apple pie

Mini Rustic Apple Pies

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These little apple pies are wonderfully portable and perfectly portion controlled.  Just a few ingredients required!  My kids like to take these in their lunches and, actually, so do I.  For extra decadence, drizzle your pie with a tiny bit of caramel ice cream topping!  ~Erin

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Ingredients:
  • 1 (14.1 oz.) refrigerated pie crust (I use Pillsbury.)
  • 6 sweet apples, peeled & diced (I use Pink Lady but Honeycrisp or Jazz would be good too.)
  • 1 tsp. cinnamon
  • 4 T. apple butter (Musselman’s is the best.)
  • Spray butter

Instructions: 

  1. Sprinkle the apples with cinnamon and bake for 20 minutes, or until apples start to get tender.
  2. Remove the apples from the oven and increase the oven temperature to 425°F.
  3. Transfer the apples to a medium sized bowl & stir in the apple butter; set aside.
  4. Unroll one pie crust and, using a pizza cutter or sharp knife, cut the crust into 8 even slices like you would cut a pizza.
  5. Place each dough slice into the muffin tin and fill them with the apple mixture.
  6. Fold the ends of the dough over the top of the apples and spritz each mini pie with a few sprays of butter. (Or dot with real butter if you aren’t counting Weight Watchers points!)
  7. Bake in the preheated oven for 15 to 20 minutes or until crust is lightly browned.

WW Freestyle Info.: Each mini pie is 5 points.

Blue Ribbon Apple Pie

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I first made this pie as a teenager.  My dad liked my version (which has some extra spices) so much that he asked for this pie for his birthday every year after.  Now my husband also wants this pie every year for HIS birthday too.  It’s that good.  I guess I should call it “birthday pie” since it seems to be a yearly request from the people I bake for.  This pie, however, has a new memory attached to it.  I recently helped my daughter make this pie for a 4H baking competition and she won the grand prize!  She cut the 4H emblem in the top crust and, foolishly, I neglected to take a picture of her pie.  It was so pretty!  Sorry, you’ll have to settle for pictures of my pie instead. Here she is with her ribbons though (the blue ribbon is for the pie and the white ribbon is for rolls that she entered as well).

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If you make a pie for Thanksgiving, I urge you to make this one.  It’s a grand prize blue ribbon favorite in my family!  ~Erin

Ingredients for filling:

  • 2 deep dish pie crusts (confession:  I often use frozen but Mom’s recipe is below if you prefer from-scratch)
  • 8 Granny Smith apples
  • 1 c. white sugar
  • ¼ c. light brown sugar, lightly packed
  • 2 T. flour
  • 1/8 tsp. salt
  • ¾ tsp. ground cinnamon
  • ¼ tsp. nutmeg
  • 2 T. butter

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Instructions:

In a large bowl, stir the white sugar, brown sugar, flour, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg until well combined; set aside.

Preheat the oven to 375° F.

If you made the crust, roll out one disc to ¼ inch thick and press gently in the pie pan, leaving some overhang.

Peel and thinly slice your apples.  Throw them right in with the sugar mixture and toss to coat.

Pour the apple/sugar mixture into your prepared bottom crust.  Don’t leave any sugar behind!

Dot the top of the apples with some bits of butter.

Roll out the top crust (cut a design or slits to vent), then place it on top of the apples and crimp the edges together with the bottom crust.

Place the pie on a sheet pan (in case it bubbles over!) and bake in the center rack until golden brown (about 45 minutes).

Mom’s Deep Dish Double Pie Crust:

  • 4 cups flour
  • 2 tsp. salt
  • 2 sticks butter (1 cup)
  • 1/3 cup vegetable shortening
  • Approximately 12 T. ice cold water

Stir the salt into the flour.  Cut butter and shortening into flour mixture using a pastry cutter or forks, until it resembles a coarse meal.  Add water and knead until the dough comes together and is no longer crumbly, but not to the point of being sticky though.  Divide into 2 discs, wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate until ready to use.