Good Old-Fashioned, Apple Pie!

Tis’ the season for all things apple and of course my favourite, apple pie! We did our annual apple picking this Fall and it didn’t take me long to whip up my go to pie recipe because I used store bought crust and you can still get as creative as you like with the presentation! I also like making pretty pie tarts which are just as simple to make but look oh so impressive. Below you’ll find both recipes, great to keep on hand for using up them apples and perfect for Thanksgiving dessert.

There’s a lot of debate on which apple is best for baking. I personally like to mix up a combination of two kinds for pies. Here’s a quick round up of some of my favourite varieties: Honey Crisp, Granny Smith, Cortland, Northern Spy, and Golden Delicious.

 

 Recipe adapted from http://canadianliving.com

 

Apple pie ingredients:

• 2 pre-made pie crusts (for top and bottom), defrosted
• 8 cups of apples (2 L), thinly sliced
• 2 tbsp (30 ml) lemon juice
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 3 tbsp all-purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon

Glaze:

• 1 egg yolk, beaten
• 2 tsp granulated sugar

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to prepare baking one of the store bought pie shells, as per directions on the package.
2. Before placing in oven, prick the bottom and sides of the pie shell with a fork.
3. Bake pie crust and once complete, set aside to cool.
4. For the filling, toss the apples with lemon juice in a large bowl.
5. Stir together sugar, flour and cinnamon.
6. Sprinkle the mixture over the apples and toss until well coated.
7. Pour apples into the baked pie shell.
8. Prepare second pie shell by rolling out the dough and gently placing over the apples. Trim remaining border as required and gently press together to seal the top crust with the bottom crust. Cut a few steam vents in the centre of the pie.
9. * For this recipe, I cut out the dough instead using maple leaf cookie cutters and placed them directly onto the apples.
10. Whisk egg yolk with 1 tbsp of water and brush over the crust. Lightly sprinkle with sugar.
11. Bake in oven at 425°F for 15 minutes and then reduce heat and bake at 350°F for 40 minutes or until golden brown.

Next up is the apple tart. It’s super simple, consisting of only a few ingredients and of course store bought puff pastry to make it even easier.

Recipe adapted from http://thepioneerwoman.com

 

Apple tart ingredients:

• 2-3 apples apples, sliced
• 3/4 brown sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• Juice from half a lemon
• 1 sheet store bought puff pastry, defrosted
• dusting of cinnamon

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 425°F.
2. Grease tart pan with butter or vegetable oil.
3. Place puff pastry sheet over the greased pan.
4. In a medium bowl, mix the sugar, salt and lemon juice and toss in the apples.
5. Combine well and let sit for a few minutes.
6. Arrange the apple slices onto the pastry sheet, overlapping as you fill them in.
7. Sprinkle with a dusting of cinnamon.
8. Bake for 20 minutes until golden brown.

And there you have two different pie recipes. Nothing smells more divine than fresh baked apple pie. Enjoy!!