The Crazy Simple Life

I’m pretty sure this dish was used in medieval France during an ancient war, but I don’t have proof. However that’s the spirit of this delicious treat and you'll taste it in each bite: a seasonal fall fruit, a smooth red wine and a rustique charm that oozes sweet comfort for cooler evenings. Ready to make this crowd pleaser? Here we go!

Prep Time: 10 minutes + 1 hour of marinating time

Cooking Time: 35 minutes

Ingredients:

• 4 or 5 Red Plums (these ones are big; once again, size does matter)
  
• ½ cup Red Wine of your choice
• 1 ready-made pie crust
• 1 Tablespoon flour
• ¼ cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 egg for coating the pie crust
• Brown sugar for a crumbled topping, optional

Other materials:

• Covered container for marinating plums
• Mixing Bowl
• Cookie sheet
• Non-stick spray
• Foil

Slice up all plums.  (Aren’t these plums gorgeous? I would love to say I found them while strolling at a farmer’s market, but really they were discovered while pushing a giant cart at Costco.)

Add all slices to a container that can be covered. Pour in red wine and stir.

Now say goodbye to the beautiful red mixture as it marinates in the fridge for at least an hour. Visit a few times to stir. (And sample a slice, just to be sure it's excellent.)

After marinating, put plum slices in a mixing bowl.  Don’t pour; remaining wine should stay in container.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Add flour, sugar and cinnamon to plums. Stir it up.

[By the way…I wish you could hear the commentary coming from Rocket Man while I am creating this dish. He’s hilarious. I’m carefully doing each of these steps with a camera in my hand, concentrating on the lighting and angles, and he’s walking past the kitchen every few minutes with ongoing comments. Highlights include:

“Looks like someone is blogging.”

“How about a shot of the wine being poured into my mouth.”

“Look at that sweet-ass baking pan.”

And so on. ]

Spray cookie sheet and roll out pie crust. (Please give a warm welcome to this new cooking sheet from Nordic Ware I found at Costco, as well! It may only look this shiny once…

Spoon plum mixture into the middle of the flat pie crust. Create a circle about 2 inches from the edge.

Beat the egg.  Fold edge over to create that beautiful rustique edge look. Brush egg mixture over crust. If you want the brown sugar topping, sprinkle that on now as well. I decided at the last moment to opt out of this topping because it was sweet enough for me with the wine.

Put in oven for 35 minutes at 425 degrees.

For the last 10 minutes, add foil over the edges to prevent burning.

When you remove the tart from the oven, the smells will be intoxicating! And not just because of the red wine-soaked plums.They are perfectly flavored to add depth to the dish without the taste of alcohol.

Top with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream. My personal favorite is vanilla Greek yogurt. And be sure to enjoy with a lovely glass of red wine!