Apple Pie - Hassle-Free Thanksgiving Meal

Apple Pie - Hassle-Free Thanksgiving Meal

Continuing with the menu for a hassle-free Thanksgiving meal, our next recipe is Apple Pie, and it comes from a video-recipe found in the FoodNetwork site hosted by Bobby Flay at http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/bobby-flay/apple-pie-recipe/index.html.

This series of posts will be dedicated to preparing a Thanksgiving meal. This menu will include:

Turkey/Ham

Gravy

Green beans casserole

Stuffing

Candied Yams (make ahead of time)

Cranberry sauce (make ahead of time)

Apple pie (make ahead of time)

Fruit punch (make ahead of time)

This crust is so flaky and soft, I could just eat the crust alone without the apples, but let's fill this delicious crust with some delicious apples. This past Saturday I made four apple pies using this recipe--two for a friend who went apple picking and brought home a whole bunch of apples.

I made the other two apple pies for my family with store bought apples, as I didn't like the apples I used for my friend's pies. I also made applesauce but I will blog about it some other time.

I can't believe that after I took so many pictures of the process, I deleted them all by mistake. See, that's what happens when you are the cook, the blogger, and the photographer all at the same time--you don't know your left from your right. Well, the most important thing is that this is a very good recipe and you could always go to the source of the recipe indicated above.

Thanks to the FoodNetwork site and Bobby Flay for a great recipe!

Ingredients

Pie Crust:

Directions

In a food processor, combine flour and salt

Cut the fat into the flour (butter, lard, or shortening)

Pulse the processor and process until you get peas size bits of dough and it looks like course wet sand.

Add ice water, one tablespoon at the time and process until it all comes together (it should still be a little crumbly.) Stop the processor. It doesn't matter if you still see a little bit of butter (that’s what you want—it will melt later on.)

Remove dough from processor into a sheet of plastic wrap, and fold into a package.

Roll the wrapped dough flat a little to help the dough come together.

Place dough in the refrigerator for at least an hour. You can freeze any extra dough.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Meanwhile, peel, core and slice apples and place in a bowl. Add sugar, flour and cinnamon. Mix well. Set aside

Dust rolling pin and work surface lightly with flour. Roll out dough to same thickness.

Roll to a circle about 1-inch larger than pie plate.

Carefully place one dough circle into pie plate and gently press into form of plate.

Trim excess dough around the edge with the back of a knife.

Place apple mixture in pie shell. Place second pie crust on top and tuck in the edges inside pie plate.

Crimp edges with a fork.

Beat 1 egg with two tablespoons of water and brush over the top crust.

Cut slits in the top crust to vent out steam.

Bake for approximately 30 to 40 minutes, until pie is fully baked and apples are tender.