CARAMEL APPLE CRUMB PIE

Our local farmer’s market had beautiful, big Rome apples recently.  My favorite apples for pie are, in this order:  Stayman Winesap,  Stayman and Rome.  Staymans are hard to find, and Winesaps are almost nonexistent in New Bern, so Rome is my go-to apple for pies.  They become slightly more tangy when baked and hold their shape well. 


The inspiration for this recipe came from Linda Hundt, a multiple prize winner in the Crisco National Pie Contest.  Linda now has her own pie/pastry shop in Michigan where people line up for her pies.  When I read the recipe for her “Grandma Ferrell’s Caramel Apple Pie,” I was put off by the amount of sugar used – 2 cups in the pie and topping plus caramel sauce.  Whew!  No way could I eat that.  Linda also thickens the apples with flour.  I decided to use the parts of her recipe that I liked and change or discard the rest.  That meant adding some whole grains, reducing sugar and replacing some with apple juice concentrate, adding some apple jack brandy and 1 dropper of liquid Vanilla stevia, and most importantly, precooking and cooling the apples before baking. 


Precooking apples takes a little more time, but it eliminates the need for a thickener, because all the juices flow out of the apples when cooked.  As they continue to cook, some of the apple juices are absorbed back into the apples, intensifying the apple flavor.  It makes for a really good pie.  Instead of making Linda’s homemade caramel sauce, I opted to open a jar of Smucker’s Special Recipe Butterscotch Caramel Sauce.  Because the apples in the filling are not overly sweet, the very sweet crumb topping does not overpower the apples, and a bit of caramel sauce really takes the pie over the top. 

A crispy, crunchy, sweet crumb topping over slightly sweet and tangy apple filling, topped with rich and sweet caramel sauce -- this pie is a winner, and one that I would gladly make again.

Caramel Apple Crumb Pie Inspired by Grandma Ferrell’s Caramel Apple Pie Rating:  9.5 out of 10 Click for Printable Page

INGREDIENTS: 1 (9”) deep dish pie crust, homemade or store-bought Crumb Topping:  3/4 cup white whole wheat flour 1/4 cup old-fashioned (5-minute) oats 2/3 cup white sugar 1/4 tsp. sea salt 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, soft Combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix by hand or with a pastry blender until crumbly.  Set aside. Filling:  5 large Rome apples, peeled, cored, quartered, cut into wedges 1-1/4 cups frozen apple juice concentrate, thawed 2 Tbsp. butter 1 tsp. cinnamon 1 tsp. lemon juice 1/4 tsp. sea salt 1 Tbsp. apple brandy 1 dropper liquid Vanilla stevia (or other liquid sweetener equal to about 1 tsp. of sugar + 1/4 tsp. vanilla) Caramel Sauce:  Smucker’s Special Recipe Butterscotch Caramel Sauce, or other caramel sauce of choice Heat oven to 400F.  Combine filling ingredients in 9x12 or larger baking pan.  Bake 25-40 minutes, stirring occasionally, or till apples are barely tender.  Transfer cooked apples to a sheet pan to cool.  Return pan with juices to oven and bake till light syrup forms.  (Time will depend on how juicy your apples were.)  Alternately, you can cook the apples in a large skillet, removing apple wedges as they become tender and cooking the liquid to a syrup.  Either way, scrape the syrup over the cooling apples and toss to combine.  Cool completely, at least one hour, then spoon filling into crust.  Do not put crumb topping on at this time.  Bake pie in lower part of oven 30 minutes.   Transfer to counter and spoon crumb topping over pie.  Return to oven and continue to bake an additional 30 minutes, or till pie bubbles.  If crumb topping browns too quickly, loosely tent aluminum foil over pie.  Cool pie on wire rack for several hours before slicing.  Serve with a large spoonful of warm caramel sauce.

PRIZE-WINNING VANILLA-VANILLA BEAN ROASTED APPLE PIE

In the 2009 Crisco Great American Pie Festival, Dawn Viola’s vanilla apple pie won top honors in the professional category. Dawn, a professional member of the American Culinary Federation, is a food writer, award-winning cook, and nationally recognized artist who has written original recipe articles, food features, cooking instruction documents and commentary for a variety of publications and blogs.

There’s been some hype going around the blogosphere about Dawn’s winning recipe, and I was sucked in. I actually bought every expensive ingredient so that I could make this pie ($12.00/lb for Danish butter + vanilla beans + vanilla powder). This ranks as the most expensive pie I’ve ever made. And, sadly – or happily, depending on how you look at it – I will never make it again.

There were six of us ready to sink our teeth into this delectable-looking pie the day I made it. And all six of us were let down. The consensus was that the pie is over-flavored with vanilla and heavy with fatty butter in the crust and filling. It’s very heavy and rich tasting, to the point where the apples are overwhelmed. In addition, broiling the apples is very time-intensive. It took about a half hour for the amount of apples (13 cups to be exact) to broil properly. You really need to stand right by the broiler the whole time and constantly toss apples to keep them from burning. If you’re looking for a really great pie recipe that delivers a truer apple flavor, try Perfect Apple Pie, the absolute best apple pie I’ve ever tasted, and the hands-down fave of everyone who has tried it. For less work, and almost as good results, try Southern Living's Best-Ever Apple Pie or Food Processor Apple Pie. But, just in case you don’t believe me and need to find out for yourself, I’m printing the recipe below. I’ve rated this pie 7 out of 10. The reason I gave it such high marks is because we did enjoy it. The crust is very flaky and tender and the filling is good – it’s just not good enough to warrant the expense and work involved. Final word: It’s okay to add a little vanilla to an apple pie, but the amount that’s used in this recipe is overkill. And, although butter rocks, you can overdo anything.

Final, final word: It doesn't make me happy to diss a recipe. This pie did win a major prize, and the judges obviously loved it. Dawn clearly came up with a winning combination of flavors, and I'm sure that anyone who makes this pie will love it. I'm just sayin'...

Vanilla-Vanilla Bean Roasted Apple Pie Source: Dawn Viola, 2009 Crisco Great American Pie Festival Professional Category Rating: 7 out of 10 PRINTABLE RECIPE

INGREDIENTS: Crust: 2-1/2 cups flour 2 tsp. salt 1 Tbsp. vanilla powder 3 Tbsp. sugar 1 vanilla bean, split, seeds scraped 2-1/2 sticks unsalted Danish butter, cut into 1/2” cubes 1 Tbsp. white vinegar, chilled 6-8 Tbsp. ice water Filling: 4 Tbsp. Danish butter 12 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, sliced in large chunks (about 13 cups) 1 vanilla bean, split, seeds scraped 2 tsp. cinnamon 1 cup sugar 4 Tbsp. flour 1 tsp. salt 1/2 cup apple cider 1 Tbsp. heavy cream 1 tsp. vanilla extract (Dawn left this out of the ingredient list, and I’m guessing the amount.) Egg Wash: 1 egg 1 Tbsp. cream coarse sugar Measure out all crust ingredients and place in freezer 15 minutes. Place the food processor blade & bowl in freezer for 15 minutes. Combine flour, salt, vanilla powder, sugar & vanilla bean seeds in food processor; pulse to mix. Add butter cubes; pulse 10 times, or till mixture is like coarse meal with pea-sized pieces. Add vinegar; pulse to mix. Add 1 Tbsp. water at a time, pulsing to incorporate, till mixture begins to clump together. Pinch some dough in your hand. If it sticks together, the dough is ready. If dough does not stick to itself, add another Tbsp. of water, pulse and pinch dough again. Repeat till dough holds together without being overly wet. Remove dough from processor; transfer to work surface. Dive into two equal parts and gently shape into two flat round discs. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour. Preheat broiler. Add apples, vanilla bean seeds, cinnamon and 2 Tbsp. of the sugar to a roasting pan; toss apples to coat. Broil until the tops of the apples begin to brown. Toss apples as they brown. Once apples are caramelized, remove from heat and add remaining sugar, flour, vanilla extract and salt. Add apple cider & cream; stir to incorporate. Taste for seasoning, add salt, sugar, vanilla or cinnamon to taste. Place a 9” pie plate in freezer. Remove one dough disc from fridge and let sit at room temperature 5-10 minutes, or till easy enough to roll, but still chilled. Lightly flour work surface; roll dough out to 12” circle. Place in bottom of the chilled pie plate. Return to fridge to chill. Remove after 5 minutes and add apples. Remove second dough disc and roll out to 1” circle on lightly floured surface. Place on top of apples and pinch top and bottom dough edges together to enclose apples. Add decorate edge if desired. Slice 1” air vents around top of pie. Beat egg in small dish; mix in cream; lightly brush over top of pie and along edges. Sprinkle with coarse sugar. Bake at 400F 30 minutes. Cover edges with aluminum foil if needed. Turn pie in oven and continue to cook for another 15 minutes, or longer until crust is golden brown and flakey and apples are cooked through. Transfer pie to wire rack and cool at least 2 hours before serving.

APPLE COBBLER CROSTADA WITH WARM CARAMEL SAUCE

I was halfway through this yummy dessert when I remembered the camera sitting on the counter.

Crostada is a nice dessert for a casual dinner. It's less fussy than a pie but tastes just as good. You can make it with regular old pie crust, or you can use a basic sweet dough recipe. It'll be good either way.

Who doesn't like apple pie? And for this recipe, the apples are cooked twice. Uh oh -- too much work, you say? It's worth it, I say -- it keeps the

filling from getting too runny, and it intensifies the flavor of the apples. Try it once and you'll be convinced it's the best way to make an apple pie -- or an apple crostada.

Apple Cobbler Crostada with Warm Caramel Sauce

Source: Adapted from NBC11.com

Rating: 8 out of 10

INGREDIENTS:

1. Dough: Your favorite pastry dough for a one-crust pie

2. Filling: 4-1/2 cups tart apples (I used a mixture of Rome and Winesap)

1 tsp. lemon juice

2 Tbsp. frozen apple juice concentrate

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 cup brown sugar

2 Tbsp. white sugar

pinch sea salt

2 Tbsp. Smart Balance 50/50 Butter Blend

In a large bowl, combine the apples, lemon juice, apple juice concentrate, cinnamon, sugars and salt, mixing well. In a heavy-bottomed pan, melt the SB over high heat. Add the apple mixture and cook till apples are tender and juices are cooked down, stirring constantly. This only takes a few minutes. Remove from heat and cool thoroughly. (I usually take the apples out of the pan and put them in another cooler baking pan to stop the cooking process.)

3. Cobbler Topping:

INGREDIENTS: 1/4 cup whole wheat flour

2 Tbsp. quick oats

pinch sea salt

2 Tbsp. sugar

1/2 tsp. molasses

1 Tbsp. SB 50/50 Butter Blend

Combine all ingredients in bowl of food processor; pulse till mixture is like pebbles. Refrigerate till ready to use.

4. Caramel Sauce: I took the easy way out and used Smucker's Butterscotch-Caramel Sauce.

5. Assembly: Preheat oven to 375F. Roll the dough out into a 12-13" circle. Place the apple mixture in center, leaving about 3" of dough on the outsides. Sprinkle with the cobbler topping. Fold the sides of the dough up, allowing dough to fold over onto itself on the sides (see photo above), creating a pinwheel appearance. Press the package tight and refrigerate until chilled. Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until nicely golden brown and filling bubbles. Serve with a scoop of vanilla bean ice cream and a drizzle of warm caramel sauce. Yield: 6-8 servings

SOUTHERN LIVING'S BEST-EVER APPLE PIE (DOUBLE APPLE PIE WITH CORNMEAL CRUST)

I'm always up for a new apple pie recipe, even though I think I've found the perfect apple pie. So when the September 2008 issue of Southern Living Magazine came, I clipped this recipe out and waited for a chance to make it. That chance came last Sunday, when we had dinner company. I served the pie warm, with ice cream and the caramel sauce, and it was good. But the next day, I ate some cold with cold caramel sauce, and it was spectacular. Don't ask me why. Conventional wisdom says that apple pie is better warm. But this apple pie is different. First off, the crust kind of disappears over the apples when it's warm. But when the pie is cold, the crust comes back. And the crust is not something you want to disappear from an apple pie, right? There were a few things I had to change because I didn't have the ingredients, and other things were changed because I didn't want to use the ingredients mentioned. I'm partial to Rome and Winesap apples. I've tried Granny Smith, and I don't like the way they hold up in pies, so I used a mixture of Rome and Winesap. Use the apples you like. The recipe calls for 4-1/2 lbs. of apples; I used 12 cups, which is slightly less, but it was plenty. I didn't have apple jelly, and I didn't want to buy some just for this pie, so I subbed Smucker's Simply Fruit, apricot. I added some apple juice concentrate because I like to use it with apples to intensify the flavor. I like to use tapioca in fruit pies when I can, instead of flour or cornstarch, so I subbed that. Because the tapioca chunks were not dissolved when the pie went into the oven, I couldn't use the apple juices to baste the crust or I would get tapioca chunks on top of the crust; so I used a little apple juice concentrate mixed with sugar to baste the top of the pie, and it worked just fine. And, lastly, I didn't have any brandy for the caramel sauce. I had Hazelnut liqueur, and took a chance on it. The caramel sauce was the bomb, even though I reduced the sugar by 1/2 cup. This is a great pie, one that I would make again. It's still not my fave, but it's darn good, especially with the caramel sauce. But instead of ice cream, try plain sour cream or creme fraiche, because, amazingly, the pie is quite sweet, even though there's not a ton of sugar in it. Someone commented that they could actually taste the apples. I had ice cream on my pie when it was warm Sunday night. The next day, I had a cold piece of leftover pie with plain sour cream on it and the caramel sauce, and it was better, not as sweet, and the sour cream really complemented everything very well. One last note: the biggest problem you'll encounter with this pie is keeping the crust from burning. When you pile up all those apples, the pie takes longer to bake, so you have to be careful to protect the crust. The recipe below is the original with notes on my changes.

Southern Living's Best-Ever Apple Pie
(Double Apple Pie with Cornmeal Crust)
Rating: 9 out of 10
INGREDIENTS:
CORNMEAL CRUST DOUGH: 2-1/3 cups all-purpose flour (scoop method)
1/4 cup whole-grain plain yellow cornmeal
2 Tbsp. sugar
3/4 tsp. sea salt
3/4 cup cold butter (1-1/2 sticks), cut into 1/2" pieces
1/4 cup chilled vegetable shortening, cut into 1/2" pieces
8-10 Tbsp. chilled apple cider (I used apple juice concentrate mixed with a little water)
1 Tbsp. of reserved apple juices + 1 tsp. sugar (or 1 Tbsp. apple juice concentrate + 1 tsp. sugar) for basting top of pie crust

PIE FILLING:
2-1/4 lb. Granny Smith apples
2-1/4 lb. Braeburn apples (I used 6 cups Rome + 6 cups Stayman Winesap)
1/4 cup all-purpose flour (I used 4 Tbsp. instant tapioca)
2 Tbsp. apple jelly (I used 3 Tbsp. Smucker's Simply Fruit, Apricot)
1 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
3 Tbsp. frozen apple juice concentrate (MY ADDITION)
1/4 tsp. sea salt
1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/3 cup sugar (I used 3/4 cup;everyone thought it was perfect; I thought it was sweet.)
1 Tbsp. butter, cut into pieces + 3 Tbsp. sugar for top of filling (I used 2 Tbsp. butter + 1/4 cup sugar)

BRANDY-CARAMEL SAUCE:
1 cup heavy cream (I used slightly less)
1-1/2 cups firmly packed brown sugar (I used 1 cup)
2 Tbsp. butter
2 Tbsp. brandy (I used Hazelnut liqueur)
1 tsp. vanilla extract

MAKE THE CRUST: Stir together first 4 ingredients in a large bowl. Cut butter and shortening into flour mixture with a pastry blender until mixture resembles small peas. Mound mixture on 1 side of bowl. Drizzle 1 Tbsp. cider along edge of mixture in bowl. Using a fork, gently toss a small amount of flour mixture into cider just until dry ingredients are moistened; move mixture to other side of bowl. Repeat procedure with remaining cider and flour mixture. Gently gather dough into two flat disks. Wrap in plastic wrap, and chill 1-24 hours. (My notes: This is a great method if you don't have a food processor. My Cuisinart 11-cup food processor has the highest rating for pastries, because the blades stop immediately when you lift up on the pulse button. So I put everything in the work bowl and gently and quickly pulsed with quick on/off motions, so as not to overwork the dough. The crust was very flaky, and this was less work.)

PREPARE THE PIE:
1. Preheat oven to 425F. Peel and core apples; cut into 1/2" thick wedges. (I cut into 1/4" slices, my preference.) Place apples in a large bowl. Stir in next 7 ingredients. Let stand 30 minutes, gently stirring occasionally. (I let my apples sit for 1 hour, stirring occasionally.)

2. Roll out 1 pie crust on a lightly floured piece of wax paper; sprinkle dough lightly with flour. Top with another sheet of wax paper. Roll dough to about 1/8" thickness, about 11" wide.

3. Remove and discard top sheet of wax paper. Starting at 1 edge of dough, wrap dough around rolling pin, separating dough from bottom sheet of wax paper as you roll. Discard bottom sheet of wax paper. Place rolling pin over a 9" glass pie plate, and unroll dough over pie plate. Gently press dough into pie plate.

4. Stir apple mixture; reserve 1 Tbsp. juices. (If using tapioca, do not reserve juices; instead use 1 Tbsp. apple juice concentrate + 1 tsp. sugar.) Spoon apples into crust, packing tightly and mounding in center. Pour remaining juices in bowl over apples. Sprinkle apples with 3 Tbsp. sugar; dot with butter.

5. Roll remaining Cornmeal Crust Dough disk as directed in Step 2 above, rolling dough to about 1/8" thickness (13" wide). Remove and discard wax paper, and place dough over filling; fold edges under, sealing to bottom crust, and crimp. Brush top of pie, excluding fluted edges, lightly with reserved juices from apples (or apple juice concentrate); sprinkle with 1 tsp. sugar. Place pie on a jelly-roll pan. Cut 4-5 slits in top of pie for steam to escape.

6. Bake at 425 on lower oven rack 15 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 35F; transfer pie to middle oven rack, and bake 35 minutes. Cover loosely with aluminum foil to prevent excessive brownig, and bake 30 more minutes or until juices are thick and bubbly, crust is golden brown, and apples are tender when pierced with a long wooden pick through slits in crust. Remove to a wire rack. Cool 1-1/2 to 2 hours before serving. Serve with Brandy-Caramel Sauce.

MAKE BRANDY-CARAMEL SAUCE:
1. Bring heavy cream to a light boil in a large saucepan over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Add sugar and cook, stirring occasionally, 4-5 minutes, or till sugar is dissolved and mixture is smooth. (I cooked it for more like 10-15 minutes.)
2. Remove from heat, and stir in butter, brandy and vanilla. Let cool 10 minutes.
(You can store this in the fridge for up to 1 week. To reheat, let stand at room temperature 30 minutes. Place mixture in a microwave-safe bowl and microwave at high 1 minute, stirring after 30 seconds. But it's great cold!) Yield: about 2 cups

APPLE PIE '63, adapted

Yes, it really is a Bake-Off Cookbook. In 1964, for 35 cents, I got all 100 recipes from the 14th Grand National Bake-Off. And now, you can find every recipe from the past 50+ years of bakeoffs online at pillsbury.com.

Pillsbury's 14th Grand National Bake-Off produced this cutting-edge winning recipe, originated by Mrs. Erwin Smogor of South Bend, Indiana. The grand prize in 1963 was $25,000.

Mrs. Smogor probably wouldn't win the Pillsbury $1,000,000 with this recipe now, since the trend in recipes is fewer ingredients, less prep time. I love this recipe -- it makes it possible to serve apple pie to a group of 24 people, so it's great for a party. We had dinner company on Sunday, and I decided to make this for dessert. I was hoping to reduce that bag of self-rising flour still sitting in my pantry. The recipe does state that self-rising flour can be subbed; but there is no baking powder or soda in the crust recipe, and that should have been my clue. The crust was terrible, though no one seemed to mind. It was more like a muffin bottom -- so take a tip from me and don't use self-rising flour when you make this. And you really should make it, because it's a wonderful recipe that has endured through the years. I found blogs where people stated they make it all the time instead of traditional apple pie.

Some notes: 1. Whenever possible, I always cook my apples twice, because it intensifies the flavors. I take the liquid that is left after cooking the apples and reduce it to a syrup. The difference in flavor by doing this is just amazing -- it's like the difference between toasting nuts and using them raw. It is, however, more work.

2. Instead of unwrapping all the little caramels (ugh -- the kind of work I hate), I opted to use a jar of caramel sundae sauce. This cut time and worked really well, so I guess it counteracted the additional time of pre-cooking the apples and reducing the apple liquid to a syrup.

3. I created the cardinal sin of pastry mixing: I added all the liquids at once instead of using 3/4 and checking if any more was needed. Please don't pour all the liquids in at once. You might end up with a soupy mess, which is what happened to me. Then I added more SR flour -- probably should have added oats or all-purpose flour in hindsight. Is it any wonder the crust was awful? The amazing thing is this dessert was still delicious. It's hard to kill.

4. If you want to see the updated Pillsbury version of this recipe, go to pillsbury.com and do a search for "Apple Pie '63."

Apple Pie '63, adapted

INGREDIENTS:
Caramel topping: 1 small jar of caramel sundae sauce

Crust:
2-1/2 cups all purpose unbleached or self-rising flour (omit salt if using self-rising flour)
1/4 cup sugar
1-1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 cup margarine or butter
1/4 cup oil
1/4 cup water
1 egg

Apple filling: 9 cups sliced peeled apples
3/4 cup sugar + 1/4 cup apple juice concentrate
2 Tbsp. butter
2 Tbsp. flour
1 tsp. lemon zest
2 Tbsp. lemon juice

Cheesecake Topping: 1 (8 oz.) pkg. Neufchatel cheese
1/4 cup sugar
1 egg
1/2 tsp. vanilla

Other: 1/3 cup chopped or broken walnuts

DIRECTIONS: 1. Prepare apple filling: Preheat oven to 400F. Combine apples, sugar, apple juice concentrate and butter in large baking pan (10 x 15 x 3), tossing to combine well. Bake 20-25 minutes, or till apples are tender. Remove from oven. Transfer apples to a 12 x 17 baking sheet to cool, reserving liquid in the 10x15x3 pan. Up the heat to 425F. Place the liquid back in the oven and bake for an additional 10 minutes, or till liquid is slightly syruppy and somewhat reduced. Pour the liquid over the apples. Sprinkle the 2 Tbsp. flour over the apples and toss to combine. Set aside to cool thoroughly while you prepare the other parts. Reduce oven heat to 375F.

2. Prepare crust: In workbowl of food processor, combine flour, sugar, salt and butter. Pulse till mixture is like cornmeal. In small bowl, whisk the oil, water and egg till frothy. Slowly add about 3/4 of this liquid to the dry ingredients, pulsing till it is incorporated. Add only enough liquid to make the mixture come together like a pie crust dough. Press this mixture onto bottom and sides of a 10" x 15" jelly roll pan. (You can roll it out if you want, but it's easier to just press it onto the pan with your fingers.)

3. Prepare cream cheese topping: Wipe work bowl and blades of food processor with damp paper towel (you don't need to get every speck of dough out of bowl). Combine cheese and sugar in work bowl and pulse till smooth. Add egg and vanilla and pulse till combined.

4. Assemble the dessert: Spoon the now-cooled apple filling over the crust evenly. Spoon the cream cheese topping in diagonal strips over top of apples. Spoon the caramel sauce in between the cheese topping. Sprinkle the walnuts over the caramel sauce. Bake for 35-45 minutes. Cool on wire rack for several hours, then refrigerate till thoroughly cooled. Serve cold. Cut in 24 squares.

FOOD PROCESSOR APPLE PIE

My new Cuisinart came with a recipe booklet. The apple pie recipe in the booklet was for a 2-crust pie, but I used a crumb topping instead. If you have a food processor, this recipe is easy and delicious. I liked it almost as much as my favorite pie recipe (see previous post, "Perfect Apple Pie"). The apples, of course, did not have the intensity and depth of flavor that comes from cooking them twice, but this pie made up fast and everyone, including me, liked it. I will make it again when I don't have the time to cook the apples, let them cool and then make the pie like I do for my favorite. If you don't have a food processor you can still make this pie, it will just take you longer.

Food Processor Apple Pie

INGREDIENTS: Pastry for 9.5" pie
Crumb Topping: 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 cup quick oats
pinch sea salt
1/4 cup sugar (I used 2 Tbsp. sugar, 1 tsp. Stevia+)
1 tsp. molasses
5 Tbsp. cold unsalted butter (I used 2 Tbsp. butter + 3 Tbsp.
Smart Balance
Filling: 1 cup sugar (I used 1/2 cup sugar + 1 Tbsp. Stevia+)
4 Tbsp. flour
1-1/2 tsp. cinnamon (I omitted nutmeg)
4 Tbsp. butter (I used 2 Tbsp. butter +2 Tbsp. Smart Balance)
5 large apples (I used 3 Rome + 2 Granny Smith) (about 6-1/2 - 7 cups sliced)
2 tsp. fresh lemon juice (my addition)

DIRECTIONS: In workbowl of food processor, combine crumb topping ingredients and pulse till butter is size of peas. It's ok if there are a few larger pieces, just not too large and not too many. Pour this out into a bowl or container and set aside in fridge. (Note: You're going to use the workbowl 3 separate times for this pie -- for the crumb topping, for the filling and to slice the apples -- and you don't have to clean it out in between.)

Adjust oven shelf to lowest setting. Place pizza stone or some bricks on bottom shelf of oven. Preheat oven to 375F. Roll out pie crust and fit into 9.5" deep dish pie pan. Refrigerate. Use the metal blade of the food processor to process the sugar, flour, cinnamon and butter. Pour this into a large mixing bowl. Insert the standard slicing disc. Peel, core and quarter the apples. Slice the apples and place them in the large bowl with the flour/sugar mixture. Sprinkle the lemon juice over the apples and toss them to evenly distribute the lemon juice and the flour/sugar mixture over them. Place the apples in the pie crust, mounding them in the center. Spoon the crumb topping over, patting down gently over the apples. Pie will be fairly high, but will condense after it bakes as it cools. Place the pie pan on a piece of tinfoil and then onto the pizza stone. (The tinfoil will catch drips, if any. I didn't have any, but it probably depends on the juiciness of the apples.) Bake for 1 hour, or until pie begins to bubble. Test the pie for doneness by inserting a fork or knife in the center. If it enters easily, apples are done. If there is any resistance, bake pie until there is no resistance. Serves 8-12, depending on the size of slice. This is a high thick pie and you can cut the slices thinner because there's a lot of apples inside. What I like about this recipe is that you don't need to cover the pie to keep the top or the crust from burning. 375F is a perfect pie baking temperature to properly cook the apples and the crust.

If you want to take this pie over the top, serve it with purchased caramel sundae sauce drizzled over each slice and a nice scoop of sweetened or plain creme fraiche. (I made an easy creme fraiche by combining 3/4 cup heavy cream with 2 Tbsp. lite sour cream. I let it sit overnight in fridge, then whipped it with a little Stevia+ and some vanilla paste.)

PERFECT APPLE PIE

In the November 2002 issue of Food and Wine magazine, Dana Cowin, then food editor, authored an article entitled, "One Person's Quest for the Perfect Apple Pie." It was the chronicle of her search to duplicate the apple pie of her childhood. She was patiently assisted in this quest by author and cook Peggy Cullen, who, after 9 attempts, was successful in recreating a pie that satisfied Dana. I have made this pie three times. The first two times I followed the recipe exactly except for using different apples (her recipe uses Golden Delicious apples). It was outstanding, but then how could it not be with 2 sticks of butter -- one in the filling and one in the crust, in addition to 1/2 cup vegetable shortening? For this pie, , I halved the butter in the filling and used a different pie crust recipe to reduce the fat somewhat. I also reduced the sugar in the filling, used frozen apple juice concentrate and added a bit of brandy. The pie was every bit as good. This is an outstanding recipe, but it does take a little work. I think it's worth the effort for the wonderful deep flavor you get from precooking the apples and reducing the sauce before making the pie. I usually make this pie with a double crust; however, my original plan was to bake an apple crostada and a pumpkin pie for Thanksgiving. I inadvertently used the crostada crust for the pumpkin pie, so decided to make a regular apple pie instead of a crostada. The crostada called for a crumble topping which I had already made, so I used it for this pie. It was absolutely delicious!!

Perfect Apple Pie

INGREDIENTS: Your favorite pie crust

6 cups Rome apples, peeled, seeded, quartered, cut into 3 pieces each quarter

juice of 1 lemon (about 1 Tbsp.)

4 Tbsp. butter

1/2 cup sugar & 1 tsp. molasses (or 1/2 cup brown sugar)

1/3 cup frozen apple juice concentrate

2 Tbsp. brandy

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1-1/2 Tbsp. all-purpose flour

Crumble Topping: 1/2 cup whole-wheat flour

1/4 cup quick oats

pinch of sea salt

1/4 cup brown sugar (or 2 Tbsp. brown sugar + 2 tsp. Stevia Plus

5 Tbsp. butter (or 2 Tbsp. butter + 3 Tbsp. Smart Balance)

DIRECTIONS: Prepare pastry crust of your choice and line a 9" pie plate with it. Trim the overhang. Refrigerate. Prepare the pie filling: Toss the apples with the lemon juice in a large bowl. In a 12-inch skillet, melt the butter over low heat and stir in the sugar, molasses, apple juice concentrate and brandy. Add the apples and juice, and turn the apples to coat them. Increase heat to high and cook, turning occasionally, until apples are tender but not mushy or overcooked, about 10-15 minutes. Do not overcook. (Note: Although I use mostly Rome apples for pies, I usually add some other apples, such as Granny Smith, Delicious, Cortland, or whatever else looks good in the store. Because I use a mix, they will get done at different times. I stand over the skillet and remove the slices that are done, one by one, onto a cookie sheet. When we lived in the Northeast, Winesap apples were available, and they made the best apple pie; but Winesaps are not available in the Southeast, so I mostly use Rome apples. Rome apples keep their shape better than a MacIntosh or Granny Smith. The Willilamsburg Inn uses Rome Beauty apples for their pies. For this pie, I used 4 cups Rome apples, 1 cup Cortland apples, 1 cup Mountaineer apples) Here's a photo of the apples being cooked, with some of them already removed to the cookie sheet:

Cook the juices that remain in the skillet for a few minutes to reduce and thicken slightly. Remove skillet from heat and set aside. Sprinkle the flour and cinnamon over the apples and toss till flour is incorporated. Pour the thickened apple juices over the apples. Cool completely, for at least 1 hour.

While apples are cooling, prepare crumble topping (if using): Combine all ingredients in work bowl of food processor and pulse several times till butter is in tiny pea-sized or smaller pieces. If you don't have a food processor, then cut the butter into the other ingredients as you would for a pie crust. After apples have cooled, preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. and place a pizza stone on bottom half of oven. Arrange the apples in the pie shell; drizzle the juices over them. If using top crust, put it on and trim the pie. If using crumble topping, carefully place it on top of pie, distributing it evenly over the top. Place pie on pizza stone and bake for 15 minutes, then reduce heat to 375 and bake for 30-35 minutes longer, or until the filling starts to bubble. (If crust browns too quickly, cover with foil. Transfer the pie to a wire rack and let cool for at least 1 hour before cutting into wedges and serving.