Apple Pie

Yes! This is the second pie that I made - Apple Pie! Same as the blueberry pie that I made, I played a little cheat here by using Betty Crocker's Pie Crust Mix. Though there is a recipe on apple pie on the box itself, I used a recipe from my newly bought Pies & Tarts cookbook - 500 Pies & Tarts by Rebecca Bauginet (read the review here).

Unlike the blueberry pie, this apple pie requires a little extra effort - in peeling, coring and slicing the apples to requiring a little bit more types of ingredients like brown sugar, lemon juice, flour and spices like cinnamon and nutmeg. I didn't have nutmeg at home so I omitted it. Cinnamon though is one of my favourite spices, but do use it sparingly as cinnamon has a very strong taste (which not everyone likes). Nevertheless, the filling is still relatively easy to mix it up.

Some of the problems/difficulties I faced (if anybody has suggestions please leave them! :D):

The recipe originally asked for 6 apples such as Granny Smith but I cut down to 5 Fuji apples as I baked this pie using an 8-inch pie tart with a removable bottom instead of the required 9-inch. In the end there were still too many spiced apple slices left and hence I used the remaining pastry scraps to make 2 mini apple pies (see photos below 🙂 ). One comment that I got from friends is that the apples are too big. I originally cut the apples into quarters then have them sliced thinly. Probably in the future I'll cut them into eights before slicing them.

Secondly, when I return to check on the filling after I have rolled out the pie crust, the apples have generated pretty much juices in the bowl and I was contemplating whether to tip them all in. I remembered McDonald's Apple Pie is extremely extra juicy and sticky and hence I tip the juices all in. It resulted in a flaky and crispy top crust but an extremely soggy bottom crust (which my friends say cannot taste the bottom crust at all). For the blueberry pie, it was required to brush the bottom crust with egg white to prevent the crust for becoming soggy, so with my next try of apple pie, I'll try brushing the bottom crust either with milk or egg white to see whether it'll help prevent the bottom crust from being soggy. One downfall due to the soggy bottom crust is that when I cut the pie, the crust is so soggy that it cannot hold the pie juices. 🙁 This is also probably due to the bottom crust to be too thin. Thankfully, the top crust is still crispy and taste-able.

I played around with the mini pies by making a lattice top for them. It is fun making for small pies, but I think making for big pies will be pretty tedious. :s Nevertheless, the mini pies turn out really cute. I'd probably consider making mini apple pies in the future instead one big apple pie.

And last but not least, my crimping and fluting skills still need loads of improvement. The top crust doesn't really stick to the bottom crust. >.< I guess I still need more practice on this. 🙂

Apple Pie (makes an 8-inch pie)(adapted from 500 Pies & Tarts)

1 box Betty Crocker's Pie Crust MI x
115g light brown sugar
2 teaspoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon cinnamon
pinch of salt
1 tablespoon all-purpose (plain) flour
5 tart eating apples, such as Granny Smith, peeled, cored and sliced thinly
15g unsalted butter
Milk for brushing
Sugar for sprinkling

1. Preheat oven to 220 degrees Celsius. Prepare Betty Crocker's Pie Crust Mix. Roll out half the quantity of the dough and line it in an 8-inch pie dish. Brush with milk. Set aside.
2. Mix sugar, lemon juice, cinnamon, salt and flour together. Place the apples in a medium bowl, pour the mixture over them and toss gently to coat evenly. Tip them into the pie crust and dot with butter. Roll out remaining dough and put it on top of the pie. Crimp and flute the edges decoratively and cut 4 to 6 slits to let steam escape. Brush the top with milk and sprinkle with sugar.
3. Bake the pie for 10minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 175 degrees Celsius and bake for another 25 to 40 minutes till the crust is golden brown. Transfer to cool on a wire rack for 1 hour before serving. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Well, I'll definitely like mine to be served with some vanilla ice cream - a little warm coupled with a little coldness equals to: bliss!