There's nothing more comforting (and midwestern) than apple pie- and it's one of my favorites, with spicy cinnamon, crisp, buttery crust and tart apples. In the fall, when a variety of apples are available, I like to use Cortland apples. They are tart, crisp, hold their shape well with baking and are also large, which minimizes peeling. However, granny smith is a commonly used apple which is available and relatively inexpensive year-round. Most apple pies have some lemon juice, but this also has lemon zest which adds a little extra "kick". Believe me, it tastes as good as it looks!Double Crust Apple Pie (adapted from Martha Stewart)
Crust:
-2 1/2 c flour
-1 c unsalted butter
-1 tsp salt
-1 tsp salt
-1 Tb sugar
-1/4 to 1/2 c ice water
-Plastic wrap
Filling:
-2 Tb flour
-Cored, peeled sliced apples (~4 medium sized apples)
-1/2 tsp nutmeg
-Pinch of cloves
-1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
-3/4 c sugar
-3/4 c sugar
-Zest and juice of 1 lemon
-2 Tb butter
-1 large egg, beaten
-Make the crust by mixing flour, salt, sugar and butter with food processor or pastry cutter to make coarse crumbs
-Add ice water slowly, while mixing, until dough forms
-Divide dough in half, form into 2 disks and wrap in plastic wrap
-Chill for at least 1 hour, roll out to fit pan ~10 inch diameter for an 8 inch pan, and chill for 30 min before baking.
-1 large egg, beaten
-Make the crust by mixing flour, salt, sugar and butter with food processor or pastry cutter to make coarse crumbs
-Add ice water slowly, while mixing, until dough forms
-Divide dough in half, form into 2 disks and wrap in plastic wrap
-Chill for at least 1 hour, roll out to fit pan ~10 inch diameter for an 8 inch pan, and chill for 30 min before baking.
-For the filling, mix apples, sugar, lemon, flour and spices.
-Press crust into pie pan, fill with apple mixture. Dot with butter.
-Put second crust on top, trim if necessary, and crimp edges. Then, cut vents in the top crust, brush with egg and sprinkle with sugar (coarse sanding sugar is prettier, but regular granulated sugar is fine)
-Press crust into pie pan, fill with apple mixture. Dot with butter.
-Put second crust on top, trim if necessary, and crimp edges. Then, cut vents in the top crust, brush with egg and sprinkle with sugar (coarse sanding sugar is prettier, but regular granulated sugar is fine)
-Bake for 1 hour at 375 F. The top crust should be nicely browned and pie juices bubbling through the vents. If you don't see this, you may need to bake a couple more minutes.
