The Pies Have It: Apple Blueberry Pie - Apple Cranberry Pie - 4 Apple Pie

Apple Blueberry Pie

Apple Pie is a basic, a classic American favorite.  However, it wasn’t until I moved to New England that I was actually educated on the many variations to this picnic staple. This basic recipe can make the three pies I am writing about today.

My first lesson in Apple Pie came on a multi-family apple picking event. Three families drove over an hour to a special apple grove in central Massachusetts. They had varieties of apples growing that I had never, ever seen or heard of in the Southwest. While there, I was given the tip that to have a well rounded apple pie, I must use at least four different varieties of apples in my pie. I tried that approach, and you know what? They were right! I now pick one apple for tartness, one for sweetness, one that cooks up firm, and one that cooks up very soft. Try it, you’ll like the 4 Apple Pie*!

The second lesson was at a church potluck where, in true Bay State fashion, someone had added cranberries to the apple pie. It was tart and sweet all wrapped up in a flaky buttery crust. Apple Cranberry Pie** is a little piece of Heaven!

But, my absolute favorite apple pie lesson came on a weekend trip to Stowe, Vermont. A little Inn there is known for it’s Apple Blueberry Pie. This is my take on their specialty. Their recipe had a big 1/4 inch thick sugar crust mound on top that I did not care for, so I omitted that feature. For me, it did not add to the pie, it took away from the apples and blueberries, which are to be the stars of the show!

This basic apple pie recipe is buttery, tart, sweet and filled with cinnamon goodness! Warm it up, add some rich vanilla ice cream and you will be the kitchen VIP!!!

Apple Blueberry Pie

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. (you will turn it down to 350 later...)

Ingredients:

• 4 medium sized apples, peeled, cored, sliced or diced into same size pieces. (I like to use 4 different types of apples to have a variation in flavor and texture.)
• 1/2 cup fresh blueberries
• 1/2 stick butter, cut into small cubes
• 1/2 cup flour
• 1-2 tsp cinnamon (more if you wish)
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 packed light brown sugar
• 1/2 tsp salt

Pie Crust:

• I buy mine...sad, but hey it’s faster and I don’t make pies often enough to be really good at pie crust. Don’t judge. 
• Butter the pie pan generously. 
• Place one crust on the bottom, poking holes with a fork randomly on the bottom of the crust and around the sides.

Assembly:

1. Put everything in a large mixing bowl, adding flour last. Mix well, but be gentle with the blueberries. No breaking.
2. If you think your apples are really juicy, add a tad more flour.
3. If you think your apples are a little too tart, add a tad more sugar.
4. Arrange fruit in prepared pie dish. Mound toward the middle...will make fluting the edges easier.
5. Place second crust on top, flute the edges together...I do a fold over and twist kinda thing, but any technique is fine.
6. Poke a center steam hole.
7. Bake at 375 for 30 minutes. Then turn oven down to 350 for 20 more minutes. Place a loose piece of foil over the top of the pie while it bakes the remaining 20 minutes, it will keep the crust from burning.
8. Let cool completely before cutting....keeps the juices from running.  
9. Serve with whipped cream or ice cream

Apple Blueberry Pie ready for the top crust.

Top crust fluted and steam vent created.

*For the 4 Apple Pie, omit the blueberries.
**For the Apple Cranberry Pie, omit the blueberries and use fresh cranberries instead.

I hope you give one of these variations a try. You and all those receiving a slice will be glad you did!

As the mixing bowl turns,
Donna ; - )

PS:  This is also a great pie to serve during Memorial Day, Independence Day, and Labor Day celebrations if you throw in  a handful of raspberries...then it’s a Red, White, and Blue pie!

Talking Food #1: Coconut Almond Macaroon Recipe

Coconut Almond Macaroons

After much encouragement over the years, I have decided to listen to friends/family and write my own food blog. Just know, you better follow this blog or you will be removed as a ‘friend’ on Facebook. : ) JK...sorta...you know I’ll do it!

Most food blogs tend to have a trendy logo, or captivating photo of something you wish you could reach into the computer screen and take a big bite right out of it. But until I find something more marketable or trendy, I am going to use this tiny photo from 1963. That kitchen is where this blog had it’s beginning. The woman holding me is my sweet, sweet Granny named Pearl. I was just turning one.

Granny showing me all the things she had whipped up that morning.

Granny’s house was very small. The kitchen and eating area was the same big room; the biggest in the home. She had nine children and spent most of her life cooking on a wood stove. We went to her house every Sunday for lunch, which ended up looking more like a Thanksgiving meal, just without the turkey. She made sure there was something on the table that was somebody’s favorite. If child of hers liked black eyed peas, but another loved pinto beans, Granny had both.

Cousins and Uncles enjoying their turn at Granny’s table.

On this day, Granny seems to be showing little old me all that she has prepared and displaying on the table...and the counter behind her is filled with desserts. Desserts were her favorite thing to make!

The only bad thing I will ever say about my Granny is that she had no recipes to pass down in paper form. That tiny woman would just get a bowl and a spoon and the next thing you knew you had a cake or a pie or beans and cornbread. She did however, if you were standing in there watching her, teach you to cook like she cooked. Now, you weren’t allowed to help. I mean, that’s is understandable, cause from ages 1-6 I could only be so much help. I remember getting to wash potatoes and carrots, but I never got to chop anything. However, the thrill of receiving the mixing bowl and spoon after she put the cake in the oven was priceless!

I feel it is fitting to start my first blog with a family shared recipe that took place this week. The nine children Granny had gave her 28 grandchildren. I believe I am #22. This recipe is from grandchild #28, my lovely cousin Amanda!

Coconut Almond Macaroons Recipe

Yield: approx. 3 doz
Assembly:  20 min
Baking Time:  18-20 min
Temp:  325 degrees

Ingredients:

• 1 Cup egg whites, room temperature
• 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1 - 7 oz. box of Odense Almond Paste (other brands are okay, too)
• 2 Cups powdered sugar
• 1 - 14 oz. package of sweetened flaked coconut
• (optional: dark chocolate melted to dip or drizzle on top)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line cookie sheet(s) with parchment paper.
2. In a large bowl beat egg whites and vanilla until they form soft peaks.

This next step is easier if you have a food processor. I don’t so I just mixed it up with my hands and mushed the almond paste into itty-bitty pieces. I mean, Granny didn’t have a food processor...

1. In a separate bowl combine coconut, powdered sugar and all of the almond paste. Should be crumbly in nature.
2. Fold egg whites into coconut mixture.
3. You can use a small scoop or roll into  1” balls, packed firmly.
4. Place 1” apart on cookie sheet.
5. Bake for 18-20 minutes (my were perfect at 19) until macaroon is light brown on the bottom and firm on top.
6. Cool pans on wire rack first, so that cookies have a chance to firm-up. Then transfer the warm cookies directly onto the rack to finish cooling.
7. Store in air-tight container.

If you choose to drizzle or dip in chocolate, do that after the macaroons have completely cooled.

Coconut Almond Macaroons ingredients

Macaroon mixture

In the oven they go!

Golden brown macaroons.

Fluffy in the middle.

Dip in chocolate for an added treat!

(As a side note, I managed to get 48 of these macaroons out of my mixture and took 36 of them to a Seder last night. Not a crumb remained on the tray. They were a big, BIG hit!  Thanks, Amanda!!)

This completes my first blog. I hope you enjoyed it and will come back weekly to check out more recipes. I will give attribution to those who have shared their recipes with me. I rarely make the recipe exactly as it was presented to me, so please forgive the need to make it my own.

Over the course of time you will learn a lot about my family and friends as I share either what we talked about while preparing food or what awesome concoction we came up with while brainstorming in the kitchen, because unfortunately, I’m always Talking Food!

As the mixing bowl turns,
Donna ; - )