Happy Holiday Sunday Bread Heads!
So here we are in the midst of a holiday weekend and an eating holiday at that! So since there is nothing more American than Apple Pie, I thought I’d share with you my recipe for Best Ever Apple Pie!
This is a rather rustic style of pie, but it has some so the best flavors you can get. Now you’ll notice that this calls for cinnamon sticks and half of a vanilla bean. These are kind of the premium ingredients and I do know that not everyone stocks these things in their kitchen. You can make it with vanilla extract and ground cinnamon, and I’ll give you the portions for each of those as well. While there is a difference in taste, sometimes taste has to bow to cost and practicality.
This recipe uses Granny Smith apples. If you are lucky enough to live somewhere that you can get Northern Spy apples, use those instead, they are sooooo much better, but they are not available everywhere.
This is a two crust pie, and yes you really should be making the crust yourself. It is very easy (I promise, if you can make a scone (and there should be no one who admits to not being able to make a scone) you can make pie crust). Besides next week we are going to make napoleons which is harder so you want to practice you skills this week! All of you are baking along with this series, right?
Enough foreplay (is there ever enough? But that is a totally different topic!) let’s bake!
Best Ever Apple Pie
Ingredients:
For Crust :
2 sticks butter, set out for 10 minutes before use
2 cups all purpose flour
4 teaspoons sugar
2 tablespoons of ice water
For Pie filling:
7 large Granny Smith (or Spy) apples, about 2 ½ pounds
2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
2/3 cup sugar
1 tablespoon lemon juice
3 tablespoons butter
For Pie base:
Peels and cores from apples
Skin from lemon
½ teaspoons fresh grated or ground ginger
1 cinnamon stick (or 2 teaspoons ground)
½ vanilla bean, split ( or 1 teaspoon vanilla extract)
2 tablespoons brown sugar
½ cup sugar
1 cup water
2 tablespoons corn starch
Baking pans – 1 9” pie plate, 1 sheet pan
Method:
Okay by now you’ve noticed the “pie base” and have to be wondering what the heck is going on. Here is the skinny, Granny Smith and other really firm apples can be really dry in pie. Some folks like it that way, I do not. So I give them a little help by recycling the scraps and making a liquid that goes in with the pie. It adds a kick to the pie while making it nice and juicy.
Start by peeling and coring your apples. If you are kind of slow doing this you will want to douse your peeled and cored apples with a little lemon juice (about a tablespoon) to keep them from browning.
Save the cores and peels and place in a medium sauce pan with the brown sugar, sugar, lemon peel, cinnamon stick (or ground cinnamon) and the vanilla bean. If you don’t have a vanilla bean leave the vanilla out until the end. Pour in the water and place over medium heat. Bring to a fast simmer and let simmer for 1 hour.
Now we have to deal with the apples. One of the problems with apple pie is that the apples shrink when you cook them and that leaves a space under the top crust. I hate that, so the only thing to do is cook the apples somewhat before putting them in the pie. Slice your apples thinly so that you get 10-12 slices per half.
In a large skillet, with sloped sides, melt the 3 tablespoons of butter over medium heat. Leave the pan on until the butter starts to foam. Even if you’ve never seen butter foam, you can’t miss what it looks like, trust me.
Pour the apples into the pan and either toss gently (only do this if you already know how, it can be an ungodly mess for the novice), or stir gently with a wooden spoon. After about 2 minutes the apples will start to sizzle. Add the 2/3 cup sugar and lemon juice.
Continue to cook, stirring or tossing for another five minutes. There will be a quantity of liquid in the bottom of the pan and the apples will be tender but not cooked through. Remove them from the heat and pour them onto a sheet pan (or any pan with a lip, that is big enough to spread them out in a single layer). Spread them out in a single layer and sprinkle the cinnamon over the top. Set aside to cool.
Now it is time to make the pie crust. Get your butter out and let it sit out for about 10 minutes. You are looking for it to feel like cool clay, not grease or melted at all.
In a large bowl, combine the flour and sugar. Slice the two sticks of butter into thin slices, about 12-14 per stick. Drop them in the flour and move them around to cover with flour. Now we are going to pinch each piece so it dents or breaks. When you are sure you’ve touched them all slide your fingers down to the bottom of the bowl and pick up the flour so it flows through your fingers.
Repeat the above until you have worked the butter into the flour. This method does not produce quite the even distribution that we get when making scones, but that is okay, there is a lot of butter in this dough! It should look like Grape Nuts when all the flour is worked in.
Sprinkle one tablespoon of ice water over the mixture. Reach in and turn the mixture over with your hands so there is dry (ish) flour and butter on the top and sprinkle the second tablespoon of ice water over it. With your hands quickly mix the dough together.
Liberally flour a work surface and turn the dough out onto it. Quickly knead the dough together (don’t work longer than about 1-2 minutes or you will make your crust really tough). Divide the dough in half and press each into a round mound.
Place one half of the dough in a long sheet of plastic wrap then fold the sheet over the dough. Using your rolling pin, roll the dough into a 1” thick disk. Fold in the sides of the plastic wrap and stash in the ‘fridge for at least 30 minutes and up to 1 day. Repeat with the other dough ball.
Now check on your peels. They should be simmering away. If everything looks good, take a load off of your feet for 20 minutes or so.
Remove the peels from the heat and strain the liquid out. You will have about half a cup. Whisk two tablespoons of corn starch into the hot liquid and stash in the ‘fridge for 10 minutes.
Now it is time to assemble our pie. Set a rack in the top 1/3 of the oven and one in the bottom 1/3 of the oven. Preheat to 400 degrees.
Take one of your crust disks from the ‘fridge. It should be pliant enough that it does not crack when you roll it, but it if does just give it five minutes to warm up. To roll our a nice round pie crust the best method is to set the rolling pin so one end is in the middle of the disk and then roll around ¼ of the edge. Repeat with the other three quarters. If it is big enough (it almost never will be) stop and put it in the pie pan. If not repeat until it is big enough.
Be sure that you have a thin but even layer of flour on the work surface, as it will tend to stick. Don’t be shy about dusting the top of the dough with flour either. You are looking for ¼ to 1/8 an inch of dough.
To place it in the pie plate without tearing, fold over the middle and pick up the folded part. Place in pie plate and unfold.
Get the cooled apple slices and pour them carefully into the pie plate, mounding them slightly in the middle.
Pour the cooled base liquid over the apples.
Remove your other crust disc from the ‘fridge and roll out as above. Place the top over the apples and trim any over hang off with a sharp pairing knife. Pinch the seams of the dough together.
Place your pie dish on a sheet pan to avoid any possible drips. Slash a couple of vents in the top crust.
Make an egg wash from an egg yolk and 1 tablespoon of milk beaten together. Lightly brush the top of the pie and sprinkle with sugar.
Slip the pie into the hot oven on the lower rack. Turn the heat down to 375 and bake for 30 minutes. After 30 minutes check on the browning of the pie, if it is not brown enough, put it on the top rack for the last 10 minutes.
Remove from oven and place on a cooling rack. I like to cool this pie all the way down and then if I want to serve it hot reheat it. You can serve it warm form the oven if you like.
If you make this pie today, you’ll have it for your 4th of July celebrations tomorrow. To reheat, preheat the oven to 325 and place on a middle rack for 10 minutes. Serve with French Vanilla ice cream.
There you are, Bread Heads, the all time best apple pie! The flour is yours!