Cherry Plum Slab Pie with Walnut Streusel

Late September, and the Lowcountry fall begins its gentle arrival — the light shifting, the marsh grass gilding, the air releasing the grip of the summer heat with the reluctant grace of a season that knows its time has come. I walk to the library through the changing light and I think about the manuscript that is now in the hands of five publishers and that has received two rejections and three silences, and the silences are the worst, because the rejections at least confirm that the book was seen, and the silences confirm nothing except the publishing industry's indifference, which is not personal but feels personal, the way rain feels personal when you are the one getting wet.

Robert has been supportive in the way Robert is supportive: with furniture. He built a filing cabinet for the writing room — walnut, hand-joined, with drawers that hold the manuscript copies, the rejection letters, the research, and the cedar recipe box that contains the 147 documented recipes. The filing cabinet is Robert's faith made manifest: he builds furniture for the book because he believes the book will be published, and the believing is the love, and the love is walnut.

James is in his second year of law school, deep in the case law, deep in the arguments, deep in the particular immersion that law school requires. He mentioned Elise on Sunday's call six times. Six. The number is the declaration. The declaration does not need my acknowledgment. But it has it.

I visited Joy on Saturday. She has completed the common room mural at Magnolia House — a wall-sized painting of "the garden" that is both the garden outside the window and the garden inside Joy's imagination, and the two gardens are the same garden, because Joy does not distinguish between what is seen and what is felt, and the not-distinguishing is the art.

I made Mama's pork chops with apples — the fall dish, the October-approaching dish, the combination of savory and sweet that says the season is turning and the turning is delicious.

There is something about a streusel that asks you to be patient — to press the walnuts into the butter and the butter into the flour and trust that the oven will make of it something worth waiting for. I did not make Mama’s pork chops and then stop cooking; I kept at it into the evening, and this pie came out of the same impulse, the same turning-season need for something that honors the harvest and the holding-on. Robert’s walnut cabinet sat in the writing room while I rolled the dough, and I thought: the walnuts here, the walnuts there — both of them someone’s faith made edible, made real.

Prep Time: 30 min | Cook Time: 45 min | Total Time: 1 hr 15 min | Servings: 12

Ingredients

For the crust:
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, cut into small cubes
6–8 tablespoons ice water
For the filling:
2 cups fresh or frozen sweet cherries, pitted and halved
2 cups ripe plums, pitted and sliced (about 4 medium plums)
1/3 cup granulated sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
For the walnut streusel:
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup roughly chopped walnuts
1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

Instructions

Make the crust. Whisk together flour, sugar, and salt in a large bowl. Work the cold butter into the flour with your fingertips or a pastry cutter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs with some pea-sized pieces remaining. Drizzle in ice water one tablespoon at a time, mixing lightly with a fork until the dough just comes together. Flatten into a rectangle, wrap in plastic, and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
Preheat and prepare. Preheat your oven to 375°F. Lightly grease a 10x15-inch rimmed baking sheet (jelly roll pan).
Roll the crust. On a lightly floured surface, roll the chilled dough into a rectangle slightly larger than your pan. Carefully transfer it to the pan, pressing it into the corners and letting a small edge come up the sides. Trim any excess. Refrigerate the pan while you prepare the filling and streusel.
Make the filling. In a large bowl, combine the cherries and plum slices with the granulated sugar, cornstarch, lemon juice, vanilla, and cinnamon. Toss gently to coat all the fruit evenly.
Make the walnut streusel. In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, oats, walnuts, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt. Add the cold butter pieces and work them in with your fingertips until the mixture holds together in rough, crumbly clumps. Do not overwork — you want irregular texture.
Assemble. Pour the fruit filling evenly over the chilled crust, spreading it to the edges. Scatter the walnut streusel generously over the top of the fruit, covering most of the surface.
Bake. Bake at 375°F for 40–45 minutes, until the streusel is deep golden brown and the fruit filling is bubbling at the edges. If the streusel browns too quickly, tent loosely with foil for the last 10 minutes.
Cool and slice. Let the slab pie cool in the pan on a wire rack for at least 20 minutes before slicing into squares. Serve warm or at room temperature, with a spoonful of vanilla cream or a scoop of ice cream if you like.

Nutrition (per serving)

Cherry Plum Slab Pie with Walnut Streusel — When the Believing Is Built in Walnut