Mels Apple Pie Food

APPLE CRUMBLE PIE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Refrigerate the pie crust (in the pan) while preparing the filling/topping.
• For the apple filling, in a large bowl, add the sliced apples. Add in the brown sugar, flour, lemon juice, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt. Stir the mixture carefully (to avoid breaking apart the apples) until it is evenly combined. Set aside.
• For the crumble, in a medium bowl, mix together the flour, brown sugar, cinnamon and salt. Drizzle the melted butter over the ingredients and mix with a spoon or spatula until the mixture is crumbly (sometimes I ditch the spoon and get my hands right in there to get it mixed).
• Fill the chilled pie crust evenly with the apple mixture - if the apples have released a lot of liquid, do your best to transfer just the apples and thick, sugary mixture to the pie plate and leave most of the thin liquid in the bowl (once the apples are in the pie plate, I drizzle about 2-3 tablespoons of leftover liquid over the pie and discard the rest; don't panic if there isn't much liquid at all).
• Place the pie on a foil-lined, rimmed baking sheet. Spread the crumble topping evenly over the top of the apples.
• Bake for 45-50 minutes (covering loosely with foil the last 10-15 minutes, if the pie crust or crumble is overly browning) until the filling is hot and bubbling and the crust is evenly browned.
• Let the pie cool to room temperature (or just slightly warm) before serving. It will thicken and set up as it cools.

TOFFEE CRUMBLE APPLE PIE

Steps:

• Roll out and place one pie crust into the bottom and sides of a 9-inch pie plate, trimming to the edge of the pie plate all the way around. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• For the filling, in a large bowl, toss the apples with the lemon juice. Add the brown sugar, granulated sugar, flour, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt. Stir to combine. Add vanilla and cream and mix.
• In a large pot, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the apple mixture and cook for about 6-8 minutes, stirring often (and adjusting the heat if the apples start to stick to the bottom of the pot) to soften the apples just a bit.
• Scoop the apple mixture into the pie shell and spread evenly.
• In the same bowl you used for the filling dry ingredients, combine the flour and sugar. Cut in the butter with a fork or your fingers until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in the chopped toffee bars. Sprinkle this mixture over the top of the apples.
• Roll out the top pie crust and place it on top of the pie. Leave a 1/4- to 1/2-inch overhang all the way around. Fold the top crust over the bottom crust and underneath. Press lightly to seal. Flute the edges and cut a few long slits in the top to vent the pie.
• Beat the egg white with a teaspoon of water and brush the top of the pie with the egg mixture. Sprinkle lightly with sugar.
• Place the pie on a baking sheet (to avoid any potential leaks dripping into your oven) and bake for about 50-60 minutes until the crust is golden and the apples are soft and tender. Serve warm or at room temperature.

BLUE RIBBON APPLE PIE

Steps:

• Roll out one half of the pie dough and place in a 9-inch pie plate (how-to on rolling out pie dough here). Trim the crust to the edge of the pie plate. Refrigerate until ready to use.
• Toss the apples, 1/2 cup of the sugar, brown sugar, zest, salt, and cinnamon together in a large large pot or Dutch oven. Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, until the apples are tender when poked with a fork but are not mushy, about 10-12 minutes. Don't over cook in this step as the apples will finish cooking and softening up in the oven.
• Transfer the apples and their juice in an even layer to a rimmed baking sheet and let cool to room temperature, about 30 minutes.
• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Drain the cooled apples thoroughly in a colander, reserving 1/4 cup of the juice. Stir the lemon juice into the reserved 1/4 cup of apple juice.
• Spread the apples into the dough-lined pie plate, mounding them slightly in the middle, and drizzle with the lemon juice mixture.
• Roll out the second piece of dough and drape it over the pie. Trim the top crust so there is about a 1/4-inch or slightly longer overhang all the way around the pie. Tuck this overhang under the bottom crust (see details here) so the pie is sealed. Crimp the edges (how-to here or here).
• Cut four gashes in the top of the pie with a sharp paring knife for venting. Brush the crust lightly with the egg white and sprinkle with the remaining one tablespoon sugar.
• Place the pie on a foil-lined baking sheet and bake until the crust is golden, about 25 minutes.
• Reduce the oven temperature to 375 degrees and continue to bake until the juices are bubbling and the crust is deep golden brown, about 25-30 minutes longer.
• Let the pie cool on a wire rack until the filling has set, about 2 hours. Serve slightly warm or at room temperature.

MEL'S APPLE PIE

Steps:

• Make pie crust by cutting in shortening and butter into flour, sugar, salt and cinnamon until crumbly. Then add water a little at a time until the dough will hold together in a ball. Roll out 1/2 the dough on a lightly floured surface for the bottom crust, place in pie pan. Place remaining dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate until needed. Peel and cut the apples as desired, mix well with other filling ingredients. Then place in pie shell. Mound apples high as needed. Roll out top crust. Moisten finger and run around bottom edge of pie crust then place top crust on pie. Add slits for vents and crimp edges as desired. Mix the topping ingredients together, it is easier to place on top when the butter has reached a past like consistency. Smear and spread all over the pie. Check that slits are still open. Bake at 450 for 10 minutes, then reduce oven temp to 350 until it bubbles over and apples are soft. This can be anywhere from 45 minutes or so to an hour or more.