SALTED CARAMEL APPLE PIEfeatured

I love it when two things that just shouldn’t go together, do. Chelsea Handler dating 50 Cent? Yes. So good. And awkward. Hot pink and orange? Kind of  tacky, but also completely awesome. I feel that way about salt and caramel. It shouldn’t work. Over salting anything shouldn’t be a good thing, but it is. It SOOOOO is. I can’t get enough of it. So when I came across this recipe, it was a no brainer. I needed to get it in my mouth. Like yesterday.

I highly recommend doing yourself a favor and either making some vanilla ice cream, or picking up a carton from the store because apple pie without ice cream is just wrong and not in the salted caramel kind of way.

BTW, this recipe looks way more intimidating than it actually is; don’t fear, just take it step by step and you’ll be fine.

Recipe: Salted Caramel Apple Pie/Adapted from a recipe from Four and Twenty Blackbirds  |  Soundtrack: Duran Duran.

INGREDIENTS:

Pie Crust:

• 2 1/2 Cups Flour
• 1 Tsp Salt
• 1 Tbsp Granulated Sugar
• 1 Cup (2 sticks) Cold Unsalted Butter Cut into 1/2 inch pieces
• 1 Cup Cold Water
• 1/4 Cup Cider Vinager
• 1 Cup Ice

Filling:

• 1 Cup + 2 Tbsp Granulated Sugar
• 1/4 Cup Water
• 1/2 Cup (1 Stick) of Unsalted Butter
• 1/2 Cup Heavy Cream
• 2 Lemons
• 6-7 Apples (I prefer Granny Smith for the tartness) about 2 1/2 Pounds
• 2-3 Dashes Angostura Bitters
• 1/3 Cup Sugar
• 1 Heaping Tsp Cinnamon
• 1/2 Tsp Allspice
• 1/4 Tsp Nutmeg
• One Grind Fresh Pepper
• 1/4 Tsp Salt
• 2-3 Tbsp Flour (use 3 if you have more apples)
• 1/2 Tsp Flake Sea Salt (I prefer Maldon) + More for Finishing
• Egg Wash (1 large egg whisked with 1 tsp water and a pinch of salt)
• Sugar for finishing (I prefer Demerara, but whatever is okay)

Directions for Pie Crust:

Tip: If you are new to making pies, I would 1 1/2 the pie crust recipe so you have more dough to work with. It takes some practice to get your crust precise and a little extra dough helps when you are learning.

Mix the flour, salt and sugar together in a large bowl. Add the cold (this is very important) butter pieces and coat with the flour mixture using a spatula. You can do the next step one of two ways. First option: using a pastry blender, cut the butter into the flour mixture, working quickly until mainly pea size pieces of butter remain. Be careful not to over blend. Second option: Dump your flour and butter mixture onto a large cutting board and using two bench scrappers, cut in the butter until pea size pieces remain.

Combine the water, cider vinager, and ice in a large measuring cup or a small bowl. Sprinkle 2 Tbsp at a time over the flour mixture and mix it with a fork until it comes together in a ball with some dry bits remaining. The dough should not feel wet or overly sticky. Squeeze and pinch with your fingertips to bring all the dough together. ** You might not use all of the water mixture. Don’t be alarmed. Stop adding the water once you are able to hold the dough together in a ball. Shape the dough into a 2 flat discs, wrap each in plastic and refrigerate for at least an hour or overnight.

Directions for the Pie:

Using one of the pie dough discs, roll it out and place it in a well buttered  9 inch pie pan. An easy way to do this is to once you’ve rolled out the dough, fold it loosely in half and place the seam in the center of the dish and unfold. Make sure there are no air bubbles. Don’t pull or stretch the dough. Let the excess dough hang over the sides.

Roll out the top crust and if you plan on making this a lattice pie, use a pizza or a pasta cutter and make your strips. You will need between 8-10 depending on the thickness. Keep refrigerated until you are ready to use.

Whisk together 1 cup of the sugar and water in a medium saucepan and cook over medium-low heat until the sugar is just dissolved. Add the butter and bring to a slow boil. Continue cooking over medium heat until the mixture turns a deep golden brown, almost copper. Watch this phase carefully, once you it starts to go golden, it will change colors fast so don’t step away, you’ll wind up burning it. Once it’s almost copper, remove from the heat and immediately and slowly add the heavy cream, be careful, the mixture will bubble rapidly ad steam. Whisk the final mixture all together well and set aside while you prepare the filling.

Juice the lemons into a large mixing bowl, removing any seeds. Prepare the apples. Core, peel and slice them. Dredge the apples in the lemon juice. This is a key step. It helps pull out some of the moisture and will make for a less runny pie. Sprinkle with the remaining 2 Tbsp of granulated sugar. Set aside to soften slightly and release the juice, 20-30 minutes.

In a large bowl, sprinkle the bitters over the 1/3 cup sugar. Add the cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg, black pepper, salt and flour. Mix well. Add the prepared apples to the sugar spice mixture, leaving behind any excess liquids. Gently turn the apples to even distribute the spice mix.

Tightly layer the apples in the prepared pie shell so there are minimal gaps, mounding the apples slightly higher in the center. Pour 1 Cup of the caramel sauce evenly over the apples. Use a bit more caramel if you like a sweeter pie. Sprinkle with 1/2 tsp of the flake sea salt. Assemble the lattice top. If you are opting to not do a lattice top, make sure you cut slits in the top so the air can escape. Crimp the edges of the pie using your knuckle and pinching with your thumb and forefinger of your other hand.

Chill the pie in the fridge for 15 minutes to set the pastry. Meanwhile position the racks in the bottom and center positions, place a rimmed baking sheet on the bottom rack and preheat the oven to 400°.

Brush the pastry with the egg wash to coat it. Sprinkle with the desired amount of sugar and flake sea salt. Place the pie on the rimmed baking sheet on the lowest rack of the oven. Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until the pastry is set and beginning to brown. Lower the temperature to 375°, move the pie to the center oven rack, and continue to bake until the pastry is a deep golden brown and the juices are bubbling, 30-35 minutes longer.

Allow to cool completely on a wire rack for 2-3 hours.

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