on low setting for one minute max.
Mix on low, just until incorporated. You want a shaggy dough that is not too wet, looks more dry than wet. Pour into a large plastic bag, or cover with plastic wrap at least one hour.
I rest my dough overnight, but this is not a must.
Take dough out 30 minutes before rolling to soften.
Roll out dough, evenly, not too thick, less than 1/4” thick and in all directions to make a circle. Do not stretch dough, because it will shrink back. Patch any cracks or holes. Use fork to make indentations. Note: When choosing apples for pie, you want crisp, sweet apples that will not bake down leaving you with a flat pie. You can add in a few golden delicious for sweetness. I prefer to bake with mutsu, crispin, or gala. You have to taste the tartness of apple and add sugar in accordingly. I don't like a very sweet pie, so this recipe makes a more tart tasting pie.
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If you love this recipe, please give it five stars. It means a lot. xoxo
Angela this is very, very pretty. Love the grapes and apples together. And the top crust….oooh la la.
Thanks Teresa.It’s great for this beautiful time of year.
Perfect timing! I’m going back to Kentucky this weekend for an annual apple festival. Lots of great recipes to try out on here 🙂
Phillip,
That sounds like such a wonderful time. I’ve never been to an apple festival, but would love it.
Wow that’s beautiful food. But indo? Really? Where’d you learn so much about apples? I need to study up. GREG
Lovely tart. Lovely photos. Lovely post. Just bright beautiful and fun to look at.
What a gorgeous job you did on the crust! And the ingredients are perfect for the holidays.. and year round! 🙂
I don’t have to love apples to know that this is a visually stunning tart!! Love the fall leaves on top.
Beautiful pie! I like the combination of apples and grapes in one pie. Nice flavors and really nice photos.
Those cut out leaves make this a real showstopper, beautiful!
I just love the way this pie looks. The scattered leaves are a beautiful idea for fall. I’ve never done a grape/apple pie… I think it’s a great idea… they two compliment one another so well. Another great dish for the challenge.
This looks gorgeous! Love the twist on the traditional apple pie with the grapes + in the tart form. Delicious!
Yours is the prettiest entry in the round-up Angela. Love those leaves! Hello Autumn!
LL
Beautiful Angela.. but I never see anything less than from you.
I love the topping 🙂 gorgeous!
Neat idea, I never tried adding grapes to a pie like that. And love how you did the topping crust. I would love a slice.
That looks stunning Angela! Love the idea of grapes in a tart, you don’t often see them in one but they would be lovely, And the layer leaf pastry on top is gorgeous! 😀
I’ve never tried grapes in a dessert before but I keep meaning too .. Love the idea of combining apples and grapes .. Your tart looks gorgeous!
A terrific looking tart – I like the addition of grapes!
Gorgeous Angela! There seems to be a thing at the moment with grapes in pies… I aw one the other day on masterchef and soo wanted to make it and now you are tempting me again!
This is absolutely gorgeous, Angela. I LOVE that you paired grapes with apple…I’ve been eating (concord) grapes like crazy for the past couple weeks and this will give me something else to do with them, lol! I especially love that leaf-topped tart. You are right, it needs to be on the Thanksgiving table! 🙂
I love this. The Falling leaves are gorgeous.
Beautiful job on the tart which I prefer over a pie or deep-dish – it just the right amount of dough and filling in each bite. It is perfect for a Thanksgiving table.
A gorgeous tart! I really love that combination and the pretty lid…
Cheers,
Rosa
It does look juicy. I like the addition of the grapes and the color it gives to the pie. The last picture is so tempting….