Grandma Ople's Apple Pie

So lately I've had ZERO time to do anything other than work and school.  Life has been very hectic and crazy.  Hopefully I'll be able to still post now and again with recipes.  But honestly, I only feel inspired every now and then.  Especially with the little time I do have to experiment.  Holidays always gets me excited to bake.  Hence, the reason for the Apple Pie that I made.  I was craving a project.  Making a pie can either be a pain in the butt or therapeutic.  And this time, it was SUPER therapeutic for me! I loved making this pie.  I tweaked my crust recipe a bit.  I used butter instead of shortening.  WOW! what a difference.  The flavor is amazing.  I also have an apple machine that peels and slices the apples perfectly.  So, all in all a very enjoyable experience.  It's all about having the right tools.  So I got the recipe from Allrecipes.com and I made sure to read the comments because they typically have great suggestions to improve the recipe.  So here it is---

Pie Crust Recipe

makes 2 crusts

2.5 c flour

3/4 c salted butter**, diced (cold/ refrigerated)

2 Tbsp sugar

6-7 Tbsp ice cold water

Pie filling & Glaze

6-7 apples, (more if you want that mound in the middle)*

cinnamon sugar,  to sprinkle on the apples

1/2 c salted butter**

3 Tbsp flour

1/4 c water

1/2 c sugar

1/2 c brown sugar

**I used Fuji apples.  That's what I had in my fridge.  And it tasted AMAZING! Typically, apple pies call for Granny Smith Apples.  

**I prefer salted butter because it adds more flavor, but regular butter is fine as well.

Instructions:

1. In a medium size bowl, cut butter into 2.5 c flour ( I like the old fashion way)
2. After 5-10 minutes of cutting in the butter, use your hands to crumble the butter and flour to helps it mix more evenly.
3. Mix in 2 Tbsp of sugar.
4. Add 6-7 Tbsp of ice cold water (Mine needed 7 Tbsp). Mix carefully with a fork.
5. Use your hands to add warmth to the dough to knead it a little in the bowl, and dough should start to form together into a ball.
6. Wrap dough in plastic warp and refrigerate dough for 30 minutes.
7. In the meantime, slice and cut apples.
8. Get out refrigerated dough, flour counter and rolling pin.
9. Cut out 2/3 of dough.  Roll out dough and carefully place it on *greased* pie dish.
10. layer apples inside the pie dish.  Sprinkle cinnamon sugar over apples.
11. Roll out remaining crust for lattice top. Lay on top of apples.
12. GLAZE: In a sauce pan, melt 1/2 c butter, add 3 Tbsp flour, 1/4 c water, 1/2 c sugar and 1/2 c brown sugar. Bring to a boil.  Quickly lower heat and allow to simmer until thickened.
13. Slowly pour Glaze over pie.  Make sure to get all the holes filled with the glaze.***
14. Bake in 350 degree oven for 1 hour ( Be sure to use a baking sheet to place under the pie to prevent any spill over.) ****
15. Allow pie to sit at room temperate for about an hour to set.

***It was suggested that you pour the glaze over the apples before you layer the crust on top.  But mine turned out just fine with the glaze only poured over the crust.  So it's up to you.
****I was shocked my baking sheet only had 2 drops.  But still it's better to be safe than sorry.  Wouldn't want to have to scrub your oven.

I'm SOOOO glad I finally tried this recipe.  Every time I would like for a pie recipe to try, this one would pop up.  I love how pretty the glaze makes the pie look.  The glaze gives the pie such a pretty golden color.  Hands down, BEST PIE I'VE EVER TASTED. 

I dare you to try it :)