boxy bear's adventures

i kicked my cold, and i’m back! i’ve been feeling so good that today i made apple pie, yum!

here’s how i made my pie (adapted from joyofbaking):

me frolicking in granny smith apples before they were peeled, cored, and cut into slices for pie making!

you will need:

two 9-inch pie crusts (either made from scratch or store bought)

about 8 medium sized apples

1/4 cup white granulated sugar

1/4 cup packed brown sugar

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1 tbs. lemon juice

1 tbs. plus 1 teaspoon cornstarch

2 tbs. unsalted butter

peel, core, and slice apples, then place them into a large bowl. add sugar, salt, cinnamon, and lemon juice, and mix well. let apples sit & macerate for about 2 hours (so all the water will drain out). save the juices because we will use it later. after 2 hours, preheat oven to 450º F.  let your pie crust pastry sit out at room temperature. pour apple juices into a microwaveable cup along with the butter and microwave on high for 6 or 7 minutes (or until it’s syrupy and caramelized). prepare pie for baking by placing bottom pie crust in pan. Mix the apples with the cornstarch, then add syrup mixture. Fill the bottom crust with apples, and top with the other half of pie crust by rolling it gently over the apples like i’m doing below. don’t forget to slit the top crust so the pie can vent while baking.

rolling the top crust over the pie & getting it ready to go into the oven

if you want, you can glaze the top crust with some milk and sprinkle with sugar to get it to bake to a lovely golden brown color. don’t forget to cover the edges of your pie with foil to keep it from burning! you can take the foil off for the last 10 -15 minutes of baking. Bake your apple pie at 450º for 10 minutes, then lower oven temperature to 350º F and continue baking for another 30 – 40 minutes.

the finished product! a nice slice of flaky, warm homemade apple pie. just the right amount of tartness!

there’s nothing quite like a fresh baked pie…what are some of your favorite recipes for baked goods?