Happy November! I hope everyone had a super fun Halloween. We had fun showing off Becks in his adorable costume (pictures at the end of this post!). I am so excited that it's November! Thanksgiving will be here before we know it, and then Becks' first birthday and then Christmas! And we're going on a fun family holiday in between all of that. I just can't wait, I love the holidays!
So, I've been making apple-y things like crazy ever since our trip to Apple Hill. Apple muffins, apple cake, applesauce, Dutch apple pancakes, aaaaand of course apple pie! The husbands absolute favorite apple pie, in fact. He loves loves loves it and gets very possessive of it after it's out of the oven. He usually takes baked goods to work to share with his coworkers, but not this pie. And you should have heard the grumbling that ensued when I told him he'd have to share a piece with his grandfather and his son. Silly man. Anyway, I've been making this pie for several years, ever since I found it in my Ina Garten cookbook. As usual, I've modified it a bit from her recipe, but the inspiration is all thanks to her. This pie has a pretty strong cinnamon and citrus flavor, so if you're not a fan of either of those, I'd recommend cutting back on the orange, lemon and spice components of the recipe. Enjoy!
Deep-Dish Apple Pie
Pie Crust
Makes two crusts, big enough for a deep-dish pie pan
12 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into chunks
3 cups flour (plus extra for rolling out dough)
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon sugar
1/3 cup cold shortening
6-8 tablespoons ice water
Place butter and shortening in freezer while preparing remaining ingredients. Put flour, salt and sugar into food processor and pulse several times to mix. Add half of the butter and half of the shortening to the flour mixture and pulse a couple of times before adding remaining butter and shortening. Pulse 5-7 more times, or until you notice the butter is about the size peas. Pour ice water down feed tube (with machine running) and pulse just until dough forms a ball. Empty dough onto floured work surface and knead together. Separate dough into two pieces, then flatten into discs and wrap in plastic wrap or parchment paper. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
When you're ready to use the dough, flour your work surface and roll out one piece of dough into a large circle. To be honest, I've never measured the dough, I just roll it out and place my pie pan over it to judge if it's big enough. When rolling dough, start from the center and roll outward, turning the dough as you go (and adding more flour as necessary). If you have a problem with dough sticking to your surface, it can be helpful to roll it out onto parchment paper. Lightly roll the dough onto your rolling pin and then roll out gently into your pie pan. Trim excess dough so there is about an inch hanging off of the pie plate. After filling with apples (or any other desired filling!), roll out second half of dough and drape over the top. Crimp both edges together, then fold decoratively (I just use my fingers, but you can also use a fork for a more rustic look).
Deep Dish Apple Pie
Makes one deep-dish (10-inch) pie
3 lbs Granny Smith apples, peeled, quartered, and sliced (you can slice them as thick or as thin as you like)
1 lb Pippin apples (these can be hard to find, so I often just do all Granny Smith apples)
Zest of 1/2 lemon
Zest of 1 orange
Juice from 1 orange
Juice from 1/2 lemon
1/2 - 3/4 cup sugar, plus 1 tablespoon to sprinkle on top (depends on how tart the mixture is)
1/4 cup flour
pinch of salt
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon allspice
1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water for egg wash
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place apple slices in large bowl along with zests and juices from the citrus. Add sugar (start with 1/2 cup, then taste and add more if you desire), then remaining dry ingredients and vanilla.
Roll out pie crust, place in pan, trim edges and fill with apple mixture. I usually place all the apples in the pie dish, then pour the juices over the top of the apples (so the bottom crust doesn't get too soggy). Place top crust over apple mixture and crimp together. Cut a few slits in the top of the pie, brush with egg wash mixture, then sprinkle with sugar. Place pie on a sheet pan and bake for 60-75 minutes, or until crust is golden brown. I usually start checking the pie after 30-45 minutes, and cover with foil if it's browning too quickly. Let cool for at least 30 minutes before serving. It's great served warm (a la mode!), but husband prefers his room temperature, or cold, plain (weirdo).
Oh, and here's some bonus photos of Becks in his Halloween costume! He was a scary, scary lion for Halloween. I found his adorable costume (hat and tail) at this adorable shop on Etsy.
