Nene Twoforks' Apple Pie

Good food requires a great dessert and what's better than good old fashioned apple pie? (Pauses) I can't think of anything!

Follow the (non)bouncing pictorial and let's make pie!

Must be crust.
I have been on a very long search for the perfect pie crust, I'm not sure this one is it, but it's pretty close. We'll call it Close to Perfect pie crust, sound fair enough?

Pop quiz time. What's the first step in our recipe?

Assemble Ingredients (read in operatic style)

Every recipe is easier to manage when you gather everything you need before the mixing, stirring, and incorporating starts. 3 cups All-Purpose flour has been measured into a mixing bowl.

Next, measure 1 1/2 cups Crisco. I never have this product in my pantry, so it was a special trip to the stop and shop to buy a small can. "They" promised this would make the crust SO very good, and we're managing a test run.

Nene Twoforks grabs her weapons of choice and begins mixing it up! The technical term is cutting in. The flour is dancing around in the bowl and the shortening says, "Excuse me, mind if I cut in?"

The object is to make sure all the flour is mixed up with the shortening. I hear they make these newfangled objects called a pastry cutter, but that's too high tech for me.

While we've got those forks flying, it's time to scramble an egg in a bowl.

Add 5 Tablespoons cold water, 1 Tablespoon white vinegar, and 1 teaspoon of salt.

And stir together gently.

Divide into three equal balls and place in freezer storage bags. I highly recommend disposable vinyl gloves for any recipe that calls for working with flour, it saves your manicure and keeps flour from hiding in your nail bed. You can find them inexpensively at places that have dollar in the title.

With a rolling pin, roll out to about 1 inch thick. Yes, right in the bag!

Repeat process for each of the three bags.

Stack em up and put em in the freezer. It is recommended they remain in the freezer for a minimum of 20 minutes, but the longer the better. Remove from freezer 15 minutes before ready to use to allow thawing.

Next up, the apple core. (Get it?)

Peel, core, and slice four apples.

Toss the sliced apples with 2 Tablespoons lemon juice.

Next add 3/4 cup white sugar, 1/4 cup brown sugar, 1/4 cup all-purpose flour,  and 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon. I use a whisk to blend dry ingredients, which helps to blend and break up any lumps.

Add apples and toss well to coat.

Time to roll some dough.

Remember: thaw 15 minutes before rolling. Remove from bag. Dust work surface with flour. Roll out to about 1/2 inch larger than pie dish. If you use wax paper, you can use it to guide the rolled out dough to fold in half, then into a quarter, which makes it easier to transfer to the dish.

I don't own an actual pie pan, so I use my glass cake pan. Scratch that whole thing about not having a pie pan and replace with: This is my premium deep dish pie pan. Nice, don't you think?

Add the apple mixture, then dot with melted butter.

Add the second rolled out dough and use fingers to flute edges. I brushed with remaining butter from the melting process, but it isn't necessary. I also cut a small leaf design in the center to prevent boil over. I also recommend baking this pie on a cookie sheet covered in foil to save messy spillovers on the oven floor. Bake at 425 degrees F for 15 minutes.
Then, reduce heat to 350 degrees F and bake 40-45 minutes more or until crust is golden and filling is bubbly.

Yummy, that's some good pie. Alright, now go make one!

Pie crust

• 1-1/2 cup Crisco vegetable Shortening
• 3 cups All-purpose Flour
• 1 whole Egg
• 5 Tablespoons Cold Water
• 1 Tablespoon White Vinegar
• 1 teaspoon Salt

In a large bowl, with a pastry cutting fork, gradually work the Crisco into the flour for about 3 or 4 minutes until it resembles a coarse meal. In a small bowl, beat an egg with a fork and then pour it into the flour/shortening mixture. Add 5 tablespoons of cold water, 1 tablespoon of white vinegar and 1 teaspoon of salt. Stir together gently until all of the ingredients are incorporated.
Separate the dough into thirds. Form 3 evenly sized balls of dough and place each dough into a large Ziploc bag. Using a rolling pin, slightly flatten each ball of dough (about ½ inch thick) to make rolling easier later. Seal the bags and place them in the freezer until you need them. (If you will be using it immediately it’s still a good idea to put in the freezer for about 15 to 20 minutes to chill.)
When you are ready to use the dough to make a crust, remove from the freezer and allow to thaw for 15 minutes. On a floured surface roll the dough, starting at the center and working your way out. (Sprinkle some flour over top of the dough if it’s a bit too moist.) If the dough is sticking to the countertop use a metal spatula and carefully scrape it up and flip it over and continue rolling until it’s about ½ inch larger in diameter than your pie pan.


Apple pie filling

8 cups sliced, peeled Granny Smith apples - about 4 apples
2 Tablespoons lemon juice
3/4 cup white sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 Tablespoons butter

In a large bowl, toss the sliced apples with lemon juice. Combine sugars, flour, cinnamon; add apples and toss well to coat. Fill pastry lined 9 inch pie pan with apple mixture. Dot with butter. Place second crust on top of pie filling, cut slits in top of crust to vent. Seal the edges of the crust with a fork or by hand.
Bake at 425 degrees F for 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 350 degrees F and bake 40-45 minutes more or until crust is golden and filling is bubbly.