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Double Crust Apple Pie

I love fruits pies, and the all American apple pie happens to be in the list of my favorites. Homemade all American apple pie is my double favorite. Guess what. It is really really really not that difficult to put together. You know how to make a perfect pie crust already. All that’s left to do is you throw together your apple filling in seconds, fill the bottom crust with it, cover the filling with the second crust, bake and enjoy!

Double Crust Apple Pie
Adapted from “Martha Stewart’s Cooking School”

For the Filling:
3 pounds assorted baking apples (such as Granny Smith, Mutsu, Golden Delicious, Braeburn, or any available), peeled, cored and cut into 1/4-inch (6 mm) thick slices
3/4 cup granulated sugar
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour or 1+1/2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juices
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon (or 1 teaspoons if you like your apples more cinnamon-y)
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger (optional)
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons unsalted butter cut ito pieces

For the Crust:
Pie Crust (Pâte Brisée)

For Finishing:
1 large egg yolk
1 tablespoons heavy cream
About 1 tablespoon granulated sugar, for sprinkling

Directions:

Prepare filling: In a mixing bowl, stir together the apples, sugar, flour, lemon juice, cinnamon, if using, ginger and salt.

Assemble pie: Roll 1 dough disk and place on a pie plate (follow directions here), fill with apple mixture, dot with butter.  Roll the second dough disk and drape over filling. Use kitchen shears to trim overhang of both crusts to 1 inch (2.5 cm). Press edges to seal. Fold overhang under, and crimp edges: with thumb and index finger of one hand, gently press dough against index finger of other hand. Continue around pie. Make five 3-inch (7.5 cm) long slits in top crust. Refrigerate pie for 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 400F (205C).

Continue Reading… Double Crust Apple Pie

Pie Crust (Pâte Brisée) - Step by Step

Making pie crust, or pâte brisée, from scratch is easy as pie. Seriously. It’s not rocket science. Ok, some store bought pies may be good but once you make your own, you never look back. It’s all about crust - a good crust makes a pie perfect! All you need is to arm yourself with a foolproof pie crust recipe and you will do wonders. I do encourage you to try your hands at making your own pie crust.  You will say at the end, “Goodness gracious, this was easy as pie!.” Once you’ve mastered the technique, we will move on to making a pie together. I have a recipe already. Stay tuned.

Pie Crust (Pâte Brisée)
Adapted from “Martha Stewart’s Cooking School”

Makes enough for two 9- or 10-inch (23- or 25-cm) single-crust pies or one 9- or 10-inch (23- or 25-cm) double crust pie

Martha Stewart’s all butter crust recipe is great perfect for sweet and savory pies and tarts! I’ve only adjusted the amount of salt and woven my own directions and observations into the recipe. The original recipes lets you decide if you want to make your dough in a food processor or use your hands for it. I choose hands. First, because my food processor is not fancy and big, second, my hands take less time and effort to wash. Third, I like to feel the dough at all times. There is nothing wrong with eliminating a third party, food processor, in making your perfect pie crust. Feel free to join me. Here it comes. One crucial moment - it’s all about butter - make sure it is cold!

Ingredients:
2+ 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons (2+1/4 sticks; 1 cup = 8 ounces / 225 g) COLD (very cold! if your butter is not cold, the recipe won’t work) unsalted butter, cut into 3/4-inch (1.9 cm) pieces
7 to 9 tablespoons ice water

Combine the dry ingredients: In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar and salt by hand.

Cut in butter: Add butter and quickly cut in with a pastry blender or your fingertips. The mixture should have pieces ranging from coarse crumbs to the size of small peas.

Add water: Drizzle 7 tablespoons of ice cold water over flour mixture, and mix with a fork until dough just holds together when pinched. If it doesn’t hold together, drizzle a little more water (take care not to overdo with water!) and mix.  The mixture should retain a crumbly texture at this point. It should not be sticky.

Shape and chill dough: Turn out dough onto a clean work surface. Knead once or twice to incorporate loose bits. Divide in half. Pat each half into a thick disk, then place on a piece of plastic wrap and gather wrap to flatten disk. Wrap tightly in plastic and refrigerate at least 1 hour (or overnight). Dough can be frozen up to 1 month; thaw in refrigerator overnight before using.

Continue Reading… Pie Crust (Pâte Brisée) - Step by Step