Double Crust Apple Butter Pie Food

DOUBLE CRUST APPLE BUTTER PIE

Steps:

• To mix the dough by hand: In a large bowl, whisk together the flour and salt. Add the butter cubes, tossing them through the flour until each piece is well coated. Cut the butter into the flour by pressing the pieces between your palms or your fingers, flattening the cubes into big shards and continuing to toss them through the flour, recoating the shingled pieces.
• For a flaky crust, continue cutting the butter into the flour just until the pieces of butter are about the size of walnut halves.
• Make a well in the center of the flour mixture. Add 6 tablespoons ice water and mix to incorporate. Then add more ice water 1 tablespoon at a time and continue mixing just until the dough comes together. As it begins to come together, you can knead it a few times to make sure it's fully combined. It's important not to add too much water to the dough, which should never be sticky--it should hold together easily in a ball but still feel almost dry to the touch.
• Divide the dough in half and shape into 2 equal disks. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and chill for at least 30 minutes or up to overnight.
• Lightly flour the work surface. Roll out one disk of the dough to a circle 1/4 inch thick: Start in the center of the disk of dough and push away from you using even pressure. Return to the center and repeat, this time moving toward you. Continue, rotating the dough occasionally and reflouring as needed to prevent the dough from sticking. This produces a more even result than just rolling back and forth, which can often yield thin edges and a thick center.
• To transfer the dough to the pie pan, roll the dough up onto the rolling pin, starting at the far edge of the round. With the pie pan in front of you, start at the edge closest to you and gently unfurl the dough into the pan. Press gently to make sure the crust settles all the way to the bottom, but be careful not to poke any holes in the dough. Trim away the excess dough, leaving a 1/2-inch overhang all around. Chill in the refrigerator for 20 to 30 minutes or freeze for 5 to 10 minutes.
• Roll out the second disk of dough on a lightly floured surface to 1/4 inch thick and place on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Chill in the refrigerator for 20 to 30 minutes or freeze for 5 to 10 minutes.
• Make the filling: In a medium bowl, whisk together the apple butter, sugar, and eggs until well combined. Pour into the chilled bottom crust.
• Roll the top crust up onto the rolling pin, starting at the far edge of the dough. With the pie pan in front of you, start at the edge closest to you and gently unfurl the dough onto the filling. Use your fingers to press the edges of the bottom and top crusts together so they are lightly sealed. Trim the excess dough from the edges, leaving a 1/2-inch overhang all around. Tuck the excess dough under at the edges, pressing lightly to help "seal" the dough to the outer rim of the pie pan.
• Crimp the edges of the piecrust as desired. I refrigerate the pie for 20 to 30 minutes.
• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F (218 degrees C), preferably with a baking stone on the bottom rack.
• Make the egg wash: In a small bowl, beat the egg with the water and fine sea salt.
• Brush the top crust with the egg wash and sprinkle generously with turbinado sugar. Use a small sharp knife to cut a dew small vents in the crust. Bake the pie on the stone or bottom rack until the crust is deeply golden and the filling is bubbling up through the vents, 40 to 45 minutes. If the crust begins to brown too quickly, reduce the oven temperature to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C) and/or tent the crust or edges with foil. Cool the pie for at least 30 minutes before serving.

CLASSIC TWO CRUST APPLE PIE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425°F.
• Peel, core and thinly and thickly slice the apples; toss with lemon juice if using.
• Combine and mix apples, sugar, flour, cinnamon and nutmeg; pour into crust-lined pie plate; dot with butter.
• Place top crust, seal and vent; cover edges of crust with narrow band of aluminum foil, shiny side out.
• Bake at 425°F for 20 minutes; reduce temperature to 375°F and bake another 30-40 minutes until filling is bubbling and crust is nicely browned.
• If necessary remove foil last 10 minutes to brown edges.

DOUBLE CRUST APPLE PIE

Steps:

• Melt 3 tablespoons of the butter in a large, heavy-bottomed saute pan over medium heat. Add the apple wedges and saute until slightly softened but holding their shape, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the 1/2 cup of sugar and stir to combine. Add the raisins, cinnamon, and cloves and stir.
• In a bowl, combine the lemon juice and cornstarch. Stir the mixture into the apple mixture and remove the pan from the heat. Let cool completely.
• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• Fill an unbaked bottom crust with apple filling and dot the top crust with the remaining 3 tablespoons butter. Top with a rolled-out top crust. Cut 1/2-inch vents in a round-the-clock pattern into the top crust to allow steam to escape. Brush the top lightly with egg wash and sprinkle with the remaining 1 tablespoon sugar.
• Put the pie on a cookie sheet or other low-sided baking tray to catch any spillage. Place on the middle rack of the oven and bake for 20 minutes, checking occasionally to ensure that the top is browning evenly. Rotate the pie 180 degrees to move the front edge to the back of the oven, and bake until the top is uniformly golden brown, 15 to 20 minutes more.
• Remove the pie from the oven and let cool for 20 minutes before slicing and serving.
• Put the flour and baking powder in the bowl of a food processor and pulse to combine. Add the cold butter cubes and pulse a few times until the mixture begins to become mealy and the butter forms plainly visible pea-size nuggets.
• Dissolve 1/2 teaspoon salt in the water. With the motor running, pour in the water and let mix, just until the dough pulls together. Do not over-mix the dough. If it appears dry and is not holding together, add a few additional tablespoons of water.
• Form the dough into a ball, flatten, and wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate until ready to use.
• Lightly flour a pastry board and a rolling pin and unwrap the dough. Divide the dough into 2 equal pieces and keep the second piece refrigerated. Tamp down the dough with the rolling pin and gently begin to roll it out into a circular pie shape by rolling evenly in one-eighth turns to keep the rolling even. When the dough is rolled out to an even thickness of about 1/8-inch and is about 12 inches in diameter, it is ready to be transferred to a 10-inch pie dish.
• Lightly butter the dish, lift the dough with the rolling pin by partially rolling the dough up on the pin, center the dough in the dish, and unroll. Pierce the dough in several places with the tines of a fork.
• Roll the second half of the dough into a circle slightly larger than the pie dish. Fill the bottom crust with your chosen filling. Cover the filling with the top half of the dough. Using both hands, crimp the edges of the 2 crusts together to seal. With a sharp knife, make several crosshatch slits in the top crust. Brush with the egg wash and bake in a preheated 375 degree Foven for 35 to 40 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool for 20 minutes.

DOUBLE-CRUST APPLE PIE

Steps:

• On a lightly floured surface, roll out 1 piece of piecrust to a 1/8-inch-thick circle, about 13 inches in diameter. Drape dough over a 9-inch pie pan. Transfer pan to refrigerator, and chill 30 minutes.
• Heat oven to 425 degrees F.
• Whisk together the egg yolk and cream; set aside.
• In a large bowl, toss together the apples, lemon juice, granulated sugar, flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt; place in chilled bottom crust.
• Dot with butter.
• Roll out the remaining sheet of dough.
• Brush the rim of the bottom crust with the egg wash.
• Place second piece of dough on top, and trim so 1-inch overhangs. Tuck the dough under, and crimp the edges with a fork or your fingers.
• Transfer pie to the refrigerator, and chill until firm, about 15 minutes.
• Remove pie from the refrigerator, brush with the egg wash, and sprinkle generously with brown sugar.
• Cut 4 vents in the top, allowing the steam to escape.
• Bake until crust begins to turn light brown, about 25 minutes.
• Reduce temperature to 350 degrees and bake until golden brown and the juices are bubbling, 25 to 30 minutes.
• Transfer to a wire rack to cool.
• Serve pie with vanilla ice cream, if desired.

ALL-BUTTER DOUBLE PIE CRUST

Steps:

• Use a bench scraper to cut butter into ½-inch cubes. (If butter begins to "sweat," dust with flour.) In a large, flat-bottomed bowl, combine flour, sugar, and salt. Add the butter cubes and toss to coat with the flour mixture. Use a pastry blender to cut the butter into the flour; do not smash or smear the butter. Scrape butter off the pastry blender during the mixing process and continue mixing. (If butter is softening too fast, put the bowl in the refrigerator until butter firms up, 2-5 minutes.) Continue cutting, working quickly, until butter is broken down and looks like a coarse crumble with only a few larger pieces.
• Combine vinegar with water and ice; you'll use 10-12 tablespoons of this liquid in the pie dough. Begin by sprinkling 4 tablespoons of liquid over the flour mixture; use a bench scraper or your hands to incorporate until the mixture begins to come together. Sprinkle in 4 more tablespoons of liquid and continue the mixing process. Squeeze a fistful of dough: if it holds, like wet sand, it's ready. If it falls apart, add 1-2 more tablespoons of liquid at a time, squeezing the dough to check if it holds. Bring all the dough together, sprinkling dry bits with more small drops of liquid as necessary; dough will look shaggy. Knead in the bowl just until incorporated.
• Turn dough onto a work surface and use a bench scraper to divide dough into two equal pieces. (Note: If you're making the Blueberry Slab Pie, do not divide the dough; shape it into one large, flat disk.) Shape into flat disks and wrap in plastic; refrigerate for at least 30 minutes, preferably overnight. Dough can be refrigerated for up to 3 days and frozen up to 1 month, tightly wrapped. (Note: If you're making the Peach Skillet Pie, stop here; you'll begin that lesson with two chilled disks of dough.)
• Generously grease pie dish with softened butter. Dust a work surface and a rolling pin with flour. Place one chilled pie disk on the work surface and lightly dust it with flour. (Reserve the other disk to use as a top crust for the Salted Caramel Apple Pie or Peach Skillet Pie, or to line a tart pan for the Farmer Cheese and Thyme Pie.)Roll dough by starting at the center and lightly pressing down with the rolling pin to flatten slightly. Rotate the dough and repeat, pressing down so it's evenly flattened all around, about ⅛-inch thick. Then roll outward to make a circle, rotating the dough a quarter-turn at a time to keep it even. (If dough is softening too fast, chill in the refrigerator until firm, 2-5 minutes.) Roll the dough until it's about 2-3 inches larger than the pie dish, all the way around. Use a pizza wheel to trim away the rough edges. (Save the scraps to make crust cookies!)
• Overturn pie dish onto the center of the dough circle, then remove and place it right side up on your work surface. Use the light indentation created by the rim as a guide for gently positioning dough into the center of the dish. (If dough is softening too fast, put it back into the refrigerator until it firms up, 2-5 minutes.) Fit dough gently into dish, being careful not to stretch it. Begin crimping the edge by using your fingers to roll the dough firmly so it rests on top of the rim. Crimp by using your index finger and thumb on one hand to squeeze a letter "C" into the dough rim. (Lightly flour your fingers if the dough is sticking.) Repeat, crimping the entire pie and making sure the final fluted crust sits directly on top of the pan's rim. Chill until it is ready to be filled and baked.

CIDER DOUBLE-CRUST APPLE PIE

Steps:

• Crust: Combine first three ingredients in food processor.
• Add butter and shortening and process until mixture resembles coarse meal.
• Combine vinegar and 2 tablespoons ice water in small bowl.
• Add to flour mixture.
• With machine running, gradually add enough remaining water 1 tablespoon at a time to form moist clumps.
• Gather dough into 2 balls and flatten into disks.
• Wrap each disk in plastic wrap.
• Chill 30 minutes.
• (Dough can be prepared ahead and refrigerated for up to 2 days or frozen for 1 month.) Let chilled dough soften slightly at room temperature before using.
• Filling: Boil cider in a heavy, small saucepan until reduced to 2/3 cup (about 25 minutes).
• Cool.
• Position rack in lowest third of oven and preheat to 425 degrees F.
• Combine all apples, sugar, flour, cinnamon, mace and salt in large bowl.
• Add reduced cider and lemon juice and toss well.
• Roll out 1 pie crust disk on lightly floured surface to 14-inch-diameter round.
• Roll up dough on rolling pin and transfer to 10-inch-diameter pie plate.
• Gently press into place.
• Trim edges of crust, leaving 1/2-inch overhang.
• Spoon apples into crust-lined pan, mounding in center.
• Dot with butter.
• Roll out second disk on lightly floured surface to 13-inch-diameter round.
• Roll up on rolling pin and unroll over pie.
• Trim edges, leaving 3/4-inch overhang.
• Fold overhang of top crust under edge of bottom crust.
• Pinch together to seal.
• Crimp edges to make decorative border.
• Cut several slashes in top crust to allow steam to escape.
• Bake pie 25 minutes at 425 degrees F.
• Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees F and continue baking until filling bubbles (about 50 minutes longer).
• Cover edges of pie with foil if browning too quickly.
• Remove from oven and cool on a rack.
• Serve pie slightly warm or at room temperature.

BUTTER-CRUST APPLE PIE

Steps:

• In a large bowl, combine flour and sugar; cut in butter until crumbly. Gradually add water, tossing with a fork until dough forms a ball. Divide dough in fourths so that two portions are slightly larger than the other two; wrap each in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 1 hour or until easy to handle., In a large bowl, combine the apples, sugar, brown sugar, molasses, flour and spices., Roll out one larger portion of dough to fit a 9-in. pie plate. Transfer pastry to pie plate. Trim pastry even with edge. Spoon half of filling into crust. Repeat with remaining large portion of dough and filling., Roll out remaining pastry to fit tops of pies. Place over filling. Trim, seal and flute edges. Cut slits in pastry. Beat egg white and water; brush over pastry., Bake at 375° for 55-65 or until crust is golden brown. Cool on a wire rack.