This past Saturday was the annual Apple Pie Baking contest sponsored by the Collingswood Farmers’ Market. Fresh off of our 1st place win for presentation in the August Peach Pie Baking contest, I decided to do another shaped crust and chose to make a squirrel—since I adore them. I was sure we had a 1st place pie again, but this time a lattice pie with a decorative bunting (I didn’t realize non-edible decorations counted here) took 1st and I tied for 3rd place. I was honestly a bit bummed out, but I know that I’m proud of this design.
As for taste, I placed us in the “apples whatever” category because of the pecan praline. However, after tasting our pie, I feel that it’s a closer fit for the traditional apple pie category. Something to keep in mind for next year. We didn’t take a ribbon for taste, but we did come in 4th, which is still a good thing.
The caramel in this pie is wonderful, and it’s a no-brainer when paired with the pecan praline. Originally, I thought about making it a salted caramel apple pie, but Ray made an excellent point that it could end up being a bit too salty (since the praline has salt in it).
Are you making an fantastic pies for Autumn? Tell me about them!
Ingredients
Directions
Begin with the pie dough so it has time to chill. Pulse together flour, sugar and salt in a food processor.
Blend in butter by dropping a cube at a time into the food processer, just until most of mixture resembles coarse meal with some roughly pea-size butter lumps.
Drizzle 1/3 cup apple liqueur over the mixture and pulse a few times until incorporated.
Squeeze a small handful of dough: If it doesn't hold together, add more liqueur or ice water, 1 tablespoon at a time, pulsing until just incorporated, then test again. Do not overwork dough, or pastry will be tough.
Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface. With heel of your hand, smear the dough once or twice in a forward motion to help distribute fat.
Gather dough together, with a pastry scraper if you have one, and press into a ball.
Divide in half and form into 2 disks. Wrap each disk in plastic wrap and chill until firm, at least 1 hour.
For the pecan praline, place all praline ingredients in a bowl and mix to combine. Set aside.
Once the pie dough has chilled, grease a pie plate and roll out the bottom crust. Fit it into the plate, trimming the edge, folding it under, and then pinching it into a fluted design.
Place the bottom crust into the fridge to chill for 40 minutes.
For the filling, combine the peeled, cored and sliced apples in a large mixing bowl with the sugar, Chinese 5 Spice and salt. Toss to combine.
Heat the butter in a dutch oven over medium-high heat until the foaming subsides. Add the apple mixture and cook with the lid on for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Remove the lid and cook for an additional 5-10 minutes until the apples have softened.
Place a colander over a large bowl and drain the apples, shaking a bit to get as much juice drained as possible. Set the apples aside.
Return the juices to the dutch oven and add the heavy cream. Heat the mixture over high heat and bring to a boil, stirring.
Continue cooking and stirring the juice/cream mixture until it's thick enough that a wooden spoon leaves a trail in the mixture. This should be about 5 minutes.
Add the apples back in, stirring to coat, then set aside to cool slightly.
To make the caramel sauce, stir together granulated sugar and water in a saucepan.
Bring to a boil over medium high heat. Cook without stirring until mixture turns a deep amber color.
Remove from heat and slowly add in cream and vanilla, stirring until very smooth. Let caramel cool for about 15 minutes, until it is just barely warm and still pourable.
To assemble the pie, remove the chilled bottom crust from the fridge and spoon in the pecan praline, spreading it out evenly to coat the bottom.
Heat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit prep a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper (this will help catch any drips)
Spoon in the apples, then gradually pour in the caramel sauce, coating the apples as evenly as possible.
Roll out the second disk of dough and either place on top, fitting it with the bottom crust and cutting slits to vent, make cutouts with a cookie cutter and place the crust pieces in a design on top of the pie, or hand-cut a design (like the squirrel).
Place the pie on the parchment-paper lined pan, then into the oven to bake for 20 minutes. Check the pie, then bake for an additional 10-15 minutes until the top crust is golden and the filling is bubbling.
https://cupcakefridayproject.com/2013/10/caramel-apple-pecan-praline-pie/
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