award winning apple pie (and it's super simple to make!)
I am a huge fan of apple pie. But not just any apple pie. This one. This recipe is so amazing that you'll start making it all year 'round.
And you may just need to buy a bigger pair of pants...because I dare you not to forgo a plate and simply set the whole thing in front of you.
Hopefully, you can show more restraint than me.
Look at the ingredients: butter, brown sugar, granulated sugar, cinnamon, apples, egg white.
Simple, easy, likely on hand (other than perhaps the pie crust)!
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. While it's warming, place the butter into the pie plate and slide it into the oven. Keep an eye on it since it's not much butter and it'll melt fairly quickly.
While you're waiting for the butter to melt, get started peeling the skin off the apples, and cut them thinly.
Tip: Cutting the apple thinly is one of the secrets to an incredible pie.
When they are thin, they cook so perfectly that they nearly melt in your mouth. It takes a little longer, but I promise...it's worth the extra few minutes!
TIP: Toss apple slices into a gallon sized ziplock.
After your apples are all in the bag, pour in the sugar and cinnamon. Make sure you close the bag well and shake, shake, shake! The apples will be perfectly coated.
When you shake the bag though, make SURE you hold onto the top of the bag tightly! Know that the zipper strength on some brands aren't great...do NOT let your apples go flying! (Not that I've had that happen. Oops!)
Once the butter in your pie dish is melted, pour in the brown sugar, stirring until mixed.
You may think there's not enough butter to have it mix well, but refrain from adding more. It'll just make your pie greasy. Keep mixing, it should look like the photo above.
Once the consistency looks similar to wet sand, grab a spatula (or your hands) and press it all down flat. Really push it down hard so it's locked into the bottom and sides.
Now it's time for the dough! I purchase ours, but I know there are tons of recipes. I'm not including any because well...I go the easy store-bought route.
Pour in the apples!
The top is the fun part because we get to experiment and just play. I cut super thin pieces and braided them together, looping them around the outside.
Using the same braiding technique, I paired them with both thin and thick strips of pie dough, weaving them together like I was doing a project in preschool. It was so fun.
There's really no wrong way to do it.
Tip: Don't skip these next two steps!
Little Elsabet woke from her nap when I was finishing up weaving the dough together so I let her paint on the egg whites.
This is what will make the crust have a little sheen and will help it brown beautifully.
While the egg white "paint" is still wet, shake on a bit of granulated sugar.
Sweet Elsabet used a bit more than I'd recommend to you, but if you get too much on the crust, just brush it off lightly with your fingers.
It should look something like the above photo.
That's it! Slide your pretty pie into the oven (I obviously took the flowers off, placing them back on when the pie was cool)!
TIP: This pie is even better the next day.
If you eat it while it's still warm, it will be really soupy. Wait until the bottom layer (butter + brown sugar) solidify again now that they'll be mixed with the juice from the apples. Ohmygosh that bottom layer is just the best part.
Ingredients:
2 pounds Granny Smith apples
2 pounds Honeycrisp apples
3 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup butter
1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
2 (14.1-oz.) package refrigerated pie crusts (one for beneath, one for top)
1 egg white (to paint on top crust)
2 tablespoons granulated sugar (to sprinkle on top crust)
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350º. Peel apples, and cut into 1/2-inch-thick wedges (or smaller!). Toss apples with cinnamon and 3/4 cup granulated sugar.
Melt butter in pie plate; add brown sugar, and cook, stirring constantly, 1 to 2 minutes or until sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat, and place 1 piecrust in skillet over brown sugar mixture. Spoon apple mixture over piecrust, and top with remaining piecrust. Whisk egg white until foamy. Brush top of piecrust with egg white; sprinkle with 2 Tbsp. granulated sugar. Cut 4 or 5 slits in top for steam to escape.
Bake at 350º for 1 hour to 1 hour and 10 minutes or until golden brown and bubbly, shielding with aluminum foil during last 10 minutes to prevent excessive browning, if necessary. Cool on a wire rack 30 minutes before serving. Serve with butter-pecan ice cream.
I don't think I've won anything since the hula-hooping contest in 8th grade (yes, I was that cool). But THIS pie won first place in my husband's office pie contest.
You know, as in pie = 3.15...so the contest was on March 15 (3/15/2017).
Anyway, my pie won. YAY!! I promise you'll love it.
x o
Teresa
Originally posted in April, 2017. How tiny and darling is Elsabet?!