Apple Crumb Pie

Apples are an under-appreciated fruit in my opinion. Sure, you can buy them almost anywhere. And yes, sadly, the grocery stores only sell a few varieties. But for me they are one of the most versatile and delicious fruits. They are great to snack on anytime of the day and also make the most elegant desserts. Nothing beats a warm slice of apple pie, whether its for breakfast or for a late night snack, or anywhere in between.

When making apple pie I usually stick to my mom's recipe. But I was in the mood for something that took a little less time than making my own crust and was a little bit different. I found a recipe for an apple crumb pie made with an almond crumb crust by Martha Stewart. Yummy! This pie is delicious! The crust is almondy and crispy, while the apples are warm and tart. I even got to use my new apple peeler. Trust me, if you don't have one of these and you use apples a lot in cooking then you need to get one. They will make your life so much easier, especially around this time of year.

Apple Crumb Pie
Adapted from Martha Stewarts Baking Handbook
For the filling I used my mom's recipe

For the crust:
1 1/2 cups AP flour
1 cup plus 1 2 tbsp almond meal (or used ground almonds)
1/2 cup plus 2 tbsp sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1 1/2 sticks of butter, really cold and cut into small pieces

1) Whisk together all of the ingredients except the butter. Cut the butter into the flour mixture until it it is crumbly. Then with your hands squeeze the dough together until it starts to come together a little bit.

2)Press a little more than half of the filling into a 9-inch pie pan then freeze for 15 minutes.

3) Follow instructions for making the filling
4) Add the filling to the pie and then dot with a few tbsp of butter from apple pie recipe, then cover with remaining dough crumbs

5) Bake in a 350 F oven for about 1 hour, then let cool and enjoy!

Chocolate Banana Ice Cream Pie

I love the combination of chocolate and bananas, whether they are baked into a delicious bread or frozen and put on a stick. Bluth Banana anyone? So when the other day I had a few bananas that had been sitting around for a little too long I decided to make some banana ice cream. Turning this ice cream into a pie didn't hit me until I had already made the base for the ice cream. I quickly looked up a recipe for a chocolate tart crust and got baking while the ice cream base chilled in the fridge. The great thing about Ice Cream Pies is that they can be made into almost any combination imaginable. I'm thinking of making a Cherry Ice Cream Pie with Almond Crust next time. This would also be great for summer birthday parties in place of a cake. 

Chocolate Tart Crust

Adapted from The Martha Stewart Living Cookbook

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

2 tbsp cocoa powder

1/2 cup white sugar

1/2 tsp salt

6 tbsp butter, chilled and cut into small pieces

3 egg yolks, from large eggs

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

4 oz of baking chocolate or chocolate chips 

1) Place flour, cocoa, sugar, and salt into food processor or blend with pastry blender to combine, then cut in the butter until it is crumbly then add egg yolks and vanilla and combine just until it holds together. Don't overwork the dough

2) Cover with plastic wrap and let chill for 30 minutes

3) Form dough into a disk and roll out until it is large enough to fit into a 9-inch tart pan (or if you are using smaller tart pans, shape accordingly), place in fridge, covered for 30 minutes

4) Blind bake the tart shell by placing a sheet of parchment paper over the shell and fill with pie weights, or dried beans, and bake at 400 F for 15 minutes, then remove weights and parchment and bake for an additional 12-15 minutes, making sure the crust doesn't burn

5) Remove from oven and let cool, then melt chocolate in double boiler and pour onto tart shell, covering all of the tart. Place in freezer to solidify the chocolate

6) When chocolate is hardened fill with your favorite ice straight out of the ice cream maker and freeze for at least 4 hours then enjoy!

My Mom's Apple Pie

Apple pie is one of the best desserts that my mom makes. Since I don't live in the same state it makes it kind of hard to have her make it for me once Autumn hits. So I called her up and asked her what she put in and how to assemble the pie I pieced together some memories of us baking them together and got to work. I was in kind of a rush so I didn't have time to make a nice crust, but I enjoy a rustic looking crust anyways.

Mom's Apple Pie
Enough pie dough for 2 crusts (I use an all butter pie dough recipe -see sweet potato pie recipe for crust recipe)
5 Granny Smith apples
4 sweeter apples (I had honeycrisp in the fridge)
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar (plus more for crust)
1-2 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. nutmeg
Juice of half a lemon
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tbsp. flour
Couple of tbsp. butter
Milk for brushing

1) Preheat oven to 350 F
2)Peel and slice apples to your desired thickness
3) Coat apples in lemon juice then toss with all other ingredients, except butter
 

4) Taste an apple to see if sugar is to your liking
5) Prepare a pie pan with the crust and then pour the apples into the pan, top with some slices of butter then seal with other pie crust
6) Cut 4 slits on top of pie then brush with milk and sprinkle with sugar
7) Bake for 1 hour
8) Let cool and enjoy!

Edna Lewis' Sweet Potato Pie

This semester I am taking a course on Soul Food, in text, as text. So far the class has been an interesting exploration of soul food and African American cooking in the United States. For a class assignment I decided to make a Sweet Potato Pie using the recipe from Edna Lewis' The Taste of Country Cooking. I had never before had a Sweet Potato Pie, probably because I was raised in California, so of course I have never baked one. It was a great experience through which I learned a lot about the process of making this pie as well as the history behind Sweet Potato Pie as well as the recipe from Edna Lewis.

When I tasted the finished pie I couldn't believe how tasty it was. The filling was light and fluffy. I was afraid the filling would have been too sweet but the nutmeg and the cinnamon shone through brilliantly. I'm excited to make this pie again and share it with friends and family.

Note: I only used the pie filling from this cookbook. The pie crust is adapted from Smitten Kitchen because butter is better.


Sweet Potato Pie Filling
2 cups mashed and sieved sweet potatoes
1 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon fresh grated nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 small or medium eggs separated
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2/3 cup butter melted over hot water
1-2/3 cups milk at room tempature

This makes enough filling for two 10" or three 7" pies

In a mixing bowl, combine sieved sweet potatoes, sugar, spices, salt, beaten yolks, vanilla and melted butter. Mix thoroughly. Add the milk and stir well. Beat the whites of the eggs to the frothy stage and stir them into the batter. Pour the batter into pastry lined pie pans. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 40-45 minutes.



All Butter, Really Flaky Pie Dough
From Smitten Kitchen

Makes enough dough for one double-, or two single-crust pies.
2 1/2 cups flour
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 sticks (8 ounces, 16 tablespoons or 1 cup) unsalted butter, very cold