Oh My! Delicious Apple Pie

As I have mentioned before, I grew up in a Middle Eastern household- the only kind of pies we make have meat or spinach in them (tastier than it sounds, I promise).


My husband is a pie-man, any time is the time for pie. Summertime is good for a fresh strawberry or peach pie and autumn is good for warm, gooey apple pie. 


My very first apple pie was born last year for our annual family Thanksgiving celebration. 


Note to newlyweds: its weird being married, because you all of a sudden are expected to bring food dishes to the family gatherings...and it is similar to walking the plank. They all think, hmm, can she cook? Will she fail? Is he starving? 


And ever since I've been married, I have become a firm believer in dumb luck - this pie was no exception. It was like some miracle came in to being. Mind you we almost started a fire in the oven when the juicy filling starting to spill down the sides and onto the burning hot element in my aunt's kitchen. But they loved it. My picky cousins tried it, my uncle who NEVER eats pie couldn't stop eating it...my mom, my dad, my amazing chef of a grandma...it disappeared from the pie plate and into their bellies...and they actually loved it!


So this year was no exception, I volunteered to make another apple pie. Because some of my family is either cutting back on sugar or diabetic, I was actually asked to make two pies- one with sugar and one without. 

For my pie crust, I combined some things from different cookbooks, so here are my ingredients:

2.5 cups of pastry flour (lighter than all-purpose, you can use all-purpose)

1 tablespoon sugar

1 teaspoon salt

1/3 cup unsalted butter (cold)

1/3 cup shortening (cold)

*HUGE TIP: keep all of your ingredients cold, what makes a pie flaky and light is when the butter and shortening pieces melt during cooking and create a pocket of air in the crust. Place the crust in the freezer for a minute during prep if you feel that the butter is melting, you want to see little scattered chunks in your crust!

Pie Crust Dough

1. Stir the dry ingredients in a large bowl till mixed

2. Cut in the butter and shortening with a pastry cutter (see picture) until pea sized

3. Put freezing cold water (I like to keep it cold with ice cubes) in by sprinkling one tablespoon at a time and using a fork to toss the dough lightly. Keep adding water until the dough holds together when you pinch it with your fingers gently-if it crumbles, add more water.

4. Form the dough into two round disks and place each in some plastic wrap. Pie Crust Dough is easier to work with if it has time to rest, so if you have a little time-put it in the freezer, or if you have a lot of time-let it rest in the fridge. (prepare your filling in the meantime-see below)

5. After resting,roll the dough until you form a circle large enough to fit in the pie plate and wrap over the edge. I like to roll it in between two pieces of lightly floured plastic wrap to prevent it from sticking.

6. Lightly spray the pie plate with cooking spray to prevent the crust from sticking.

7. Place the bottom crust in your plate and press gently across the sides with your fingers. Trim the edges so that they slightly overlap the edge of the plate. Fill with apples, mounded slightly

8. When you roll out the top crust, you can cut out a shape in the center to add a nice touch.

9. Gently lay the top crust over the apples and fold the edges over the edge of the bottom crust, use a fork to press into a design or lift up and press between your fingers for a rippled edge (see picture)

10. Cut some slits in the top crust to allow for steam to escape during baking. For a yellow and crisp crust, brush the top with milk. I opted to sprinkle a bit of sugar on the top.

Apples are great, some are tart, others are sweet like honey- some are crisp and others are starchy. Each add their own merits to the filling of an apple pie. I tried to keep sweeter apples in the sugar-free pie to let the natural sugars in the apples sweeten the filling. Some were fresh from the orchard in Traverse City and the rest came from right here in Windsor at the Market Square Farmers Market on  the corner of Ottawa and Walker rd. Here are the four I chose and why:

(left to right)

HONEY CRISP: bright, crisp and juicy apple with a mild honey flavor- sweetens the pie filling wonderfully

GOLDEN DELICIOUS: sweet, rich flavor with a flesh that keeps its form nicely during baking

JONAGOLD: mixed tart with sweetness with light buttery undertones, firm and crisp- also nice and large so that you don't have to use so many apples

MUTSU/CRISPIN: the largest of the bunch, that is the most tart/sour with a distinct almost spicy flavor- a firm apple that is best for cooking, a bit sour to eat.

To prepare the filling: peel the apples, core them and slice them moderately thin (see image). I didn't take an exact measurement but I like a pie with a generous filling (approx 3-4 medium to large sized apples).

For the sugar free pie filling I used a teaspoon of natural honey to sweeten lightly and then mixed the pieces with 3 tablespoons of flour (you can use corn starch instead of flour to thicken the filling during baking)

For the regular pie filling I used 2-3 tablespoons of brown sugar and 2-3 tablespoons of white sugar (vary depending on how sweet you want your pie to be). I used a sprinkling of cinnamon and my secret ingredient is freshly grated nutmeg (pictured above-add just a bit, it goes a long way!). 

Add a bit of lemon juice if the apple slices are sitting for a little while, to prevent browning. 

Bake for 20 minutes at 375 degrees Fahrenheit- cover the edges of the pie with tin foil to prevent over-browning.

Remove the foil and cook for 20 more minutes to let the crust brown

Let rest for 10-15 minutes, slice and ENJOY!!