Golden Apricot Pie -- A Sweetness Waiting to Be Named

June. The garden is at its first real peak — the peas have finished and I have turned them under for the soil, the tomatoes are setting fruit, the herbs are threatening to take over the walkway, which I allow because who am I to restrain a sage plant that is giving its best. The okra is six inches tall and on its way.

James and Dorothy are coming in two weeks. I have been preparing the guest room and planning the meals and deciding what to pick from the garden and when. Dorothy wants to be in the kitchen. I want her there. I want to cook alongside someone who knows what it is to return to a kitchen after being away from it, who understands what it means when your hands find their way back to something that was yours before the hard thing happened. We are going to make tomato preserves together if the timing is right. We are going to stand at the stove and do the slow careful work of putting summer in jars, which requires attention and patience and the ability to be still inside your body, which are all things that illness teaches you if you let it.

Caleb said his first clear word on Wednesday. CJ texted me at seven in the morning: he said she said 'nana' and Shanice says it means banana and he says it means me. I texted back: it means both. He texted back: perfect. I put my phone down and stood in the kitchen in the early light and said the word back to myself, quietly: Nana. What a small word for what it carries. What a whole word for what it is.

The tomatoes aren’t ready yet — another two weeks, maybe three — and so the preserves will have to wait for Dorothy, which feels right, because some things are better made together. But the garden still had something to offer, and I needed to make something that matched the morning’s feeling: golden, unhurried, full. I had apricots from the farmers’ market — the small ones, soft at the shoulders — and I thought: pie. A golden apricot pie, because “nana” deserved something celebratory, and because Caleb’s first word called for something warm and sweet and made with careful hands.

Golden Apricot Pie

Prep Time: 25 minutes | Cook Time: 45 minutes | Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes | Servings: 8

Ingredients

• 1 double-crust pastry (homemade or store-bought), chilled
• 5 cups fresh apricots, pitted and sliced (about 2 1/2 lbs)
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 3 tablespoons cornstarch
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/8 teaspoon fine salt
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
• 1 egg, beaten (for egg wash)
• 1 tablespoon coarse sugar (for topping)

Instructions

1. Preheat and prepare. Heat the oven to 400°F. Roll out one pastry round and fit it into a 9-inch pie dish, leaving a 1-inch overhang. Refrigerate while you prepare the filling.
2. Make the filling. In a large bowl, combine the sliced apricots, granulated sugar, cornstarch, lemon juice, vanilla extract, cinnamon, and salt. Toss gently until the fruit is evenly coated. Let stand 10 minutes so the juices begin to release.
3. Fill the shell. Pour the apricot mixture into the chilled pastry shell, mounding it slightly in the center. Dot the top of the filling evenly with the small pieces of butter.
4. Add the top crust. Roll out the second pastry round and lay it over the filling. Trim any excess, then fold the edge of the top crust under the bottom crust overhang and crimp firmly to seal. Cut 5 or 6 small slits in the top crust to allow steam to escape.
5. Finish and bake. Brush the top crust evenly with beaten egg, then sprinkle with coarse sugar. Place the pie on a rimmed baking sheet to catch any drips. Bake at 400°F for 20 minutes, then reduce the temperature to 375°F and bake an additional 25 minutes, until the crust is deep golden and the filling is bubbling through the vents.
6. Cool before slicing. Transfer the pie to a wire rack and let it cool for at least 2 hours before cutting. The filling will set as it cools and slice more cleanly when given time to rest.

Nutrition (per serving)

Calories: 340 | Protein: 4g | Fat: 14g | Carbs: 51g | Fiber: 2g | Sodium: 210mg