PIE!!! Yes, I shouted there a little. Is there a more magical word in the English language? There may be, but not to many of us. While pie is such a diverse baking vehicle and as such, pretty seasonless, I find that I really don't make them outside of Autumn. Something about the bite in the air, the warmth of the oven, the bubbling alchemy of sweetness - or maybe it's my daughters screaming PIE!! Okay, let's be honest. My husband has been known to scream PIE! as well.
This particular pie - a Rosemary Apple - was created a little bit by accident. After spending a lovely day at a local apple festival, I had a lot of apples and not much more than my old Brandy Apple Butter recipe to turn to. I thought I would try something new, so I created this Rosemary & Wine Applesauce. I apologize - I created this recipe before I decided to start this blog so I never wrote down what I did! Oops. But I remember with (fair) clarity and it's pretty hard to mess up. A few weeks later, my mom was in town and we felt like baking so I started to throw together an apple pie - then, on a whim I decided to add a half of a cup the Applesauce to the filling. And OH MY GOD. So let's start there; this recipe will make just over 2 cups of applesauce - the pie recipe calls for 1/2 cup - so eat the rest or make more PIE!
ROSEMARY & WINE APPLESAUCE
5 lbs. of apples {I like organic Cortland's - and I don't peel mine, but you can if you wish}
lemon juice
2 c. apple cider
1 c. sweet white wine
2 t. cinnamon
1 t. cloves
1 T dry rosemary
salt
In a large pot, combine the wine and cider over medium heat.
Mix the cinnamon, cloves and rosemary together, and add to the pot.
Core and chop up the apples and then add to the pot. Cover the pot partially and leave on medium to high heat until it begins to boil; squeeze the juice of 1/2 lemon into the pot (mind the seeds!) and a dash of salt then turn to simmer and leave it for at least two hours, stirring occasionally. When it starts to look like a mushy, thick apple sauce, pour it into a food processor and blend until you achieve your desired consistency. If you like a really chunky sauce, you can skip this step entirely and sort of mix and mash with a wooden spoon or spatula.
I'm no canning expert and we eat ours too quickly to worry about storage so I pour the sauce into clean hot mason jars fresh from the dishwasher and seal them.
Now remember the part where I said I didn't write this down? That's where your taste buds come in handy - you should learn to always taste as you are cooking - it helps train your palette and can save you from have to start over once finished. If it's not sweet enough for you - add a bit of honey - if the flavors lack a little depth - add a bit more cinnamon and touch of salt. Experiment a little - make it yours.
Every great pie deserves a great pie crust. And this is a great pie crust. I usually make several at the beginning of the season and freeze the pie discs. When you are ready to use them, let them thaw for a few hours at room temperature, and they will be ready to roll.
PIE CRUST
1 1/2 c flour
1/4 t sea salt
9 T organic salted butter (VERY cold and cubed)
3 T ice water
This is best made in a food processor. Add the flour and salt to the bowl. Add the butter. cover the bowl and turn on. Once the butter is fully incorporated, pour the water through the hole on the top of the lid. Allow the processor to continue to run until the dough starts to form into a ball. Once it has, remove the dough and shape into a disc. This will yield one pie crust. You can make as many as you would like but they need to made one at a time. If you are making them to freeze, place them in individual freezer bags to store. If you want to use the crust right away, place in a plastic bag or wrap with saran and refrigerate for about 15 minutes.
Time for PIE!!
ROSEMARY APPLE PIE
6-7 apples {again - I love Cortland's - they hold their shape beautifully} cored and sliced
1/2 c. flour
1/4 c. demerara sugar
1/2 t. cinnamon
1/4 t. cloves
1 t. sea salt
1/2 c. Rosemary and Wine Applesauce
3 T butter, cubed
one pie crust
Preheat oven to 375F.
Place the apple slices in a large bowl.
Butter and lighty flour a tart or pie dish.
Roll out the pie dough and transfer to the pie dish.
In a small bowl mix the flour, sugar, cinnamon and cloves. Then add to the apples - mix well so that all the apples are evenly coated.
Add the applesauce to the apple bowl and again ensure everything is completly coated. I find it's easiest to use my hands as opposed to a utensil here.
Add the apples to the prepared pie dish. Fit them in tightly - so they are a bit snug. Dot the apples with about half of the butter cubes.
Use the remaining apples to create a fanned pattern on top of the pie as illustrated - then dot the top of the pie with the remaining butter. Place the pie on a baking sheet (just in case it bubbles over) and place in the oven for 45-55 minutes. The top should be golden and you should see the filling bubbling!
So what does one listen to while making apple pie? Good 'ole Americana of course...
Jim Dandy - Black Oak Arkansas
Sweet Hitch-Hiker - Creedence Clearwater Revival
Smoke on the Water - Deep Purple
The Cover of "Rolling Stone" - Dr. Hook
Call Me the Breeze - Lynyrd Skynyrd
Mississippi Queen - Mountain
Cherry Bomb - The Runaways
Living in the USA - Steve Miller Band
Fox On The Run - Sweet
Outlaw - War
Balinese - ZZ Top
Midnight Rider - The Allman Brothers Band
On the Road Again - Canned Heat
These Boots Are Made For Walking - Loretta Lynn
You can listen to it here.
p.s. By the time you are reading this I will likely by in the air NYC bound for a working weekend. I will return next week with some pics from the quick trip and our favorite homemade mac n' cheese - and some rock n' roll.
