Apple Pie I

Cooled and ready to eat

Well I guess that's all folks!

The Apple Dumpling is not in the book, I just made it up











It is a slow, late start because it is a little scary to make pie and have folks eat it and compare it to the whole world of pie.

The Crust: I made the Flaky Pastry Dough. After reading about how different fats (butter vs. shortening) and the amount of water and the degree of blending and the ambient temperature and humidity can all affect the gluten in the dough and therefore affect the flakiness of the crust. I decided to use the alternative of half butter and half shortening and to cut the fats in with a pastry blender and not use the food processor.

The crust, after being in the refrigerator for a day was rather difficult to roll. I had a very hard time and after some frustration gathered the dough and smashed it all into a ball again. I then repented of my foolish behavior, stopped yelling at the dough and attempted to roll it out again. It went OK, but I need to work on getting a basic round shape to my crust as I roll it...I am sure this will come with time and practice.

The Filling: I started with a recipe for apple pie that is titled Apple Pie I. I noticed that Apple Pie II has a filling that starts out on the stove top, but we will get to that at another time.

I have determined that I will not let any preconceived ideas into the process of going through this book, so I am reading all the notes and hints and when Irma wrote about the different kinds of apples I almost skipped that because I know that apple pie calls for Granny Smith Apples, by golly! Well I went ahead and read her recommendations and she went on about texture and sweetness and how fluffy a Rome Beauty is when it is cooked, the tenderness of the Jonagold and how thick the Newton Pippin’s applesauce is, then she said the Golden Delicious is among a few splendid varieties that are suited to both eating and baking. She also said that smaller apples will be less mealy than large ones, I remember my grandmother saying that as well.

So I went to the market (I use “market” because it sounds cooler than “store”) and chose the nicest looking smallish Golden Delicious apples in the bin; two and one-half pounds or about seven apples. When I cut the apples on my Pampered Chef® Apple Peeler Corer Slicer (APCS) it turned out that I had about two extra apples since I was suppose to have six cups. I always cut my apples with the APCS because I have been told, from different sources such as Irma and also the America’s Test Kitchen that when you bake you should have all your fruit, meat, vegetable or whatever very close in size and it will cook more evenly. If you have never used an Apple Peeler Corer Slicer you should have or attend a Pampered Chef show and get one or at least see one used. They are amazing.

Let us get back to the pie. I have always made apple pies by putting the recommended sugar, cinnamon and flour or corn starch in with the apples and then mix it up and plop it into the crust. Not this time, Irma said I should mix the sugar, etc. with the apples and let it “stand for fifteen minutes, stirring several times, so that the apples will soften and better fit into the crust.” I was glad I did, because at the end of fifteen minutes the apples were softer. I did not think it would make a difference, but it did.

Baking: The instructions were pretty simple after I assembled the pie I put it in the oven for 30 minutes at 425 degrees and then slide a cookie sheet under it and turn it down to 350 for another 30 to 45 minutes. Well, I screwed up and forgot to turn the oven down. Luckily I did put the sheet under it and it needed it. So I checked the pie after about 20 minutes with the sheet under it and the top crust was starting to burn a little in one corner. I have a hot spot in the back right corner of my oven which causes me to have to turn all my baking halfway through to get even cooking. So I tested the apples with a knife and they were done so I took it out to cool.

I must be rolling out my crust too thin because when I was done with the pie crust I had a lot of dough left. So I took one of the extra apples and since the APCS leaves the apple whole and kind of like an apple slinky I did not cut this one into thirds like the ones for the pie. I left it whole and stuck a small pat of butter in the core hole and then a tablespoon or so of brown sugar a little flour and some cinnamon and then plugged it with another piece of butter. I then rolled out enough of the dough to wrap the apple and brought the dough up like a gift bag around the apple, pinched it around while still leaving an opening in the top, sprinkled it with sugar and cinnamon and placed it in an oven proof saucer and baked it along with the pie. It was fabulous.

I also took the last remaining dough and made cinnamon and sugar crisps like my mom used to. Oh, my word they were great. I could hardly stop eating them and when the wife o’ my life came home from work she hovered over them for a good while herself!

I have never seen an apple pie that held together like this one. When you cut a piece it stayed as a piece, not wandering all over the plate like a puddle. The taste of the filling was the best I have ever had. I do not know if it was the Golden Delicious apples or the resting time before assembly or what, but it was great.

The wife o’ my life was going to take the pie to work, but she waited a day and my kids took care of it for her. Oh, well I am going to make the Winter Peach Pie next and she can take that one!