Our resident baking beauty, mini martha, serves up her favorite holiday recipe, apple pie!
My favorite thing to bake is probably apple pie. I've been making it with my grandmother ever since I was a toddler, and I follow her exact recipe almost every time. The smell of apple pie always reminds me of Christmas dinner at her house. During this time of year, I bring it to every dinner party we go to, and it's always a hit.
The crust is both flaky and tender, and really easy to make––no refrigeration period needed. A mix of apples is necessary for a well-balanced pie. I use at least two different types of apples every time. My favorites are: Macoun, Pink Lady, Winesap, McIntosh, Cortland, Honeycrisp, Braeburn, and Gala. The pie is great served with brown sugar whipped cream or some vanilla bean ice cream. It's even great even plain (especially for breakfast the next morning!). I will never follow any recipe other than my grandmother's, it is absolutely perfect.
Apple Pie
Ingredients:
Crust:
3 ¼ cups of flour
1 heaping teaspoon of salt
1 tablespoon of sugar
½ a cup of milk
1 cup of canola or vegetable oil
Filling:
7 medium-sized apples
1/3rd cup of sugar
1 teaspoon of cinnamon
½ teaspoon of allspice
1/8th-¼ teaspoon of nutmeg
1/8th-¼ teaspoon of cloves
¼ teaspoon of ginger
1 tablespoon of vanilla extract
Topping:
2-3 tablespoons of butter
¼ cup of sugar
1-1 ½ teaspoons of cinnamon
Directions:
1. Start with the crust. Put the flour, salt, and sugar in a bowl. Stir with a metal fork. Create a well in the center when done mixing. Measure the oil and milk in a wet measuring cup. Stir just a little to slightly mix the milk and oil. Pour into the flour mixture. Stir with the metal fork until the dough comes together. It will be wet. Separate the dough into two balls (these will later become the top crust and the bottom crust) and set aside.
2. Make the filling. Peel the apples. Core each apple and cut into about 12 pieces (to give the pie more texture, make some slices bigger than others). Place the apple slices in a bowl and toss them with the sugar. Dust all the spices on top of the apples and mix again. Lastly add the vanilla extract and stir with the apples.
3. Pre-heat the oven to 350-375°F. Clear your counter. Take out two long pieces of wax paper. Place one of them on the counter and put a pie dough mound in the center of it. Dust the top of the mound of dough with flour and push down until it is a low cylinder.
Add the second piece of wax paper on top and roll the pie dough out into a perfect circle (if you fail with this do not re-roll the pie dough, it will become too tough. Either scrap the batch of dough and start over, or when putting the pie dough in the shell, patch up the places without dough with the ones that have extra).
Take off the top layer of wax paper. Grab the bottom sheet of wax paper, leaving the pie dough on it. Flip the dough into the pie plate. Take off the wax paper layer gently, so as not to rip the dough. Leave the dough overhang; you will need it for crimping the dough. Roll out the second pie dough.
4. Use your hands and scoop out the apples into the pie shell. When all that’s left are the macerating juices, pour half onto the apples, discard the rest. Thinly shave the slices of butter and put on top of the apples.
Take the second piecrust and take off the top piece of wax paper. Flip the crust on top of the apples and remove the wax pa
My favorite thing to bake is probably apple pie. I've been making it with my grandmother ever since I was a toddler, and I follow her exact recipe almost every time. The smell of apple pie always reminds me of Christmas dinner at her house. During this time of year, I bring it to every dinner party we go to, and it's always a hit.
The crust is both flaky and tender, and really easy to make––no refrigeration period needed. A mix of apples is necessary for a well-balanced pie. I use at least two different types of apples every time. My favorites are: Macoun, Pink Lady, Winesap, McIntosh, Cortland, Honeycrisp, Braeburn, and Gala. The pie is great served with brown sugar whipped cream or some vanilla bean ice cream. It's even great even plain (especially for breakfast the next morning!). I will never follow any recipe other than my grandmother's, it is absolutely perfect.
Apple Pie
Ingredients:
Crust:
3 ¼ cups of flour
1 heaping teaspoon of salt
1 tablespoon of sugar
½ a cup of milk
1 cup of canola or vegetable oil
Filling:
7 medium-sized apples
1/3rd cup of sugar
1 teaspoon of cinnamon
½ teaspoon of allspice
1/8th-¼ teaspoon of nutmeg
1/8th-¼ teaspoon of cloves
¼ teaspoon of ginger
1 tablespoon of vanilla extract
Topping:
2-3 tablespoons of butter
¼ cup of sugar
1-1 ½ teaspoons of cinnamon
Directions:
1. Start with the crust. Put the flour, salt, and sugar in a bowl. Stir with a metal fork. Create a well in the center when done mixing. Measure the oil and milk in a wet measuring cup. Stir just a little to slightly mix the milk and oil. Pour into the flour mixture. Stir with the metal fork until the dough comes together. It will be wet. Separate the dough into two balls (these will later become the top crust and the bottom crust) and set aside.
2. Make the filling. Peel the apples. Core each apple and cut into about 12 pieces (to give the pie more texture, make some slices bigger than others). Place the apple slices in a bowl and toss them with the sugar. Dust all the spices on top of the apples and mix again. Lastly add the vanilla extract and stir with the apples.
3. Pre-heat the oven to 350-375°F. Clear your counter. Take out two long pieces of wax paper. Place one of them on the counter and put a pie dough mound in the center of it. Dust the top of the mound of dough with flour and push down until it is a low cylinder.
Add the second piece of wax paper on top and roll the pie dough out into a perfect circle (if you fail with this do not re-roll the pie dough, it will become too tough. Either scrap the batch of dough and start over, or when putting the pie dough in the shell, patch up the places without dough with the ones that have extra).
Take off the top layer of wax paper. Grab the bottom sheet of wax paper, leaving the pie dough on it. Flip the dough into the pie plate. Take off the wax paper layer gently, so as not to rip the dough. Leave the dough overhang; you will need it for crimping the dough. Roll out the second pie dough.
4. Use your hands and scoop out the apples into the pie shell. When all that’s left are the macerating juices, pour half onto the apples, discard the rest. Thinly shave the slices of butter and put on top of the apples.
Take the second piecrust and take off the top piece of wax paper. Flip the crust on top of the apples and remove the wax pa