Not Mom’s Apple Pie
9 October 2008
336 views
View Comments
Marcia and Rich W. gave me a gift certificate to Williams-Sonoma for my birthday. Marcia, like her daughter Rachel, is a wonderful cook and hostess. I chose a classic deep-dish ceramic pie dish by the renowned French pottery company, Emile Henry.
Today is Yom Kippur, a Jewish High Holy Day and I spent much of the day crea
ting this gorgeous pie — closely adapted from a recipe card I picked up at the store. Pie-making runs in my family but I have never before made a pie with a cheese crust! Mom’s specialties are apple and strawberry rhubarb — each has a secret ingredient in the crust that I can’t share here but might let slip after a few glasses of wine. Also, none of mom’s recipes are this detailed — she likes to add an element of suspense to hers and leave some things up to the recipe-followers imagination.
ting this gorgeous pie — closely adapted from a recipe card I picked up at the store. Pie-making runs in my family but I have never before made a pie with a cheese crust! Mom’s specialties are apple and strawberry rhubarb — each has a secret ingredient in the crust that I can’t share here but might let slip after a few glasses of wine. Also, none of mom’s recipes are this detailed — she likes to add an element of suspense to hers and leave some things up to the recipe-followers imagination.Apple Pie with Cheddar Crust
Dough:
2.5 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp. salt
1 T sugar
6 oz. white cheddar cheese, finely grated
16 T (2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-in. pieces
1/3 to 1/2 cup ice water
Filling:
2 lb. Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and cut into 1/4-in. slices
2 lb. McIntosh apples, peeled, cored and cut into 1/4-in. slices
1/2 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1/4 cup white sugar
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. grated nutmeg
4 tsp. cornstarch
4 tsp. cornstarch
1 T fresh lemon juice
On top:
2 T cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-in. pieces
1 egg white, beaten with 1 tsp. water
1 egg white, beaten with 1 tsp. water
2 tsp. sugar
In a Kitchen Aid mixer or food processor, mix flour salt, sugar and cheese until combined. Add the butter and mix until it resembles course meal. Add 1/3 cup ice water and mix. The dough should hold together when squeezed with your fingers but should not be too sticky. If it crumbles, add more water 1 T at a time. Divide the dough in half, shape each into a disk, and wrap separately in plastic wrap. Refrigerate 1 hour.
Meanwhile, make the filling. In a large Dutch oven, stir together the apples, brown sugar, white sugar, cinnamon, salt, nutmeg, and cornstarch. Set over medium heat, cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until the apples are just tender and not mushy, about 20 minutes. Uncover and cook 5 to 7 minutes more. Off the heat, stir in the lemon juice. Cool 30 minutes.
Remove the dough from the refrigerator and let stand for 5 minutes. On a floured surface, roll out 1 disk into a 14-in. round, dusting with flour as needed. Press the dough into a 9-in. deep-dish ceramic pie dish. Trim the edges flush with the rim. Refrigerate 30 minutes.
On a large sheet of lightly floured parchment paper, roll out the remaining dough disk into a 12-in. round. You can buy leaf pie cutters at Williams-Sonoma for a whopping $17 or make the leaves yourself like I did using a small kitchen teaspoon to shape the leaves and a sharp knife to make the detail. However you do it, space the cutouts 1/2-in. apart and leave a 1-in. border to create a lattice-like appearance. Reserve the cutouts for decorating; reroll dough scraps to make more cutouts. Refrigerate lattice top and cutouts 30 minutes.Position a rack in the lower third of an oven, place a baking sheet on the rack and preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
The fun part! Let the pie shell, lattice top and leaf cutouts stand at room temperature 
5 minutes. Transfer the apple filling to the pie shell, scatter the butter pieces on top, and gently invert the lattice top over the pie. Trim the edges flush with the rim of the dish and press crusts together to seal. Brush the underside of the leaf cutouts and the top crust with the egg wash. Press the cutouts along the edge of the crust; sprinkle the top of the pie with sugar. Place the pie dish on the preheated baking sheet. Bake until the crust is golden brown — 50 to 60 minutes. Cover the edges with foil if they become too dark. Cool on a wire rack at least 1 1/2 hours before serving. Serves 8.
5 minutes. Transfer the apple filling to the pie shell, scatter the butter pieces on top, and gently invert the lattice top over the pie. Trim the edges flush with the rim of the dish and press crusts together to seal. Brush the underside of the leaf cutouts and the top crust with the egg wash. Press the cutouts along the edge of the crust; sprinkle the top of the pie with sugar. Place the pie dish on the preheated baking sheet. Bake until the crust is golden brown — 50 to 60 minutes. Cover the edges with foil if they become too dark. Cool on a wire rack at least 1 1/2 hours before serving. Serves 8.If you are a pie lover, you must visit Royer’s in Round Top. I blogged about our experience there a couple months ago.
