The holiday season is a time for making memories with friends and family. When these memories involve a dessert that everyone can share, people are brought together and these moments become even more significant.
Apple pie is a famous dessert that is popular in the United States during the fall and winter holidays. Its ingredients are easily accessible and it is easy to slice and share, but one may feel daunted by the task of baking an entire pie. However, the process is not as difficult as one may assume.
According to the Smithsonian Magazine, the first apple pie recipe was written in England, but it was much different from the modern American apple pie that is now so popular during the holidays. There are even more modern variations of apple pie, such as the Salted Caramel Apple Pie from Sally’s Baking Addiction.
The food blog Little Spoon Farm has an Easy Apple Pie recipe that calls for Granny Smith apples, stating that they are “super tart and very firm” and that firm apples are ideal for baking. Another major ingredient in the recipe is the pie crust, and the recipe recommends using the All Butter Pie Crust recipe from Little Spoon Farm, which produces a flaky, buttery crust.
The pie crust recipe simply involves combining the ingredients — mainly flour and butter — in a bowl and forming them into dough, which was an easy process. The dough was then formed into two disks that were placed in the refrigerator to chill overnight, although the recipe only calls for a minimum of one hour of chilling time.
Once the pie crust is ready, one disk must be rolled out and placed into the bottom of a pie tin, and after the apple filling is added, the other half of the crust must be added on top, and the edges should be pressed together. The apple filling is simply made by slicing the apples and mixing them with the ingredients specified in the recipe.
Once the pie is put together, all that must be done is cut slits on top for venting, brush it with egg wash, and, optionally, sprinkle sanding sugar before placing it in the oven. For this pie, brown sugar was added on top instead of sanding sugar, and it seemed to add additional flavor to the finished pie.
The pie must be baked with foil on the edges for the first half of the baking time to prevent over-browning; the edges may crumble slightly when the foil is removed, but this will not impact the end result. Once the pie is finished, it can be served with homemade whipped cream (which can be whipped by hand if one does not have an electric mixer) for a refreshing touch.
Overall, apple pie is a recipe that anyone can make without major difficulties. Although it takes multiple hours, including the dough chilling time and the total baking time, it is not as challenging as it may seem and is worth making for the cherished family memories it can create during the holidays.
