Dutch Apple Pie


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One of the best things I did a dozen or so years ago was take a pie-making class.  Not only did I walk away with some good recipes, but I also lost my fear of making pie and ditched the concept that a perfect looking pie equals a perfect tasting pie.  Best of all, I learned how to make this Dutch apple pie, and over the years I’ve made this pie more often than any other.  Some of my children request my Dutch apple pie instead of birthday cake.

The pictures I’m using in this post are representative of what happens when I make it.  I was lucky to get a quick shot of the last slice!

Dutch Apple Pie Recipe
Ingredients:
1 unbaked pie crust 6 medium Granny Smith apples 1 cup sugar 1-1/2 teaspoon cinnamon 3 Tablespoons Tapioca 1-1/2 teaspoon fresh lemon juice for Dutch crumb topping:
5-2/3 Tablespoons cold butter 1/2 cup sugar 3/4 cup flour Prepare the filling:
Fill a large bowl with a few ice cubes and 2-3 inches of cold water.  Add 1 teaspoon of salt to cold water.  This salted ice water will keep your apple slices fresh.  Peel and slice apples, placing apple slices into water.

Roll out pie crust into pie dish.

Note:  my favorite pie dishes are
Emile Henry ceramics .

They are made in France, and are high quality and beautiful.  My pies always bake perfectly in these dishes!  They also make great gifts.


Drain water from bowl.  Add 1 cup sugar, cinnamon, Tapioca and lemon juice.  Mix together gently to avoid breaking apple slices.

Arrange applies in pie shell.

To prepare the Dutch crumb topping:

In mixing bowl, combine flour and 1/2 cup sugar.  Cut cold butter into slices and add to flour mixture.  Combine with pastry cutter or using a hand mixer.  Spoon topping over apples, spreading over entire top of pie to the edges of the pie crust.

Bake:

Line baking sheet with parchment paper and place in oven on rack BELOW the rack your pie will bake on.  This will catch any drips as the fruit cooks.

Bake pie at 425 for 15 minutes.  Turn oven temperature down to 350, cover lightly with foil and bake an additional 45-50 minutes.

Remove pie from oven and allow to sit at least 20 minutes before slicing.  Serve warm or cold with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream.

Enjoy!

During the holidays I serve this pie along with these other favorites:

Chocolate Pecan Tart
Coconut Cream Pie Check out my favorite tools for pie making here .

Happy baking!
Jennifer

Favorite Thanksgiving Children’s Books

Thanksgiving is a favorite holiday of mine.   With our large family I’ve read a lot of Thanksgiving children’s books over the years, and a handful have stood the test of time. Today I’m sharing my top favorite picture books for young children.



Cranberry Thanksgiving by Wende and Harry Devlin
, is a delightful story of a girl named Maggie who lives with her grandmother at the edge of a cranberry bog in New England.  Grandmother’s secret cranberry bread recipe is famous and sought after, but she carefully protects it.  That is, until their neighbor, Mr. Whiskers, joins them for Thanksgiving dinner along with another guest…


This book was originally published in the early 1970’s and has been out of print for years, making copies of the book highly sought after and difficult to find.  Our copy is a vintage one, but I was delighted to find that it has been re-printed!  My children love reading this story and especially enjoy Mr. Whisker’s personality.



Thanks for Thanksgiving, by Julie Markes
, is a simple list of things to be grateful for in a young child’s life.  The verse is fun to read aloud, but Doris Barrette’s illustrations are what capture my heart.


They communicate the energetic but happy chaos of family life, as well as the deep comfort of home and belonging.  Perfect!



A Turkey for Thanksgiving by Eve Bunting
is the entertaining story of Mr. and Mrs. Moose, who are about to sit down for Thanksgiving dinner, except Mrs. Moose is sad because they don’t have a turkey.  Mr. Moose is determined to make his wife happy so he goes hunting and brings a terrified turkey home…


These are our favorite Thanksgiving childrens books, a fun warm-up for reading our beloved Christmas stories.  As I write this post, several of my children have paused to say “Oh, I love that book!”.  Reading  is a beautiful way to bond as a family and I’m grateful my children have fond memories of these endearing stories.

What are your favorite Thanksgiving books?  Please share in the comments.  I’m always looking for more!

Happy Reading!
Jennifer

My Moda Building Blocks Quilt, Rediscovered

I was looking for something today in my sewing room when I reached behind the fabric stack at the front of a shelf, and found this:


It’s my partially completed Moda Modern Building Blocks quilt!  I began this quilt nearly a year ago, and it’s been almost that long since I last worked on it.


It’s always fun to look at blocks I’ve sewn after not seeing them for a long time.  In some ways I like them more.  I really liked this quilt pattern made in all solids, but couldn’t justify spending more on fabric, so I chose my Anna Maria Horner stash for this quilt, with a few others mixed in.  I remember being worried/disappointed about some of my fabric choices back when I made these, but I’m not bothered by them now.


I also found a stack of fabrics that I remember choosing for my next blocks before I stalled on the project entirely.  The problem is, I don’t remember which fabrics were for what blocks, and I didn’t write it down, so… we will see.  There are a lot of six inch blocks ahead!


I would really like to finish this quilt, but I think it will need to wait until the new year when I hope things will settle down a little.  (wishful thinking, I know)  Still, it’s nice to have rediscovered these blocks.

What unfinished project have you rediscovered lately, lurking in some random place?  I wish I could say this is my only one, but in truth I have several.  One of these days I’ll finish them up!

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