My best Apple Pie EVER

I made an apple pie yesterday and OMG and if I do say so myself, it is the best pie I've ever made!

And I'm entering my Apple Pie in the St. Paddy's Day Pub Crawl 2008 hosted by Sugar Plum!






I don't really use a recipe for my apple pie filling. I just wing it and I like to keep it simple with lots of apples and usually use a mix of 3 different varieties of apples.





My Apple Pie Recipe

5-6 large apples, a mix of 3 varieties such as Granny Smith, MacIntosh, Cortland or Gala
1 c. sugar
1 heavy tsp cinnamon

Slice apples into bit sized pieces, I leave the skins on as they add quite a bit of flavor. Mix sugar and cinnamon and mix with apples until the apples are well coated.

When you dump the apples into the pie pan the amount of apples will pile up well above the edge of the pie plate which is just fine. The apples do cook down a bit and I think an apple pie should be thick and juicy...after all it is Apple Pie!



Foolproof Pie Dough For a Single-Crust Pie
Recipe adapted from Cook's Illustrated

1 1/4 c. unbleached all-purpose flour (6 1/4 ounces)
1/2 tsp table salt
1 TBL sugar
6 TBL cold unsalted butter (3/4 stick), cut into 1/4-inch slices
1/4 c. chilled solid vegetable shortening, cut into 2 pieces
2 TBL vodka, cold
2 TBL cold water (I skip the water)

**See My Notes for:
Abt 1 TBL Semolina Flour for dusting bottom crust
Abt 2 TBL cream for finishing crust

For a 2-crust pie just double the recipe. But I still skip the 2 T. of water.

1. Process 3/4 cups flour, salt, and sugar together in food processor until combined, about 2 one-second pulses. Add butter and shortening and process until homogenous dough just starts to collect in uneven clumps, about 10 seconds (dough will resemble cottage cheese curds with some very small pieces of butter remaining, but there should be no uncoated flour). Scrape down sides and bottom of bowl with rubber spatula and redistribute dough evenly around processor blade. Add remaining 1/2 cup flour and pulse until mixture is evenly distributed around bowl and mass of dough has been broken up, 4 to 6 quick pulses. Empty mixture into medium bowl.
2. Sprinkle vodka and water over mixture. With rubber spatula, use folding motion to mix, pressing down on dough until dough is slightly tacky and sticks together. Flatten dough into 4-inch disk. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 45 minutes or up to 2 days. Also freezes very well.
3. Sprinkle your pastry cloth with flour. I like to use semolina flour for rolling out pie crust. Roll the dough until it is about 1/8" thick and several inches larger then your pie pan.
4. Transfer dough to pie pan and press to fit pan. Crimp edges.
5. Poke holes in the bottom crust, careful to make some holes around the edges.


My Notes: Sprinkle some semolina flour on the bottom crust before adding the apple filling. This helps soak up any moisture from the filling and keeps the bottom crust nice and crisp. I brush the upper crust with a little bit of cream before baking.



Cider Bourbon Sauce
Recipe adapted from Epicurious

5 cups apple cider (I used apple juice)
5 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons sugar
3 tablespoons bourbon **See My Note

Boil apple cider in heavy medium saucepan until reduced to 3/4 cup, about 45 minutes. Add butter and sugar and whisk until butter melts. Boil 3 minutes, whisking occasionally. Remove from heat. Whisk in bourbon. Cool sauce completely before serving.

My Note: I topped the Whipped Cream with a drizzle of Cider Bourbon Sauce. But if I was making the sauce again, I would use brandy as I thought the bourbon was a bit harsh for my apple pie.


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