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Our month of apple recipes continues today with a twist on America’s favorite dessert: apple pie. This version has all of the delicious makings, but instead of a decorative crust, the apple slices are arranged like a rose. Posie of 600 Acres shows us how it’s done (it’s easier than it looks!)…
Rose Apple Pie
By Posie Harwood of 600 Acres
When the air gets crisp, I want to turn on my oven again and bake. Fall usually means a basic apple pie: a rustic, rumpled-looking crust hiding a wealth of apple slices perfumed with cinnamon. Each slice slumps appealingly, the fruit softened from the heat. And although, in general, I don’t advocate messing about with the classics, this delicate apple pie is absolutely worth trying this autumn. It has all the elements of a traditional apple pie — a buttery, flaky crust and a warm, spiced fruit filling — but it’s much lighter and more elegant. Don’t be intimidated by how fancy it looks, it’s actually easier than baking a regular apple pie. All it takes to get that pretty surface is to arrange apple slices in circles. Serve the pie warm with a scoop of ice cream or a dollop of whipped cream and prepare to impress pretty much everyone you know.
Recipe: Rose Apple Pie
Serves 6-8
You’ll need:
For the crust
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp salt
8 tbsp butter, very cold
1/4 to 1/2 cup ice water
For the filling
6-8 medium apples
2 tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp cinnamon
1/3 cup granulated sugar
4 tbsp strawberry jam
To make the crust, whisk the flour and salt together in a large bowl. Cut in the butter until the mixture is in small lumps. Slowly pour in the ice water, stirring with a fork as you go. You might only need 1/4 cup, so start there. The dough should come together into a shaggy mass, but it should have plenty of dry spots left. Add as much water as you need to get to this point. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead it a few times until it comes together in a cohesive ball. Press the ball into a disc, wrap it in plastic wrap and chill for at least 30 minutes.
Once the dough has chilled, place it on a lightly floured surface and roll it out to an 11″ circle. Transfer the circle of dough into a 9-inch tart pan. Refrigerate the dough for at least one hour.
While the crust chills, prepare the apples. Peel all the apples and cut them into very thin slices. You want each slice to be thin enough to bend without breaking, but not paper thin. If they are too thin, they’ll break when you toss them in the next step. You can use a mandoline to make this step easier.
Place the slices in a large bowl and toss them gently with the lemon juice, cinnamon and sugar. Let sit while the crust finishes chilling.
When you’re ready to bake, preheat the oven to 425F. Remove the crust from the refrigerator. Starting from the outside, line the apple slices up (cut side down) in the pie crust, moving around the crust in circles and working your way into the center. Each slice should overlap with the last one. You want the circles to be tightly pressed together, as the apples will shrink when they bake.
Drain the liquid that’s left at the bottom of the bowl of apples and cook it down (in a small saucepan or in the microwave) until it thickens. Pour this liquid over the top of the apples.
Bake the tart for 30-40 minutes. Just before the time is up, heat the strawberry jam (on the stove or in the microwave) until it’s liquid-y. Remove the pie from the oven and brush the heated jam over the top of the apples using a pastry brush. Return to the oven and bake for another 10 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown and the fruit should be bubbling. Remove from the oven and let cool.
Thank you so much, Posie!
P.S. More delicious recipes, including apple crisp and apple pie with caramel.
(Recipe and photos by Posie Harwood. Thanks to Stella Blackmon for helping with this series.)
