Let’s Eat: Apple Pie Delight

Let’s Eat: Apple Pie Delight

Winners of the Long Island Apple Festival’s apple pie contest, from left, Liana and Gabrielle Lofaso, Christopher McAndrews and Sabrina Sloan and Chris Muscarella. Not shown, Erin Lovett. Photo by Tara La Ware
Winners of the Long Island Apple Festival’s apple pie contest, from left, Liana and Gabrielle Lofaso, Christopher McAndrews and Sabrina Sloan and Chris Muscarella. Not shown, Erin Lovett. Photo by Tara La Ware

The Long Island Apple Festival returned to the Sherwood-Jayne Farm in East Setauket on Sept. 25 for its 27th year. Presented by the Society for the Preservation of Long Island Antiquities, Homestead Arts and the Greater Port Jefferson–Northern Brookhaven Arts Council, the event celebrated the humble apple. One of the highlights of the day was the apple pie contest. First place went to Sabrina Sloan and Chris Muscarella of East Setauket (see their recipe below), Erin Lovett of Lake Ronkonkoma took home second place and Christopher McAndrews of Belle Terre placed third. Liana and Gabrielle Lofaso of Belle Terre won for Best Looking Pie. Congratulations to all!

 

 

Apple Pie

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Apple pie

YIELD: Makes one 9-inch pie, serves 6 to 8

INGREDIENTS:

Crust: 2½ cups all-purpose flour

3 teaspoons sugar

¼ teaspoon salt

1½ cups (3 sticks) cold, unsalted butter, cubed

½ cup ice water

Filling:

8 cups cored, peeled, sliced apples (Granny Smith or Cortland)

2 tablespoons lemon juice

¼ cup all-purpose flour

2/3 cup sugar, plus 1 tablespoon for top of crust

¼ cup brown sugar

1 teaspoon cinnamon

¼ teaspoon nutmeg

2 tablespoons butter

1 egg yolk

Splash of water

DIRECTIONS: Preheat oven to 375 F. In a food processor, using a metal blade, pulse your flour, sugar and salt together. Add in cold, cubed butter and pulse. Slowly drizzle in ice water, one tablespoon at a time. You should have a course, crumbly mixture. (If you don’t have a food processor, combine ingredients in a large bowl using a pastry blender or fork.) Before the dough has formed a ball, remove the blade and take dough out, bringing it together by hand. Form the dough into a disk, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours. It is very important to work with cold dough. In a large bowl, toss apples in lemon juice, flour, sugars, cinnamon and nutmeg. Set aside.

Once dough is cold, take dough out of plastic wrap and divide in half. Return one half, in plastic wrap, to the fridge. On a lightly floured surface, roll your ½ of dough out into a circle, 12 to 14 inches round and about ¼ inch thick. Gently take the corners, lift the dough and transfer it to pie pan. Lightly press sides against the bottom and sides of pan. Trim overhanging dough so that you’re left with ½ inch and fold excess under the edge of the pan. Pour apple mixture into pie pan and cover the top of the apples with pats of butter. T

ake second half of dough from fridge and repeat process of rolling it out to a 12 to 14 inch circle, ¼ inch thick. Cover the entire pie with remaining rolled-out dough. Pierce holes in the top of dough to allow heat to escape (so there isn’t a steam buildup inside the pie.) Seal the edges of the pie by fluting the dough (stamping the dough with a fork) around the edge of the pie pan. In a small bowl, beat the egg yolk and add a splash of water. Brush the egg mixture all over the top of the crust and sprinkle with sugar. Bake for 50 minutes or until crust is golden brown.

Recipe courtesy of Sabrina Sloan and Chris Muscarella of East Setauket.