I’m not much of a Facebook guy. Any of you who have been to my Oui, Chef Facebook Fan Page, can undoubtably attest to that fact…..sorry. I set up the page on a friend’s recommendation because “everyone” has one, so I should have one too. Problem is….I can’t figure out what the #$%& to do with it, so all it really contains are re-postings from my blog….ugh. To the 310 of you who have become my fans (Thanks!), please accept my apolgies for there not being anything more compelling on the fan page than what you find here. If any of you have any recommendations as to what I should do on my fan page, please let me know….I’m all ears. Perhaps one day I’ll figure it out on my own, but I wouldn’t hold my breath if I were you.
I’m really no better with my personal Facebook page, in fact, I’m starting to think that I just don’t get the whole Facebook thing. All my “friends” find on my page are linked posts from this blog….I”M SO BORING. I mean, I’ve enjoyed reconnecting with old acquaintences from high school and college, but after a brief “hey nice to see you’re still alive”, and a “so what are you doing to keep yourself busy these days?”, I quickly run out of things to say. It’s not that I don’t care. Well, that’s what I keep telling myself anyway.
To be honest, there have only been three or four folks who I’ve connected with on FB and been able to maintain a dialogue that lasted longer than 30 seconds, it seems I’m very much challenged in this regard. One of those friends, is a sweetheart of a gal I hadn’t heard from since high school graduation (that would have been over 30 years ago for those of you counting), the delightful Lisa P. Lisa and I reconnected as the result of an effort to cobble together a high school class reunion last year (neither of us were able to make it), but really hit it off again over our shared love of food and cooking. It turns out that Lisa is a great cook, and a serious foodie in her own right. Once reconnected, we quickly tossed dozens of recipes back and forth. She has become a regular reader of this blog, and a staunch supporter of my Food52 endeavors.
Lisa has already made her mark here on Oui, Chef, as she is the one who turned me onto the delicious Anise, Basil and Vanilla Marinara Sauce the we cooked last Winter….YUM! This apple pie recipe is one she shared with me about a year ago, just after she had entered it into, AND WON IN A LANDSLIDE VICTORY, the Shelburne Orchards Apple Pie Fest, in Shelburne Vt. Well, I’ve finally gotten around to baking (and devouring) this delicious pie, and it is no surprise to me that it was an award winning entry for her, it is FABULOUS. The crust, light and flaky, the filling, sweet and creamy, bursting with the taste of local apples and just a hint of spice, the overall flavor profile…unbeatable.
I think the only thing I would change when making this pie again would be to mix up the apple variety a little. Lisa uses 100% Macintosh apples when she bakes this, and as much as I love their flavor, Macs cook-down a lot, and soften when baked. You can see from the photo above that the filling is a bit compacted. I prefer my pie filling to have a bit more structure, and to stand a bit taller, so will toss in some Macouns, Granny Smiths, or Braeburns next time in order to achieve a filling with a little more toothsome filling.
This really is a question of taste, if you like your filling soft and jammy, make it just like Lisa does, if you like it with a little more texture, add some firmer cooking apples to the mix. Whatever you do, don’t skip the addition of the cream, Lisa says (and I agree) that it is the key to this fabulous confection. Thanks, Lisa for this great recipe, and the rest of you stay tuned, I’m sure to be posting more of her terrific food here in due time.
Cheers – Steve
Ingredients
for the filling:
- 6 cups thinly sliced tart apples (she uses Macintosh)
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 1/4 cup heavy cream
- 3/4 cup turbinado or granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1/4 cup light brown sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
- 1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
for the crust:
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 2/3 cup vegetable shortening
- 6 tablepoons ice water
- 1 whisked egg white for "washing" the crust prior to baking
Instructions
for the crust:
- Mix dry ingredients together in a large bowl, and cut in the shortening with a fork or pastry cutter, leaving some small (pea sized) hunks of shortening. Gently stir in ice water, bit by bit, until the pastry holds together just enough to form a ball.
- Divide the dough into two equal pieces. Roll each piece out until thin and large enough to cover your pie plate. Place one crust in the bottom of the pie plate, and reserve the second for the top crust.
for the filling:
- Mix sugars, flour, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt in a small bowl. Pour sugar mixture over apples in large bowl, and mix thoroughly to coat.
- Pile apples high into the bottom crust in the pie plate. Dot with butter & drizzle with heavy cream.
- Cover with the top crust and crimp the edges to join the crusts. Brush the top with the whisked egg white, and sprinkle lightly with cinnamon if desired.
- Bake at 400℉ degrees for 15 minutes, then turn the oven down to 375℉ degrees for 45 minutes. The pie is done when the crust is brown and the filling is bubbling through the edge of the crust.