Infamous Apple Pie

The woman that first noted, "The way to a man's heart is through his stomach" must certainly have counted apple pie as a crucial part of her arsenal. Tart juicy apples, cinnamon, crisp crumb topping, all cradled in a thin, flaking crust are the very definition "pie".

At this point, you probably are chuckling at me. Most men jab their fork into my apple pie, shovel it into their mouths, and then mumble some sort of shocked marriage proposal. To be fair, only three of them were serious, but none the less, please allow me to share the few essential secrets to the perfect apple pie. Oh, and did I mention, every morsel is vegan!

Everyone has their favorite apple, but when it comes to pie, you MUST use Granny Smith and ONLY Granny Smith. Over the past 15 years I have baked hundreds of pies. Without exception, Granny Smith apples make the best pie. They are a firm, very tart apple. They maintain their shape well, juicy nicely, and have a flavor I have been unable to replicate with another apple. Try them.

The second secret to an exceptional pie is the crust. A perfectly good pie can be completely ruined by a bitter, tough crust. There are two secrets to a perfect crust. The first element is ice water. Before you slice an apple, pull out the flour, or even pre-heat the oven, fill a bowl with ice cubes and cover the ice with refrigerated water. The second key to a tender crust is to handle the dough as little as possible.

Make and set aside your ice water.

Pre-heat the oven to 350.

Thinly core, peel and slice 6 cups of Granny Smith apples.

Toss apples with:

1/2 cup sugar

2 Tbsp. flour

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

Set aside to allow apples to juice.

Next prepare the crumb topping.

Combine:

1/2 c. flour

1/2 c. sugar

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 tsp. nutmeg

Cut in:

1/4 cup Butter Flavored Crisco

Stir in:

1/3 c oatmeal

Finally, the crust that pulls the ensemble together. If you are afraid to try a crust, you can finish the recipe with out the crust and spray the pie plate with cooking spray and bake. You could also try a store bought crust. Try the crust. It isn't as intimidating as it seems!

Create the crust.

Sift together:

1 1/4 c. flour

1/4 tsp. salt

Cut in:

1/3 c. Butter Flavored Crisco until the pieces are pea sized

Sprinkle:

3-4 Tbsp cold water over the flour mixture.

Gently toss the moistened flour to one side of the bowl until a soft dough forms.

Add additional water a Tbsp. at a time. The dough should not be sticky.

Roll out the dough on a floured surface with a floured rolling pin.

Do not handle the dough!!

Using a very thin metal spatula dipped in flour, work the dough gently up off the counter top.

Fold in half, then quarters.

Transfer to a pie plate, crimp edges with a fork, and cut off excess dough hanging over the edges.

Fill the crust withe the apples and top with crumb topping.

Bake 1 hour and check with a fork. Apples should give easily and topping should be lightly browned and bubbling around the edges.

One final tip....if the crust tears as you are transferring the dough, or the dough doesn't exactly cover the pie plate, do NOT panic! Dip pieces of the excess dough in the ice water and patch any holes or tears, using the water to smooth the seams! Enjoy!