THE UR PIE. If there were just one pie in my universe it would be the double crust apple pie – no contest. It has everything. The yielding sweetness of fruit cooked in sugar with a hint of cinnamon. But really the fruit is being cooked with sugar in a buttery crust. If I were an apple it’s how I’d like to go.
I tried Dorrie’s Good with Anything Crust which combines butter and a little bit of vegetable shortening so you get both flavor and flakiness. I must have made a mistake in measuring because the dough was so rich with butter that once in the oven you could actually see it melting out of the dough where it settled in the ruffled edges, nearly frying the crust. But it was very delicious I must say.
I like using a mix of apples, usually Granny Smith for tartness and shape and golden delicious or fuji for sweetness and an almost applesaucy tenderness. I shared the pie with friends, but I could easily have eaten the whole thing instead of breakfast, lunch and dinner, and breakfast again – with a huge glass of cold milk (or a scoop of good vanilla ice cream). Sigh…