Tuesday, October 26, 2010

TWD: All-American, All-Delicious Apple Pie


I could say something about my absence the last several months but I'm sure I probably don't have any readers left. I'm sure you all have busy lives and don't want to hear about mine. Life happens.

While life is happening, sometimes I am baking and sometimes I am not. For the things have made and not blogged about, I am planning to post. I find the hardest part is not finding the time to bake but finding the time and words in which to blog. I am not a writer, never have been and never will be and most days I don't have any interesting stories. But, I do love baking!

I recently got the chance to meet Dorie Greenspan, the author of this amazing book we are baking through and without whom, this group wouldn't exist. She was even more wonderful in person than I imagined her to be. What struck me as the most inspirational that night was when she said that Baking: From My Home to Yours and Around My French Table are what she considers to be her autobiographies. I am going to remind myself of her dedication every time I want to be a slacker.

That said, I have actually made this pie 3 times! The first pie, seen below, I made with apples from last year. I had peeled, cored, sliced and frozen them and needed to clear them out of my freezer. I made it for the first day of school for the teachers my husband works with. They all loved it. I was not impressed. The problem was with the apples, they tasted fine but had a mushy texture that I did not enjoy. Two days later, my husband came home and said one of his fellow teachers had dreamed about my pie.

The second time, I made the pie, I forgot to take a picture. I am so disappointed because in my opinion, it came out the best. One of the most beautiful apple pies, I've ever seen. I took the pie to the cast party for my husband's show. Again, I received rave reviews. Not only did I not get a picture, I never even got a bite. They inhaled it.

The third time, pictured at the top, I made as a thank you gift. The reviews were just as amazing as the first 2 pies. She has also requested more baked goods as soon as possible.

In the end, I only got a sliver of the first pie, which I didn't like! But The reviews speak for themselves, the pie is amazing!


The only change I really made was that I used flour as the thickener instead of tapioca. I didn't have tapioca and the flour substitute turned out great.

Thank you to our hostess this week, Emily of Sandmuffin. The recipe can be found on her blog.