THE ORIGINAL ‘RECEIPT’

CURRANT AND RASPBERRY

For a tart, line the dish, put sugar and fruit, lay bars across and bake.

~The Experienced American Housekeeper, or Domestic Cookery: Formed on Principles of Economy for the Use of Private Families. New York: Johnstone & Van Norden, 1823.

Currant and Raspberry.

24.  For a tart, line the dish, put sugar and fruit, lay bars across and bake.

~The Canadian Housewife’s Manual of Cookery. Hamilton, ON: Willian Gillespy, “Spectator” Office, 1861.

Same vague recipe…. different years (1823 and 1861)…. different locations. Interesting stuff!

THE UPDATED RECIPE

• 3 c. fresh raspberries
• 2 c. fresh red currants
• ¾ c. granulated sugar
• 2 Tb. cornstarch
• pastry, sufficient for a 9-inch diameter pie with under-crust and lattice top (I used Rich Short Crust pastry).

Preheat oven to 450F.

Prepare sufficient pastry for a 9-inch diameter pie, with under-crust and lattice top.

Line a 9-inch pie plate with pastry.

Clean and wash the raspberries and red currants;  drain them well, to remove any excess moisture.

Mix together the sugar and cornstarch, until they are completely blended.

Alternate layers of fruit with a sprinkling of the sugar and cornstarch mixture in the pastry shell, until the crust is full, mounding the fruit slightly in the centre of the pie.

Place a lattice crust with ribbons of pastry over the top of the pie, and crimp the edges of the pastry , to seal it.  

Place the pie in a preheated oven, and bake at 450F for about 8 to 10 minutes, or until the crust begins to very lightly brown.

Reduce the temperature to 350F and continue to bake for about 45 minutes longer, until the pastry is golden brown, and the fruit appears baked and juicy.

Yield:  6 to 8 servings.

Red Currant and Raspberry Tart may be served either warm or cold.  This is one of those truly wonderful tastes of summer!

A note from Patricia: My “trail buddy” Heather knew I had been hunting for fresh red currants for this recipe and she found some at a market out in the country, and very kindly dropped them off for me. They’re sour little suckers, but I knew that in a pie format they would be delicious, and when mixed in with raspberries it would be an excellent combo. I used the ‘Rich Short Crust‘ pastry and used 1:1 gluten free baking flour with good success. This was my first attempt at a lattice top (yikes!), and to cover up my sloppiness at the edges, I cut out some circles of pastry with a piping tip to create a nicer border, and then cut out some leaves to cover up another sloppy bit. Not my best work, but I’m a newbie with pie-making. 🙂 As for the taste? Absolutely wonderful – sweet, tart, berry-licious. Especially with a dollop of fresh whipped cream. Ahhhhh summer!

Cut out narrow stripes of paste with your jagging-iron, and lay them across the tops of your pies.

~Leslie, Eliza. Miss Leslie’s Complete Cookery. Directions for Cookery, in its Various Branches (59th Edition). Philadelphia: Henry Carey Baird, 1861.

My greatest difficulty has been to know how to decorate the edges.  Sometimes I use a fork, and sometimes I scallop them with a spoon, but the impress of the latter looks too much like a thumb mark.

~Ferguson, Emily. Janey Canuck In The West. London, New York, Toronto and Melbourne: Cassell and Company, Limited, 1910.

Looking for other pie recipes? Try any of these…. you won’t be sorry!

Canada Farmer’s Lemon Pie

Whortleberry Pie

Sponge Cake Lemon Pie

Raspberries in Ambush

Sliced Apple Pie

Grandmother’s Pumpkin Pie

Backwoods Pie