Funeral Pie

By Ellery Adams

It's October and because Halloween's coming up later this month, I wanted to bake something, well, a little grim (but still tasty). I came across a very old recipe for an Amish Funeral Pie and was intrigued. The article explained that the Amish traditionally brought this pie to the grieving family because it kept for several days and the ingredients could be found year-round. The pie is very sweet and the idea was that its taste would temporarily distract folks from their grief. 

This is not a pie for you if you hate raisins. This is definitely a raisin-lovers' pie and even though this recipe is more modern than the original one I found in an old cookbook, it does bear a resemblance to mincemeat pies.

Anyway, the whole theme of this pie raises this question. Is there a certain food that brings you comfort when you're sad? 


Funeral Pie 

Ingredients:

2 cups raisins

1 cup water

Zest of 1 large orange, finely grated

1 cup orange juice

½ cup brown sugar

2 tablespoons cornstarch

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground allspice

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1/2 cup chopped walnuts

1 egg, beaten

Pastry for 2 crust pie

Finishing sugar (turbinado sugar)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

2. Combine raisins, water, orange zest and juice in a saucepan. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes.

3. Mix brown sugar, cornstarch, and spices in a small bowl.

Slowly add to raisin mixture. Cook, stirring constantly, until thickened, about 2 minutes. Remove pan from heat. Stir in lemon juice and walnuts.

4. Roll out half the pie dough on a lightly floured surface. Fit into a 9-inch pie pan. Pour filling into pie shell. Let pie cool a little (otherwise, the dough you use for lattice will get too soft and tear)

5. Roll out remaining dough and cut into strips for lattice. Brush with beaten egg and sprinkle with finishing sugar. Bake until golden, about 25 to 30 minutes.