With fall arriving this month, the weather may not live up to its name right away here in the Central Valley, but that doesn’t stop the apples from producing on all the trees near and far. As September comes and goes, and the days grow shorter, it’s the perfect time to start practicing your fall and winter baking skills! Here we share with you, our co-founder’s Greenlaw Grupe’s favorite apple pie prepared with love each year by his wife Anne. With the help of his daughter Sue De Polo, we were able to find her moms recipe book that kept Greenlaw’s heart delighted.
Anne Grupe’s Apple Pie
To start:
Buy your favorite package of two pre-made pie crusts, available in the refrigerated section at Podesto’s Deli & Market or Trader Joe’s.
Ingredients
½ cup + 1 teaspoon of sugar (separated)
¼ cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
Dash of salt
1 large lemon, juiced
2 tablespoons butter, diced
1 egg yolk, beaten
7-8 green apples, peeled and thinly sliced
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 425°F
2. In a small bowl, combine ½ cup sugar, flour and spices; set aside. In a large bowl, toss apples with lemon juice. Add sugar mixture; toss to coat.
3. On a lightly floured surface, unroll pie crusts; roll each into a 12-inch circle. Line a 9-inch pie plate with bottom pie crust; trim, leaving a 1/2-inch overhang over dish. Set remaining crust aside. Fill pie plate with apple mixture, mounding apples in the middle. Dot apples with butter.
4. Place remaining pie crust over filling. Trim, leaving a 1/2-inch overhang from the rim of your dish. Fold the top layer of dough under the edge of the bottom layer and press edges together to form a seal. Crimp edges together using a fork or flute with your fingers. Cut 6, 1-inch slits in top of pastry for steam.
5. Brush top crust with beaten yoke of 1 egg; sprinkle with 1 teaspoon sugar.
6. Cover crust edge with 2 to 3-inch strips of foil to prevent excessive browning. Bake for 15 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 350°. Continue baking for 35 to 45 minutes, until apples are soft. Cool on a cooling rack for a minimum of 2 hours.
