It's Fall. There's a chill in the air. One of the large attractions about Fall is the apple picking in this area. There are so many orchards all over western NY that offer you to come pick your own apples (at a cost). Some of them even have wineries attached! And even if you don't want to go pick your own apples or you don't have time, then most of the nurseries and farmers' markets in the area sell bushels of apples at a very reasonable price.
Last week, I needed about 45 apples to make 7 apple pies for a roast beef dinner at a local church. Unfortunately, I didn't have time to take the family to pick the apples, so I went to a nursery and got a ton of apples for my pie making and I think I paid $.39 a pound (and I bought about 26 lbs of apples). For my pies, I chose Crispins and Jonah Gold apples. I usually like to buy three or four kinds of apples, but time was of the essence and I opted to keep it a bit simpler.
Now, I will tell you a secret about my pies. Yes, they look fantastic and they taste fantastic, too! But... I rarely make my own crust. I absolutely positively do not like making pie crust. It's fickle. I've tried making it with Crisco and with butter, but it either always sticks to my counter, rolling pin, or breaks as I am trying to get it in the pie plate. This is why I love the fact that grocery stores sell pie crust already made in the refrigerator section! And they are so inexpensive, too, which saves me a lot of time and aggravation.
Today, I was going to use my nice glass pie plate, but since we've moved, it appears that it grew legs and has hidden itself forever. Luckily, I had one aluminum pie tin left from all the pies I made last week. It's only of those larger sized pie tins - I think 9.75". I'll have to track that glass one down another day.
I had about 10 large apples left from the pies last week and they were very ripe, so they needed to be used today. When I say large apples, these are about the size of a softball (pretty big for apples) and I think they're all Jonah Golds being that they are all red and Crispins are green. I decided to use 7 of them. Yep, 7 big-a$$ apples. I wanted a heaping pie which I achieved (you'll see below).
Here's what you'll need if you want to replicate my pie...
7 large apples - Jonah Gold, Granny Smith, Crispin are all good (if you're not sure, Google or ask the orchard which are best for pie)
1/4 cup of granulated sugar
1/8 cup of all purpose flour
2 tbsp of cinnamon
1 tsp of ground cloves
1/2-1 tsp of nutmeg (I'm not a huge fan, so I use a little less)
1 tsp of ground ginger (this gives the pie a bit of spice)
1 tbsp of butter, cut into three pieces (optional)
Pre-made Pie Crusts (2)
Here's what you gotta do:
1. Take your pie crusts out of the fridge and let them come to room temp (about 15-20 minutes). Turn your oven on to 400*F.
2. Peel your apples. It's tedious and sticky, but it's worth it.
3. Chop your apples. There's two thoughts on this. I like to make chunks, but several people have told me they slice their apples. I think either is fine. It's going in your belly either way. Do what works for you.
4. In the large bowl that you've thrown your chopped or sliced apples into, add the sugar, flour, and spices.
5. Cover the bowl with Saran Wrap or Aluminum Foil. If your bowl has a plastic cover, then put that on.
6. SHAKE! Turn on some T Swift and Shake that bowl like there's no tomorrow. This spreads the spices and sugar really well and you burn like 4 calories - Woo hoo! If you have a plastic cover on your bowl, turn it over and shake some more (make sure you hold the cover on though while you shake). If you don't have the plastic cover, then just keep shaking. After a minute or so, remove the cover and look at how nicely everything is coated.
7. Prep your pie pan by putting in one of those fabulous pre-made crusts. Unroll carefully and if you have long nails, be careful not to puncture the crust with one.
8. Add the apples to the pan. Then top with the butter (when it melts, it will caramelize some of that sugar for a bit of gooeyness)
9. Add the second crust, pinching together all the way around so that it seals in the apples.
10. Cut some slits into the top crust. You can have fun here - make a design of your choice. I kept it simple on mine.
11. Put your pie tin on a cookie sheet. This is in case your seal breaks and pie juices start leaking out. You don't want pie guts on the bottom of your oven. It's a mess and takes a lot of work to get off the bottom of the oven.
12. Put it in the oven. Bake it at 400* for 45-50 minutes. Ovens are different and some may make your crust burn quickly. You can avoid this by putting foil around the edge of your pie BEFORE you stick it in the oven and then when there's about 20 minutes left, then take the foil off so you get a nice golden brown. I didn't do this for my pie today, but I have done it in the past with previous ovens.
13. Let it cool. That pie will be steaming! You'll want to let it cool for at least 20 minutes before you dig in.
Might I suggest topping this with real whipped cream or some french vanilla ice cream?!
