Deep Dish Apple Pie

Yesterday, I went to the store & bought more apples.....the neighbor's tree is all out. I bought 4 large Granny Smiths, 6 Romes & 12 Gala. The Granny Smiths are tart & very firm. The Romes are slightly sweet, & very firm. The Gala's are much softer than the other two & pretty sweet. The Granny Smiths & Romes are essential to a good pie, the sweet apple usually varies depending on what is on sale. Fuji's, Red Delicious & Golden Delicious all work equally as well as the Gala's. The firm apples will retain some firmness even when cooked, but the softer apples will cook down almost to the point of being a sauce. By combining different types of apples, I not only get an interesting sweet/tart balance, I also get several layers of texture.

Start by washing all the apples well. Peel apples & place in a large colander. Wash again after they are all peeled. Discard the peels. Using a fruit slicer, slice & core the apples. Mix all the different kinds together in one bowl. Don't worry about stray seeds or bits of peel. Discard the cores. Wash all the slices in cold water in a large colander. Let it sit for a few minutes in the sink for all the water to drain. Using a paring knife, cut off any remaining peel, core or seeds on each slice, cut the slices 1/8 inch thick and put in a large bowl.

Sprinkle cinnamon over sliced apples. Stir gently with a slotted spoon until they are all lightly coated. Sprinkle 2 cups sugar over sliced apples, stirring gently until the are all coated. Sprinkle 1/2 cup flour over apples & stir gently to coat. Apples can be stored for up to 24 hrs before making pie. To store, cover bowl tightly & refrigerate. Add additional flour just before using apples if mixture seems too wet. There should not be any visible liquid in the bowl.

Double-Crust Pie

• 2 cups Flour
• 1 Tablespoon sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2/3 cup Crisco butter flavored shortening
• 5 to 10 tablespoons ice cold water

To make pie crust, put flour, sugar & salt in medium bowl, mix with fork to combine. Add Crisco. Using two butter knives or a pastry blender, cut the shortening into flour mixture until crumbly. Add water one tablespoon at a time stirring continuously with fork until it starts to stick together. Using hands, form into a ball. Cut ball into two equal pieces. Using a rolling pin, roll dough out on waxed paper. Lightly flour the rolling pin if it starts to stick to the dough. Roll dough into a large circle to fit into deep dish pie pan with at least 2 inches overlap.

Fill pie pan with apple slices. Stack apples about 4 inches above top edge of pan.

Using rolling pin, roll out second crust and place over top of pie.

Trim crust, leaving about 1 inch overlap all the way around. Fold up edge of bottom crust over edge of top crust & crimp with a fork. Gently poke holes in top crust with fork to allow venting during cooking.

Cook in oven at 400 for about 1 hr or until crust is golden.