Saskatchewan and Alberta are celebrating their centennials this year. For a country or a province, 100 years is quite young and there are many opportunities for growth and development ahead.
For a person, however, 100 years of life is remarkable. My neighbour’s mother, Ivy, celebrated her 100th birthday in March with a party for family and friends. Her long life was recognized with the presentation of a provincial centennial medallion.
Ivy died in July. During her 100 years, she cared for many family members and saw many changes. One of her former neighbours, Bill Keith, said he will always remember going to help harvest at the Hunt farm and Ivy serving grape pie.
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Concord grapes are in season in the fall and so would be readily available at harvest time. For me, the usual use for grapes is to make jelly, not pie. But, why not pie? For me, the hassle of making a grape pie is the seeds. Apparently Ivy would squeeze pulp from the grapes, add a little water and boil the pulp until it was soft enough to strain out the seeds.
When the grapes came into the grocery store recently, I decided to make a grape pie in Ivy’s memory. Much to my surprise, the Concord looking deep purple grapes that I bought were seedless.
The grapes were called Coronation. This variety was developed under the plant breeding program directed by Lyall Denby in the 1970s. It was created at the Agriculture
Canada’s Pacific Agri-Food Research Centre in Summerland, B.C. The Coronation grape is a cross between native North American varieties Patricia and Himrod. It is a fairly
hardy variety, ripening in late August and available until mid-October.
They ripen earlier than other traditional varieties. It has a protective skin and distinctive musky taste, and is also virtually seedless.
In checking out the British Columbia Grape Growers website www.grapegrowers.bc.ca, I discovered that the Coronation is the most abundantly planted table grape variety in the Okanagan Valley and that they are sold only in Western Canada.
Sooke, Jade and Skookum are green seedless varieties developed in the same program as Coronation. They are available to retailers in limited quantities. These fresh grapes are best stored at 0-2 C for up to five weeks after harvest. The velvety blue coating you see on the Coronation is the bloom. It is the grape’s natural defence against disease.
Grapes have diverse uses. They can be eaten fresh, made into jams and jellies, added to many favourite recipes or frozen for year round enjoyment. Coronation and the green seedless varieties can replace strawberries, raspberries, saskatoons and blueberries in any recipe.
Preliminary medical research suggests there are many health benefits to eating grapes and drinking grape juice. Resveratrol, a natural product derived from grapes, is found to act as an antioxidant and is a potential cancer preventative agent. Flavonoids help to maintain proper clotting activity, protect the structure of blood vessels and help to eliminate cholesterol.
Ivy Hunt’s grape pie
11/2 cups Concord or 375 mL
seedless Coronation grapes
For grapes with seeds, squeeze pulp from washed grapes and place in small saucepan. Reserve skins. Add two tablespoons (30 mL) water to pulp and boil until soft. Strain out seeds.
For seedless grapes, wash and place in a saucepan, add two tablespoons (30 mL) of water and simmer for two to three minutes.
Beat one egg until light.
Add:
1 cup sugar 250 mL
11/2 tablespoons flour 22 mL
Add grape skins and pulp. Mix well, and pour into pastry lined pie plate. Dot with one tablespoon (15 mL) butter. Top with pastry crust. Bake at 400 F (200 C) for 10 minutes, then 350 F (180 C) for 20 minutes or until done.
When I made this pie I did not add the top crust. This is a custard type pie and was delicious without the extra pastry.
Here are more grape recipes from the B.C. Grape Growers website.
Okanagan grape muffins
21/2 cups all-purpose 625 mL
flour
1 cup sugar 250 mL
21/2 teaspoons baking 12 mL
powder
1/4 teaspoon salt 1 mL
1 cup buttermilk 250 mL
2 medium eggs, well beaten 1/2 cup butter, melted 125 mL
11/2 cups grapes 375 mL
Preheat oven to 400 F (200 C).
Line muffin tins with paper cups.
Combine flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Make a well in the centre. Add buttermilk, beaten egg and melted butter. Stir until ingredients are just combined. Lightly fold in grapes. Bake 25 minutes or until golden brown on top. Cool in pan.
Makes 12 muffins.
Crustless pizza presto
Try grapes on this speedy and unusual appetizer pizza. It’s a big hit with the kids.
2 cups grated cheddar, 500 mL
Swiss or Mozzarella
oregano, basil, thyme, garlic,
crushed red pepper
1 cup diced turkey or 250 mL
ham
11/2 cups halved 375 mL
Coronation grapes
In a 11 or 12 inch (23 or 30 cm) nonstick skillet, spread the grated cheese evenly over the bottom. Place skillet over medium heat.
As cheese melts, sprinkle on seasonings and arrange turkey and grapes evenly. Fry cheese until the edges are crisp and brown.
Remove from heat and carefully lift the cheese “pie” out of the skillet and transfer to a cutting board. With a chef’s knife or pizza cutter, cut into small wedges and serve immediately. Makes 16 wedges.
Grape salsa
2 cups grapes cut in 500 mL
half and seeds removed
1 tablespoon lemon 15 mL
juice
1 tablespoon rice 15 mL
vinegar
1 teaspoon olive oil 5 mL
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 jalapeno chili, chopped
and seeded
1/4 cup snipped cilantro 60 mL
or parsley
1/4 cup toasted slivered 60 mL
almonds
1 pinch of salt
1/8 teaspoon cayenne 0.5 mL
pepper
Mix all ingredients and let stand for one hour before serving. Serve with tortilla chips.
Cookbook draw
We are planning another cookbook draw for early December. What does your family serve at seasonal celebrations like Thanksgiving, Christmas, Hanukkah and New Years? To enter the draw and to share your traditions, send them by e-mail to team@producer.com or mail to TEAM Resources, c/o The Western Producer, P.O. Box 2500, Saskatoon, Sask. S7K 2C4. The deadline for entries is Dec. 6.
Betty Ann Deobald is a home economist from Rosetown, Sask., and one of four columnists comprising Team Resources. Send correspondence in care of this newspaper, Box 2500, Saskatoon, Sask., S7K 2C4 or contact them at team@producer.com.
