Diamond Apple Pie Recipes

CARAMEL APPLE PIE

Steps:

• For the perfect spiced pie crust: Mix the flour, cinnamon, salt and nutmeg in a bowl. Add the butter and vegetable shortening. Work the butter into the flour using a pastry cutter until the mixture resembles tiny pebbles. Add the white vinegar, egg and 5 tablespoons cold water and stir until just combined.
• Form 2 equal-sized balls. Place each in a large plastic bag (do not seal) and slightly flatten with a rolling pin; this makes it much easier to roll out the crust later. After flattening, seal the bag tightly. Place in the freezer for 15 to 20 minutes to chill.
• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• Remove 1 bag of dough from the freezer (save the other dough for another use), remove the dough from the bag and place it on a lightly floured surface. Roll the dough starting at the center and working outward. Be gentle and patient; it'll take a little time to get the dough completely rolled out. If you think the bottom is really sticking to the surface below while rolling, use a metal spatula to loosen it. When fully rolled out, loosen again with a spatula and lift the pie crust into a 9-inch pie pan (or you can roll the pastry over the rolling pin, lift it onto the pie pan and unroll it). Gently press the dough against the corner of the pan and tear off any excess dough. Then tuck under the edges and go around the pie pan pinching the dough to crimp the edge.
• For the pie filling: In a bowl, mix the apples, lemon juice, granulated sugar, flour and salt. Set aside.
• For the crumb topping: Cut the butter into the flour with a pastry cutter, then add in the brown sugar, oats and salt.
• Add the apples to the prepared pie shell and top with the crumb topping. Bake for 1 hour, covering the edge of the crust with foil if it starts to brown too quickly. After an hour, sprinkle the chopped pecans over the pie, then bake for a further 5 minutes.
• Remove the pie from the oven and pour 1/2 jar (or more, if you're feeling dangerous and naughty) of caramel topping over the top. Allow to cool slightly before serving - or don't if you can't wait!

DIAMOND APPLE PIE

Steps:

• In a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Stir in apples, lemon juice, granulated sugar, cinnamon, and salt; cover and cook until apples have softened but are not falling apart, about 8 minutes. Add flour and cook, uncovered, until juices have thickened, about 2 minutes. Transfer to a 9-by-13-inch baking dish; let cool completely.
• On a lightly floured piece of parchment, roll out 1 disk of dough into a 13-inch round, about 1/8 inch thick. Fit into a 9-inch pie dish. Refrigerate until firm, at least 30 minutes. Meanwhile, roll out remaining disk of dough on a lightly floured piece of parchment to a 13-inch round, about 1/8 inch thick. Transfer on parchment to a baking sheet. Refrigerate until firm, about 30 minutes.
• Place apple mixture in prepared pie dish; spread in an even layer. Lightly brush rim of bottom dough with water.
• For top dough, use a 2 1/4-inch diamond cookie cutter to stamp out 16 diamonds (reroll scraps, if needed). Freeze cut shapes on parchment-lined baking sheets until very firm, 15 minutes. Trim bottom dough flush with pie-dish rim. In a small bowl, whisk egg white and 1/2 tablespoon water with a fork. In another small bowl, whisk egg yolk and 1/2 tablespoon water. With a small pastry brush, brush every other tile with egg white and sprinkle with sanding sugar. Brush remaining tiles with yolk. Starting in center of pie, arrange diamonds over filling, alternating between egg-wash finishes. Using kitchen shears, trim diamond edges flush with pie-dish rim. Refrigerate until dough is firm, 30 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 400 degrees with a rack in lower third and a foil-lined baking sheet below. Place dish directly on rack; bake until crust is just beginning to brown, about 20 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 375 degrees; bake until crust is golden brown and juices are bubbling in center, 1 hour to 1 hour, 10 minutes. (If crust is browning too quickly, tent with foil.) Transfer to a wire rack; let cool completely, at least 6 hours.

CHEF JOHN'S EASY APPLE PIE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).
• Melt butter in saucepan over medium heat. Stir in white sugar, brown sugar, salt, cinnamon, and water. Bring the syrup to a boil, stirring constantly to dissolve sugar, then remove from heat.
• Unroll pie crusts, press one into a 9-inch pie dish, and place the apples into the crust. Unroll the second crust on a work surface, and cut into about 8 1-inch wide strips. Criss-cross the strips over the apples, or weave into a lattice crust. Crimp the bottom crust over the lattice strips with your fingers. Spoon caramel sauce over pie, covering lattice portion of top crust; let remaining sauce drizzle through the crust.
• Bake in preheated oven for 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C), and bake until the crust is golden brown, the caramel on the top crust is set, and the apple filling is bubbling, 35 to 40 more minutes. Allow to cool completely before slicing.

THE BEST APPLE PIE

Steps:

• For the crust, pulse flour, sugar and salt in a food processor until blended. Add butter; pulse until butter is the size of peas. While processing, add just enough ice water to form moist crumbs. Divide dough in half. Shape each into a disk; wrap in plastic. Refrigerate 30 minutes or overnight., For the filling, melt butter in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Add apples and next 6 ingredients; stir to combine. Cook, covered, stirring occasionally, until apples have softened and released their juices, 10-12 minutes. With a slotted spoon, transfer apple slices to a 15x10-in. baking pan; spread into a single layer. Add cider to remaining liquid in Dutch oven and bring to a boil; cook until juices reduce to 1/2 cup, 10-12 minutes. Remove from heat; add lemon juice and vanilla extract. Pour over apple slices; cool completely. (Filling can be made 24 hours in advance and refrigerated.), Preheat oven to 425°. Adjust oven rack to lowest position; place foil on rack to catch any spills. On a lightly floured surface, roll half of dough to a 1/8-in.-thick circle; transfer to a deep dish 9-in. pie plate. Trim pastry to within 1/2-in. of rim. Add filling. Roll remaining dough to a 1/8-in.-thick circle; place over filling. Trim, seal and flute edge. Cut slits in top. Whisk together egg yolk and cream; brush top of pie. Sprinkle with coarse sugar. Chill 15 minutes., Bake 20 minutes. Reduce oven setting to 350°. Bake until crust is golden brown and filling bubbly, 40-50 minutes longer. Cool on a wire rack.

APPLE PECAN PIE

Steps:

• Roll out dough to a 12-inch round on a lightly floured work surface. Transfer to a 9-inch pie plate. Trim edges, leaving a 1/2-inch overhang. Fold edges of dough under itself until flush with edge of dish. Crimp edges with fingers, the tines of a fork, or a spoon. Refrigerate until firm, about 30 minutes. Meanwhile, make crumb topping.
• Crumb Topping: Combine flour, pecans, brown sugar, and salt in a medium bowl. Massage butter into flour mixture with your fingers until mixture clumps together and no dry flour remains. Press into bottom of bowl and refrigerate until firm, about 20 minutes.
• Filling: In a large bowl, toss apples and pecans with flour, sugar, cinnamon, and salt until evenly coated. Stir together lemon juice and vanilla, drizzle over apple mixture, and toss to evenly coat.
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees with racks in middle and lower third positions. Place a parchment-lined rimmed baking sheet on lower rack. Pour apple mixture into crust. Break up topping into large pieces and sprinkle evenly over filling. Bake on center rack until bubbly and crust is golden brown, 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 hours. (If crust and crumb topping brown too quickly, tent with foil.) Let cool completely on a wire rack before slicing and serving.

CLASSIC APPLE PIE RECIPE

Steps:

• Position two oven racks in the lower third of the oven and heat the oven to 400°F.
• Peel the apples, cut each in half from top to bottom, remove the cores with a melon baller, and trim the ends with a paring knife. Lay the apples, cut side down, on a cutting board. Cut the Cortland apples (below left) crosswise into 3/4-inch pieces, and then halve each piece diagonally. Cut the Granny Smith apples (below right) crosswise into 1/4-inch slices, leaving them whole. Put the apples in a large bowl and toss with the lemon juice.
• Combine the brown sugar, 1/4 cup of the granulated sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon, kosher salt, and nutmeg in a small bowl. (Don't add this to the fruit yet.)
• In a small dish, lightly beat the egg white with 1 teaspoon water. Set aside.
• Butter a 9-inch ovenproof glass (Pyrex) pie plate, including the rim, with the 2 tsp. of softened butter.
• Rub 2 to 3 Tbs. of flour into the surface of a pastry cloth, forming a circle about 15 inches across, and also into a rolling pin stocking. If you don't have a pastry cloth, rub the flour into a large, smooth-weave, cotton kitchen towel and use a floured rolling pin. Roll one of the disks of dough into a circle that's 1/8 inch thick and about 15 inches across.
• Lay the rolling pin across the upper third of the dough circle; lift the pastry cloth to gently drape the dough over the pin and then roll the pin toward you, wrapping the remaining dough loosely around it. Hold the rolling pin over the near edge of the pie plate. Allowing for about a 1-inch overhang, unroll the dough away from you, easing it into the contours of the pan. If the dough isn't centered in the pan, gently adjust it and then lightly press it into the pan. Take care not to stretch the dough. If it tears, simply press it back together-the dough is quite forgiving.
• Brush the bottom and sides of the dough with a light coating of the egg-white wash (you won't need all of it). Leaving a 1/4-inch overhang, cut around the edge of the dough with kitchen shears.
• Combine the sugar mixture with the apples and toss to coat well. Mound the apples in the pie plate, rearranging the fruit as needed to make the pile compact. Dot the apples with the 1 Tbs. cold butter cubes.
• Rub another 2 to 3 Tbs. flour into the surface of the pastry cloth and stocking. Roll the remaining dough into a circle that's 1/8 inch thick and about 15 inches across. Use the rolling pin to move the dough. As you unroll the dough, center it on top of the apples. Place your hands on either side of the top crust of the pie and ease the dough toward the center, giving the dough plenty of slack. Leaving a 3/4-inch overhang, trim the top layer of dough around the rim of the pie plate. Fold the top layer of dough under the bottom layer, tucking the two layers of dough together. Press a lightly floured fork around the edge of the dough to seal it, or flute the edge of the dough with lightly floured fingers.
• Lightly brush the top with cold water and sprinkle the surface with the remaining 1 Tbs. sugar. Make steam vents in the dough by poking the tip of a paring knife through it in a few places; it's important to vent well so that the steam from the cooking apples won't build up and crack the top of the crust.
• Cover the rim of the pie with aluminum foil bands. This will prevent the edge of the crust from overbrowning.
• Place a rimmed baking sheet or an aluminum foil drip pan on the oven rack below the pie to catch any juices that overflow during baking. Set the pie on the rack above.
• Bake until the top and bottom crusts are golden brown and the juices are bubbling, 60 to 75 minutes; to thicken, the juices must boil, so look for the bubbles through the steam vents or through cracks near the edges of the pie and listen for the sound of bubbling juices. During the last 5 minutes of baking, remove the foil bands from the edges of the pie. Cool the pie at least 3 hours and up to overnight before serving.

DEEP DISH APPLE PIE RECIPE

Steps:

• In a large bowl, whisk together 2 and 1/4 cups flour, 2 Tbsp of sugar and 1/2 tsp salt.
• Cut 1 1/2 sticks of COLD butter and 6 oz of cream cheese into small cubes. Using a pastry blender or 2 knives, cut the butter and cream cheese into the flour mixture until it resembles coarse crumbs with pea-sized pieces.
• Drizzle 3 Tbsp of cold heavy cream over the dough and cut into the dough with a spatula until the dough forms moist clumps.
• Divide the dough into 2 pieces, press into flat disks, cover tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 1 hour or up to 2 days.
• Once its fully cooled, remove 1 piece of dough from the refrigerator and on a clean surface, roll it out into a 13-inch circle. (Dough rolls out easier without flouring the surface, use pastry scraper to lift rolled out crust). Transfer the dough to a deep dish 9-inch pie plate and refrigerate it. Take the next piece of dough out of the fridge and roll it into a 12-inch circle, cover with plastic and refrigerate while you make the fruit filling.
• Combine 9 cups of Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and sliced 1/4-inch thick with 3/4 cup sugar, 1/3 cup of all-purpose flour, 2 Tbsp lemon juice, 1 tsp ground cinnamon and 1/8 tsp salt in a bowl. Mix well and let the filling stand for 15 minutes, stirring a few times in the process.
• Take your pie dish out of the refrigerator and pour the entire apple filling mixture (juices and all) into the bottom crust and scatter pieces of 2 Tbsp of butter over the top.
• Just before putting on the top crust, brush the edge of the bottom crust with cold water. Trim any excess dough on the edge and fancy up the edge with a flute pattern. To flute, with your index finger and thumb, pinch your other index finger, now imagine there is dough in between both hands. Cut 6 to 8 slits in the top crust to vent the pie.
• Sprinkle top with the mixture of 1/4 tsp of cinnamon and 2 tsp of sugar. Bake apple pie for 15 minutes at 425˚F. If you see your crust browning too quickly, cut a 3-inch hole in the center of a square piece of foil and loosely place over the top of your pie.
• Reduce oven to 350˚F, slip a baking sheet under the pie (I like to line it with foil to catch any drips) and bake another 45 minutes. For the filling to thicken properly, you have to let it cool completely (2 to 3 hours). You can keep the pie for up to 3 days on the counter.

GOLDEN RAISIN AND APPLE LATTICE PIE

Steps:

• For crust:
• Blend flour, cake flour, sugar and salt in processor. Add butter and shortening and cut in using on/off turns until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add 6 tablespoons ice water and process just until moist clumps form, adding more ice water by teaspoonfuls if dough is dry. Gather dough into ball; divide into 2 pieces, 1 slightly larger than the other. Flatten larger piece into disk and smaller piece into rectangle; wrap each in plastic and refrigerate 1 hour. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Keep refrigerated. Let soften slightly at room temperature before rolling out.)
• For filling:
• Position rack in bottom third of oven and preheat to 375°F. Spread apple slices on large rimmed baking sheet. Sprinkle 3 tablespoons sugar over apples, then drizzle with 2 tablespoons melted butter and lemon juice; toss to coat. Bake just until apples begin to soften, stirring once, about 15 minutes. Cool apples completely on baking sheet. Maintain oven temperature.
• Transfer apples and any accumulated juices to large bowl. Mix in raisins and brown sugar.
• Butter 9-inch-diameter glass pie dish. Roll out dough disk on floured surface to 12-inch round. Transfer crust to prepared pie dish. Spoon apple filling into crust. Drizzle remaining 1 tablespoon melted butter over. Roll out dough rectangle on floured surface to 11x7-inch rectangle. Cut lengthwise into twelve 1/2-inch-wide strips. Place 6 strips 1 inch apart atop apple filling. Place remaining 6 strips diagonally atop first 6 strips, forming diamond lattice pattern. Trim strips even with bottom crust. Fold dough overhang in, pressing onto edge of pie dish. Press dough edge decoratively with fork to seal.
• Brush dough strips with egg glaze. Sprinkle strips with 2 teaspoons sugar. Bake 15 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 350°F. Continue to bake pie until crust is golden and apples are tender, covering crust edges with foil if browning too quickly, about 1 hour 15 minutes longer. Cool pie at least 2 hours. Serve slightly warm or at room temperature. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Cool completely, then cover and store at room temperature.)

EASY AS APPLE PIE

Steps:

• Place bottom crust in pan. Add apples, sprinkle with sugar and nutmeg. Top with butter, place top crust over and vent with a few holes poked in pastry top. Bake 375 degrees for one hour.