For some reason, I always think of Raisin Pie as a late autumn or winter time pie. I suppose, perhaps, it might have something to do with spring, summer, and fall being the time when we think of fruit pies like rhubarb, strawberry, peach, and apple, for example, when such fruits are in season. In winter, those fruits are likely to be imported and more expensive so one tends to look for other types of fillings for pies.
Raisin Pie is a true classic old-fashioned pie and it does not require a lot of ingredients and certainly none that would typically be classified as hard to come by. Basically, it’s sultana raisins, sugar, thickener, some spices, citrus juice, and grated citrus zest. With only typical pantry items required, Raisin Pie can usually be made without a special trip to the supermarket.
For this recipe, the raisins need to be cooked to rehydrate and plump them. I cook the raisin filling in black tea. Any kind of black tea can be used – Earl or Lady Grey, Orange Pekoe, or English Breakfast, for example. I typically use either Earl Grey or Lady Grey tea because of their citrus notes which I find complement the citrus juice and zest called for in the recipe.
Cooking the raisin filling in steeped tea, instead of just water, infuses or injects some additional flavor into the filling. While water can be used, using the tea will infuse subtle aromatics and provide depth of flavor and intrigue without leaving a distinctive tea taste in the filling. Infusing or cooking ingredients with steeped tea is not a new concept or uncommon. The tea will simply and subtly add to a rich flavor profile in the filling.
Either lemon or orange juice and the coordinating zest can be used in this recipe. Either works well in the pie. The addition of citrus juice and zest balances the natural sweetness of the raisins.
It’s important that the raisin filling be cooled to room temperature then chilled completely before placing it in the pastry. Warm filling will break down or soften the hard fat in the pastry which can contribute to soggy pastry.
This rich pie filling is sufficient for a standard 9” double-crusted pie. For my pastry recipe and method for making tender, flaky pastry, click here.
Serve Raisin Pie plain or dress it up with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
Raisin Pie
Ingredients:
Pastry for 9” double-crusted pie
10 oz sultana raisins (apx. 2 cups)
2 cups steeped black tea*, cooled
1/3 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
¼ cup granulated sugar
2 tbsp cornstarch
½ tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp cloves
1/8 tsp salt
3 tbsp orange or lemon juice, room temperature
1 tbsp butter, room temperature
½ tbsp finely grated orange or lemon zest
¾ tsp pure vanilla extract
Method:
In saucepan set over medium-high heat, bring raisins and black tea to a boil. Cover, reduce heat to simmer, and cook raisins for approximately 5 minutes. Stir occasionally.
In small bowl, combine the sugars, cornstarch, cinnamon, cloves, and salt. Whisk orange or lemon juice into the sugar mixture. Add 2-3 tablespoons of the hot raisin liquid into the sugar mixture to temper it. Pour the sugar mixture into the raisin mixture. Increase heat to medium and stir mixture constantly to prevent scorching. Cook until mixture returns to the boil and thickens, and mixture coats the back of a spoon, generally about 2-3 minutes. (Raisin filling will thicken more as it cools.)
Remove mixture from heat and stir in butter, grated orange or lemon zest, and vanilla.
Let mixture cool to room temperature, stirring occasionally, about 1 – 1½ hours. Transfer mixture to refrigerator to chill completely, at least 1 hour.
Prepare pastry for double-crusted pie according to recipe directions. Divide the dough into two parts with one part (for the bottom crust) slightly larger than the other (for the top crust). Form dough into disk shapes, approximately ¾” – 1” thick. Wrap disks in plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator for about 15-20 minutes to chill.
Lightly spray 9” pie plate with non-stick cooking oil.
Remove the larger pastry disk from the refrigerator and place on a lightly floured work surface. Roll pastry to desired thickness, generally between 1/16” and 1/8” thick. Roll the dough from the center outward and rotate the dough in quarter turns each time the dough is rolled, sprinkling the work surface with additional flour as necessary to slide the pastry in quarter turns. Gently wrap or drape the pastry around the rolling pin and carefully transfer it to prepared pie plate. Unroll the pastry onto the plate, fitting it snugly into the pie plate and ensuring there are no air bubbles under the dough. Cut off excess dough so pastry is flush with the pie plate edge. Place pie shell in refrigerator for 15-20 minutes to chill.
Remove second disk of pastry from refrigerator. Prepare pastry for the top crust in the same manner as for the bottom crust, ensuring it is a large enough circle to cover the top of the pie. The excess pastry cut from the edge of the bottom crust may be combined with the second pastry disk if more dough is needed. If this is necessary, refrigerate dough for approximately 15 minutes after combining the pastries and before rolling out the dough for the top crust.
Remove pie shell from the refrigerator and transfer the chilled raisin pie filling to the prepared cold pie shell. Brush edges of bottom crust pastry along pie plate edge with a bit of water to moisten. Transfer top crust pastry to the top of pie filling. Trim excess pastry from the pie plate edge. Press the edge of the pastry all around the pie plate rim with tines of fork to adhere top crust to bottom crust. Cut slits in top of pie pastry to allow steam to escape as pie bakes. For additional venting, prick the pie in several places with tines of a fork.
Place pie in refrigerator for 30 minutes to chill pastry to reduce shrinkage while it bakes.
While pie is chilling, position oven rack near the bottom shelf of the oven. Preheat oven to 425°F.
If desired, add an egg-milk wash to the pastry top by whisking 1 tsp egg yolk (saved from the pastry recipe) with 1-2 tsp milk in a small prep bowl. With a pastry brush, lightly brush the pie top with the egg-milk mixture. Sprinkle with granulated sugar, if desired.
Place pie on tinfoil-lined baking sheet, transfer pie to the oven, and bake for 15 minutes at 425°F then reduce temperature to 375°F and bake for approximately 25-30 minutes, or until crust is golden tanned. If the pie edges start to brown too quickly, pie shields can be positioned over the edges of the pie. However, the same function can be accomplished by taking narrow strips of tin foil, molding them into semi-circle shapes, and carefully placing them over the edges of the pie. If the entire pie browns too quickly before it is baked, loosely tent pie with tin foil.
Remove pie from oven and transfer to cooling rack to cool completely for several hours before cutting and serving. Serve pie plain or, if desired, with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
Yield: 1 – 9” double-crusted pie
*Note: 2 cups of water may be used in lieu of the 2 cups of black tea to cook the raisin filling
Want to make this Raisin Pie gluten free? Use my gluten-free pastry recipe available here.
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Raisin Pie
This Raisin Pie is a double-crusted pie made with a raisin filling that is cooked in black tea and seasoned with citrus flavor and light spices.
Ingredients
- Pastry for 9” double-crusted pie (see Notes below for link to pastry recipe)
- 10 oz sultana raisins (apx. 2 cups)
- 2 cups steeped black tea*, cooled
- 1/3 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 2 tbsp cornstarch
- ½ tsp cinnamon
- 1/8 tsp cloves
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 3 tbsp orange or lemon juice, room temperature
- 1 tbsp butter, room temperature
- ½ tbsp finely grated orange or lemon zest
- ¾ tsp pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- In saucepan set over medium-high heat, bring raisins and black tea to a boil. Cover, reduce heat to simmer, and cook raisins for approximately 5 minutes. Stir occasionally.
- In small bowl, combine the sugars, cornstarch, cinnamon, cloves, and salt. Whisk orange or lemon juice into the sugar mixture. Add 2-3 tablespoons of the hot raisin liquid into the sugar mixture to temper it. Pour the sugar mixture into the raisin mixture. Increase heat to medium and stir mixture constantly to prevent scorching. Cook until mixture returns to the boil and thickens, and mixture coats the back of a spoon, generally about 2-3 minutes. (Raisin filling will thicken more as it cools.)
- Remove mixture from heat and stir in butter, grated orange or lemon zest, and vanilla.
- Let mixture cool to room temperature, stirring occasionally, about 1 – 1½ hours. Transfer mixture to refrigerator to chill completely, at least 1 hour.
- Prepare pastry for double-crusted pie according to recipe directions. Divide the dough into two parts with one part (for the bottom crust) slightly larger than the other (for the top crust). Form dough into disk shapes, approximately ¾” - 1” thick. Wrap disks in plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator for about 15-20 minutes to chill.
- Lightly spray 9” pie plate with non-stick cooking oil.
- Remove the larger pastry disk from the refrigerator and place on a lightly floured work surface. Roll pastry to desired thickness, generally between 1/16” and 1/8” thick. Roll the dough from the center outward and rotate the dough in quarter turns each time the dough is rolled, sprinkling the work surface with additional flour as necessary to slide the pastry in quarter turns. Gently wrap or drape the pastry around the rolling pin and carefully transfer it to prepared pie plate. Unroll the pastry onto the plate, fitting it snugly into the pie plate and ensuring there are no air bubbles under the dough. Cut off excess dough so pastry is flush with the pie plate edge. Place pie shell in refrigerator for 15-20 minutes to chill.
- Remove second disk of pastry from refrigerator. Prepare pastry for the top crust in the same manner as for the bottom crust, ensuring it is a large enough circle to cover the top of the pie. The excess pastry cut from the edge of the bottom crust may be combined with the second pastry disk if more dough is needed. If this is necessary, refrigerate dough for approximately 15 minutes after combining the pastries and before rolling out the dough for the top crust.
- Remove pie shell from the refrigerator and transfer the chilled raisin pie filling to the prepared cold pie shell. Brush edges of bottom crust pastry along pie plate edge with a bit of water to moisten. Transfer top crust pastry to the top of pie filling. Trim excess pastry from the pie plate edge. Press the edge of the pastry all around the pie plate rim with tines of fork to adhere top crust to bottom crust. Cut slits in top of pie pastry to allow steam to escape as pie bakes. For additional venting, prick the pie in several places with tines of a fork.
- Place pie in refrigerator for 30 minutes to chill pastry to reduce shrinkage while it bakes.
- While pie is chilling, position oven rack near the bottom shelf of the oven. Preheat oven to 425°F.
- If desired, add an egg-milk wash to the pastry top by whisking 1 tsp egg yolk (saved from the pastry recipe) with 1-2 tsp milk in a small prep bowl. With a pastry brush, lightly brush the pie top with the egg-milk mixture. Sprinkle with granulated sugar, if desired.
- Place pie on tinfoil-lined baking sheet, transfer pie to the oven, and bake for 15 minutes at 425°F then reduce temperature to 375°F and bake for approximately 25-30 minutes, or until crust is golden tanned. If the pie edges start to brown too quickly, pie shields can be positioned over the edges of the pie. However, the same function can be accomplished by taking narrow strips of tin foil, molding them into semi-circle shapes, and carefully placing them over the edges of the pie. If the entire pie browns too quickly before it is baked, loosely tent pie with tin foil.
- Remove pie from oven and transfer to cooling rack to cool completely for several hours before cutting and serving. Serve pie plain or, if desired, with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
Recipe Notes
Yield: 1 – 9” double-crusted pie
*Note: 2 cups of water may be used in lieu of the 2 cups of black tea to cook the raisin filling.
Note: Link to Pastry Recipe: https://myislandbistrokitchen.com/2022/01/29/how-to-make-pie-pastry-plus-recipe/
Copyright My Island Bistro Kitchen
You may enjoy these other double-crusted pie recipes from My Island Bistro Kitchen:
Peach and Blackberry Pie
Raspberry Pie
Gluten-free Apple Pie
Rustic Apple Pie
Classic Peach Pie
Mock Cherry Pie
Strawberry Rhubarb Pie
Rustic Rhubarb Pie
