Apple Pie

Crunch Top Apple Pie

Recipe courtesy Paula Deen
Prep Time: 15 min
Cook Time: 55 min
Level: Easy
Serves: 6 to 8 servings

Ingredients

Dough and Filling:

Dough for a double crust 9-inch pie (see recipe at the bottom for Paula's perfect pie crust)
3/4 cup sugar
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Dash salt
3 1/2 cups peeled, chopped cooking apples
1 (16-ounce) jar applesauce
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 tablespoons butter, chopped into small pieces
Crunch Topping:
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon sugar
Dash salt
1 tablespoon butter, at room temperature

Directions

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

Line a 9-inch pie pan with half of dough. Combine sugar, flour, cinnamon, and salt in a bowl. Stir in apples, applesauce, and lemon juice. Spoon apple mixture into pie pan and dot with butter. Cut remaining crust into strips; arrange in a lattice design over top of pie. For crunch topping, combine flour, sugar, and salt in a bowl. Using a fork, cut in butter until mixture is crumbly. Sprinkle over top of crust. Bake for 10 minutes, then reduce heat to 350 degrees F and continue to bake for about 45 minutes, or until crust and topping are golden brown.

Paula's Perfect Pie Crust

Recipe courtesy Paula Deen, 2008
Prep Time: 20 min
Inactive Prep Time: 30 min
Level: Easy

Serves: 2 (9-inch) pie crusts

Ingredients

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon fine salt
3 tablespoons granulated white sugar
1/4 cup vegetable shortening, cold
12 tablespoons butter, cold and cubed
1/4 cup to 1/2 cup ice water

Directions

In a large mixing bowl, sift together the flour, salt and sugar. Add the shortening and break it up with your hands as you start to coat it all up with the flour. Add the cold butter cubes and work it into the flour with your hands or a pastry cutter. Work it quickly, so the butter doesn't get too soft, until the mixture is crumbly, like very coarse cornmeal. Add the ice water, a little at a time, until the mixture comes together forming a dough. Bring the dough together into a ball.
When it comes together stop working it otherwise the dough will get over-worked and tough. Divide the dough in half and flatten it slightly to form a disk shape. Wrap each disk in plastic and chill in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes. On a floured surface roll each disk out into a 10 to 11-inch circle to make a 9-inch pie.

*I made this pie today for my family's Christmas dinner. We have yet to eat it, but it smelled divine. Unfortunately, Ben and I had to leave for church before it was done and I had to leave it all to Alex. When Alex discovered it wasn't browning very much, he decided to turn the broiler on. This is my first pie (unless you count jello pie with cookie crust), but I'm pretty sure it's not a good idea to broil it! He only burnt small parts that he tried to scrape off before I got home. Ah well. What are you gonna do? The guy has only gotten like 8 hours of sleep the last several days.