Sweet and Salty!

Salted caramel is all the rage these days.  And it's no mystery why, salty and sweet is delicious!  So why not apply that principle to a pie?  Salted caramel apple pie.  Hell yes!  As I've said before, I'm really not apple pies biggest fan.  But when you cover it with a crunchy topping and slather it in salted caramel, sign me up!

I used the salted caramel recipe from Kelsey Nixon on the Cooking Channel.  It's easy to put together and makes more than you need for the pie, so put the rest in a container and save it for drizzling over ice cream, dipping fruit or cookies in, or eating with a spoon.  When it comes to apples, pick a variety that can stand up to baking, like Granny Smith, Fuji or my choice, Honeycrisp.  Sweet and juicy, the Honeycrisp apples at work were so fragrant I could practically smell them from across the entire store.  They were the perfect match for the salted caramel.

This pie turned out to be so delicious that I did not bring it to work like I usually do.  Once in a while I fall so hard for a pie (see Sweet Potato Meringue) that I can't bear to share it.  I must be greedy and keep it all to myself.  So if you make this pie with the intention of giving it away, be sure not to taste it because it won't be going anywhere except your belly!

Salted Caramel Sauce
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup water
3/4 cup heavy cream
3 1/2 Tb. unsalted butter
1 tsp. coarse sea salt or kosher salt

In a heavy saucepan, combine the sugar and water over medium-low heat until the sugar dissolves.  Increase the heat and bring to a boil, without stirring.  Use a wet pastry brush to wash down any sugar crystals on the side of the pan.  Boil until the syrup is a deep amber color, about 5 to 6 minutes.  Remove from the heat and carefully whisk in the cream.  The mixture will bubble up furiously.  Stir in the butter and salt.  Pour the caramel into a dish and allow to cool.

Crumble Topping
1 cup flour
3/4 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup sliced almonds
6 Tb. butter, melted
1/2 tsp. cinnamon

Combine the dry ingredients and stir to mix well.  Stir in the melted butter and mix to form crumbles.  Set aside while preparing the rest of the pie.

Salted Caramel Apple Pie
1 9-inch pie crust, unbaked
2 lbs. apples
juice of half a lemon
2 Tb. sugar
2 Tb. flour
Salted Caramel Sauce
Crumble Topping

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and place a sheet pan on the middle rack.  Peel and core the apples and slice 1/4 inch thick.  Toss the apples with the lemon juice.  Combine the sugar and flour and toss with the apples.  Pour half of the caramel sauce over the apples and stir to coat.  Pile the apples into the pie crust and then cover the top with the crumble topping.  You will need to use your hands to press the topping onto the apples, forming a compact crust.  Place the pie onto the hot sheet pan.  Bake until the pie is well browned and  the juices are bubbling all the way through the pie, including the center.  This will take about an hour to 1 1/2 hours.  You may need to cover the pie with foil to keep it from browning too much.  When the pie is cooled, drizzle more of the caramel sauce over the top and if you like, sprinkle it with more coarse salt.

The apples tossed with salted caramel.

Crumble topping

Oh la la, gooey caramel and crunchy topping!

Sweet and salty perfection!

An Apple Pie Even I Can Enjoy

Let the record show that when it comes to apple pie I've always been pretty "meh."  My whole life, apple pie has never really turned my crank.  The only way I enjoy it is with a crumb topping, like Dutch apple pie.  But seeing as how it's Fall, and how practically everybody on the planet goes crazy for apple pie, I knew I was going to have to bust out the apple pies.  No problem.  I had a partial bag of cranberries leftover in the freezer and thought that apple-cranberry sounded delightful.   A quick search of the ol' interwebs revealed a great many apple pies using cranberries.  Sounds like Fall to me!  I settled on this recipe for Cranberry-Apple Crumble Pie from epicurious.com.  It's always a good idea to take a quick look at the reviews that people write on recipes.  Usually readers will post any changes they had to make to the recipe, or anything that didn't work out.  When I looked at the reviews for this pie, many people noted that they would have liked a little more sugar in the pie because it was very tart and some said they would have liked more crumble topping as well as more sugar in the crumble.  Others said they had trouble with the topping getting too brown.

Armed with this knowledge I set out to make the pie with a few changes.  Knowing that I adore generous amounts of a sweet crumble topping, I made a few adjustments to that portion of the recipe:
1 cup flour
3/4 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup chopped pecans
6 Tb. butter
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
pinch of salt

And for the pie filling itself, I added an extra 1/4 cup of sugar to help with the tartness issue.

As for the cooking portion of the recipe, it calls for putting chunks of butter on top of the fruit, covering the pie with foil, and baking it for 30 minutes BEFORE putting the crumble on top and then baking the rest of the way.  I had previously cooked a pie that calls for putting the crumble on half-way through the cooking time and I really didn't like that because the heat of the pie makes it hard to get the crumble on properly and it kind of falls all over the hot sheet pan.  I didn't want to deal with this, but I also didn't want a burned pie.  So instead I did this:
Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees with a sheet pan on the bottom rack.  Omit the butter cubes on the fruit and instead pile the crumble all over the pie.  You may need to really pack it on, as the fruit will be mounded above the crust.  Place the pie on the heated pan and bake for 30 minutes.  Lower the heat to 350 degrees and move the pan and pie to the middle rack and bake for about 45 minutes to an hour more, until the fruit juices are thickened and bubbling out of the pie.  I covered my pie loosely with foil for about the last 20 minutes of cooking time.  All ovens are different, and so are our tastes, so keep a close eye on the pie and cover it when you think it is time.

It's worth noting that it is important when cooking fruit pies that the filling bubble properly so that your pie will set and not be a runny mess.  Both flour and cornstarch need to come to a boil in liquid to reach their full thickening power.  So if you see thin fruit juices spilling out of your pie, it isn't hot enough yet.  Wait until the juices are thick from whatever starch you used.  And remember that the outside edge of the pie will bubble first, before the middle gets to the proper temperature.  Be patient, you don't want a runny pie!  Generally the center of the pie should be over 200 degrees to achieve the proper thickening.

The resulting pie I made with a few minor changes was an apple pie that even I could get excited about!!  Juicy apples that retained just enough texture, tart cranberries (but not too tart!) and a delicious, crumb topping with the rich flavor of toasted pecans, yum!  This is the perfect Fall pie!

Ta da!  A beautiful apple pie!

Back to the Business of Pie

Even since my return from working on the train, I haven't gotten back into pie mode.  Knowing that, I threw together an impromptu pie so that I could get something posted.  I went to my trusty freezer and found a pre-made pie crust from Wholly Wholesome and the rest of the cherries I bought during the summer.  A glance in the fridge found eggs and sour cream and the cupboard revealed oats and almonds.  Sour Cream Cherry Pie with Almond Crumble.  Done. Boom.

1 9-inch pie shell, unbaked
Crumble Topping
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup flour
1/3 cup rolled oats
1/3 cup almonds
6 Tb. butter, melted
pinch of cinnamon
Filling
2 cups pitted cherries, fresh or frozen
3/4 cup sour cream
2 eggs
3 Tb. flour
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 tsp. almond extract

Place a sheet pan on the bottom rack of the oven and pre-heat to 400 degrees.
To make the topping, combine the sugar, flour, oats, almonds and cinnamon.  Stir in the butter until the mixture is crumbly and well combined.  Put in the refrigerator while you prepare the rest of the pie.

Combine the flour and sugar in a mixing bowl and whisk well.  Whisk in the eggs, extract and sour cream, mixing well to remove any lumps.  Fold in the cherries.  Pour the mixture into the pie shell and distribute the crumble topping evenly over the top.  Place on the pie on the heated pan in the oven.  Bake for 30 minutes.  Turn the oven down to 350 degrees and move the pie and the pan to the top rack to help the crumble brown.  Cook until the pie is set but jiggles slightly, about another 30 to 45 minutes.

Almond crumble topping.

Mixing the cherries and the sour cream filling.

The finished pie!

Oh crumbly goodness!

Delicious!

Peaches 'n Cream

I lucked out and bought a 10 pound box of Colorado peaches (the last one!) from my upstairs neighbor, who sells them for the local Rotary Club.  So thankfully I can get my fix of peaches and peach-based baking for just a little longer before they disappear for another year.

Not to be confused with the sour cream blueberry pie I blogged about earlier this year, this is a baked pie that uses peaches mixed with sour cream and eggs, topped with a sugary, crisp topping.  To say that it is delicious is an understatement.  Super sweet, juicy peaches, surrounded by tangy sour cream and finished with crunchy goodness, mmmmmm good!!  I tried a slice when the pie was still slightly warm, but it was also fantastic the next day fresh out of the refrigerator.  I used a little almond and orange extracts because I was out of vanilla, but feel free to substitute vanilla if you like.

If you're faced with seasonal depression due to the impending lack of fresh peaches, get your last fix with this pie.  Trust me.

Sour Cream Peach Pie
Filling
1 9" pie crust, unbaked
2 cups fresh peaches, peeled and sliced
3 Tb. flour
1/2 cup sugar
2 eggs
3/4 cup sour cream
1/4 tsp. almond extract
1/2 tsp. orange extract
Topping
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup flour
pinch cinnamon
1/4 cup butter, melted

Place a sheet pan on the bottom rack of the oven and pre-heat to 400 degrees.
To make the topping, combine the sugar, flour and cinnamon.  Stir in the butter until the mixture is crumbly and well combined.  Put in the refrigerator while you prepare the rest of the pie.

Combine the flour and sugar in a mixing bowl and whisk well.  Whisk in the eggs and sour cream, mixing well to remove any lumps.  Fold in the peaches.  Pour the mixture into the pie shell and place on the heated pan in the oven.  Bake for 30 minutes.  Reduce the heat to 350 degrees and sprinkle the crumble topping over the pie.  Cook until the pie is set, but jiggles slightly, about another 30 to 45 minutes.

Seize the moment!

Peach season has arrived in Colorado and it will be gone as quickly as it came.   Considering I made this pie on Tuesday, I've already lost a few more days of peachy goodness!!  I went to the Boulder Farmer's Market last weekend and the peaches were close to $4 a pound.  So I decided to give my money to my employer, where they are still $2.49 a pound.  And boy, I was not disappointed!  These peaches are sweet, fragrant and juice-dripping-down-your-arm juicy!!  Go get some peaches and make this pie, with or without the blueberries.  Don't hesitate, life is short.  And so is peach season.

Peach Blueberry Pie with Almond Crumble

1 9" pie crust (cold), I used Wholly Wholesome
3 cups fresh peaches, peeled, pitted and sliced
1 cup blueberries, fresh or frozen
sugar to taste, I used 3 Tb.
2 Tb. instant Clearjel, or about half the amount of cornstarch, depending on your fruit
1/2 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup sliced almonds
6 Tb. melted butter
pinch of ground nutmeg

Place a sheet pan on the bottom rack of the oven and preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Combine the oats, flour, brown sugar, almonds, nutmeg and butter in a small bowl.  Put in the refrigerator while prepping the rest of the pie.

To peel and pit the peaches first use a paring knife to score an X on the bottom and then drop them into simmering water for about 20 to 30 seconds.  Remove and drop into a bowl of cold water with ice to stop the cooking process.  If the peaches were nice and ripe you will be able to rub off the skins with a paper towel or clean dish towel.   Or you may need to use a paring knife to remove the skin, pulling it down from the X.  Slice the peaches, I like to leave them sort of thick so they don't disintegrate when cooking.

Combine the peaches and blueberries in a bowl.  Mix the instant Clearjel and the sugar and sprinkle over the fruit, tossing to combine.  Pile the fruit into the unbaked pie shell.  Top with the crumble mixture.  Place the pie on the heated pan and bake for about 40 to 50 minutes, until the topping is browned and the filling is bubbling.  Cool for as long as you can possibly wait, this pie is great warm or cold and is perfect with vanilla ice cream!

Beautiful peaches!

Sliced with blueberries.  

Sweet, delicious, juicy, crunch pie goodness!

Blueberry pie with the quickness!

Today let's keep it short and sweet!  This pie is easy to throw together, especially if you prep in advance and keep discs of pie crust in the freezer.  Or you can pick up your favorite crust at the grocery store.  The blueberries don't need to be cooked ahead of time, just tossed with a few ingredients and then topped with a crunchy, sweet crumble topping.  This would be lovely served warm with ice cream or whipped cream.


Blueberry Crumble Pie
1 9-inch pie pan

1 pie crust, unbaked
Filling
4 cups blueberries
zest and juice of one lemon
3/4 cup sugar (more or less depending on your taste and berries)
4 Tb. instant Clearjel (or 2 Tb. cornstarch)
pinch of salt
Topping
1 cup flour
1/2 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1 stick butter, melted

Put a sheet pan on the lowest rack of the oven and pre-heat to 400 degrees.  Fit the crust into a pie pan and decorate the edge as desired.  Put into the freezer.

Add the lemon juice, zest, salt and half a cup of sugar to the blueberries.  Toss together and set aside.  Combine the remaining sugar and the instant Clearjel and set aside.

Combine the flour, oats, brown sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl.  Add the melted butter and mix well, until the mixture is crumbly.  Put into the refrigerator for 15 minutes.

Take the unbaked pie crust out of the freezer. Combine the sugar and Clearjel mixture with the berries and toss well to combine.  Put the berries into the pie crust.  Sprinkle the topping onto the top of the pie, breaking up with your fingers to make crumbles.  Place the pie onto the pre-heated sheet pan and bake for 30 minutes.   Then lower the oven temperature to 350 and move the pan to the center rack.  Bake for another 20 to 30 minutes, until the crust and topping is nicely browned and you can see blueberry juices bubbling through the cracks.