Apple Pie is one of my favorite food groups; yes food groups you read that correctly… and I am overjoyed its season has returned! Move over pumpkin spice, it’s apple season in our house!
I don’t consider myself to be an amazing chef or baking extraordinaire- but when it comes to making apple pie, move over Betty Crocker; I got this one. Every single time I have made this apple pie it has turned out amazing. I have literally turned gluten free-by-choice dieters to give up their diet for the day to eat this pie. They agreed it was 1000% worth it. If you are indeed gluten intolerant; please don’t eat this though- it 2000% contains gluten and I respect your allergy.
Thanksgiving dinner isn’t complete in our home without this pie on its glorious stand. Granted, it also gets made at least once a month so when Turkey Day does come around were not all fighting our relatives for a piece of it like a pack of ravenous wolves. So, what I guess I am trying to say is; this pie is amazing and you should make it whenever you need to impress someone or just really want a happy dessert tummy.
Key ingredients to success for an apple pie according to me myself and I; a buttery, flaky crust that it not bone dry when you bite into it. There is nothing worse to me than a dry crust that leaves your mouth feeling like a sad Sahara desert. You will not find that here and Paul Hollywood would be proud of me. Other key component; thinly sliced apples. This is probably the most important part to successfully making this apple pie. When you bite into an apple pie and all you get is one giant chunk of apple, you get an overwhelming apple taste but not the seasoning! When you thinly slice the apples, they release all the contained moisture which then combines with the spices to make a juice. This juice then soaks into the fruit ending in every single bite tasting like fall and all its wonderful magic. Slice your apples thin and make the crusts buttery; that’s my advice to success. Also, don’t be a d*ck, but that has nothing to do with pie making and just general life advice I live by; take it or leave it.
Moving on and back into the realm of baking; this type of apple pie is technically known in the baking world as a “Dutch Apple Pie”, which I guess makes it not All American but that just ruins my whole star spangled fall feel here so we’re just going to ignore that tidbit of information. Either way, bake this beauty up for your fall loving friends and make the world a happier place with happy tummies; I give you…my beloved Apple Pie recipe.
APPLE PIE
BAKE @ 400 DEGREES F for 45-50 MIN (45 min if you like the crust a little more buttery) | PREP TIME 30 MIN | TOTAL TIME 1 HR. 15 MIN.
INGREDIENTS:
PIE DOUGH:
2 cups of flour
1/2 tsp. salt
7 Tbsp. cold water
3/4 cup. vegetable Crisco (I find the vegetable blend works better than the butter blend)
1 large egg
FILLING:
7 green Granny Smith apples, peeled
1 cup white granulated sugar
2 tsp cinnamon (I add more; but I really like cinnamon-y apples)
1 tsp. nutmeg
2 Tbsp. flour
DUTCH CRUMBLE TOPPING:
1/2 cup flour
1/4 cup white granulated sugar
1/4 cup salted butter
DIRECTIONS:
1.Preheat oven to 400 degrees F
2.Prepare pie crust by mixing all dry ingredients into a large bowl. Cut in Crisco; stir. Add egg and mix well.
**Helpful tip: I use my KitchenAid stand mixer to mix all these ingredients together, you’ll know it’s ready when you have one large ball of dough; it should not be crumbly or sticky at all.
3.Roll out pie crust onto floured cutting board and roll to about 1/4 inch thick. Place around a large pie tin and tack edges down using your thumb. Make sure there are no cracks or all the juice will escape and you’ll have a burnt pie! Set pie crust and tin aside.
4.Take your peeled apples and slice very thin (about a 1/8 – 1/4 inch) using knife or a fruit/vegetable slicer (my fave one linked here)
**Helpful tip: WATCH OUT FOR YOUR FINGERS! I cut my finger down to the muscle before on one of these bad boys and I have residual PTSD from it; it was terrible.
5.Once you have your sliced apples, add sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and flour to bowl and mix well. You want chunks of apple slices not just lumpy goo. Don’t over mix it! Feel free to snack on a couple of the apple slices because they’re dang delicious.Spread apple mixture into pie crust in tin and spread evenly using a spatula.
6.In same mixing bowl, combine flour, sugar and softened butter for dutch crumble topping. You should have some larger crumbles as well as very fine crumbles. Spread this all on top of pie and displace evenly across pie top to crust’s edge.
7.Add some decoration or flair if you have any extra pie dough leftover. For fall, I cut out little leaves or a braided edge to lay around the pie crust.
8.Bake for 45 min until golden on top.
9.Give yourself a high five because you just made the best dang apple pie there ever was.
…bonus content for making this pie, Phillip wanted to be a part of the photoshoot too. I think the pearl bobby pin really brings out his eyes, right??
