Secret Ingredient Apple PIe

By christoph

The most flavorful apple pie is baked using apple cider syrup. Tips for baking apple pie as well as a recipe for the most amazing filling.

Ingredients

• Filling
• 8 cups apples mix of Granny Smith and Fuji, cored, peeled, and thinly sliced
• ¼ cup dried cranberries (optional)
• 2 tablespoons butter melted
• ¼ cup apple cider syrup* see recipe above
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1 ¼ cup confectioners' sugar
• ¼ cup flour
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
• ¼ teaspoon allspice
• ¼ teaspoon ground ginger
• ¼ teaspoon cardamom
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• Crust
• Double Pie Crust made from scratch or packaged
• Topping
• Milk
• Sanding sugar

Details

Preparation time 20mins
Cooking time 140mins
Adapted from jamesandeverett.com

Preparation

Step 1

Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat to 350°F.
Filling
Microwave the sliced apples uncovered on a plate for 4 to 5 minutes, until they have softened a just a bit. Drain off any liquid then transfer to a large mixing bowl. Allow to cool to room temp and toss in the dried cranberries.
Add melted butter, apple cider syrup, and vanilla. Toss to evenly coat.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the powdered sugar, flour, spices, and salt. Add to apple slices and toss to combine.
Assemble
Lightly grease the bottom of a 9” - 10” pie tin with shortening. (This help to brown the bottom crust)
Roll out half of the dough to form the bottom crust. Spoon apple filling into the crust.
Roll out the top crust and position it over the filling. Trim off any excess and seal and crimp the edges. Cut a slit in the center for steam to escape or cut the remaining crusts in strips to create a lattice.
Brush the crust with milk and sprinkle with sanding white sugar.
Bake
Place the pie on a parchment-lined baking sheet and bake for 30 minutes. Carefully lay a sheet of aluminum foil on top of the pie covering its entire surface and bake for an additional 80 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for another 10 minutes for a total of 2 hours or until the filling is bubbling and the crust is lightly browned.
Remove the pie from the oven, and allow it to cool for several hours.
You can store the pie for a day or two at room temperature or cover and refrigerate for up to 5 days.
Apple pie also freezes well. Wrap chilled pie tightly with plastic wrap and foil.