Pie Number Six: Jack's Apple Pie

 The Year of Pie 

Pie #6 - Jack's Apple Pie

    Jack's Apple Pie is a recipe by Jack Jadkowski. Jack's recipe is in the Kalamazoo County Fair section of The County Fair Coobook, published in 1994. Jack has won numerous blue ribbons and won a Best In Show ribbon in 1992.  So, my crust didn't turn out great. Rolling dough is not my forte and while the top crust ended up with a nice texture, I did not like how the bottom crust was kind of soft.  I think if it had been thicker, it might have been better.  I also wasn't sure about the 4 tablespoons of butter in the filling. Overall though, and even with the crust problem(s), with the finished product tasted good. Modifications/What I did, in Italics.

Ingredients:

Crust:

2 cups all-purpose flour

 2/3 cup solid vegetable shortening

1/2 teaspoon salt

4 to 6 tablespoons very, cold water

Filling:

6 to 8 McIntosh or Granny Smith apples, peeled and thinly sliced (I used 7 Granny Smith apples)

3/4 cup sugar

3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1/8 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 generous teaspoon ground nutmeg

4 tablespoons butter, softened

Optional Serving Toppings:

whipped cream

vanilla ice cream

Directions:

Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees. Make your crust - Combine flour and salt, cut in shortening until the mix resembles course meal. Stir in water a tablespoon at a time, until the dough holds together. Wrap in plastic wrap (I had wax paper) and refrigerate while you make the filling. Make your filling - Mix together in a large bowl, the sugar, flour, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg. Toss the apples in this mixture, making sure to coat all of the apple. Finish your crust and assemble - Divide dough in half. On a lightly floured surface, roll out bottom crust and place it in a 9-inch pie pan. Spread two tablespoons of the softened butter, evenly over the crust. Pour in apples and dot the remaining butter over top. Roll out your top crust. Cover the filling, crimp edges and cut vents for steam. Bake 50-60 minutes, or until golden brown. Serve warm with whipped cream or ice cream.  

Jack's Apple Pie

Side View

The piece I had for dinner. It didn't come out of the pan nicely, but it tasted good.
Topped with whipped cream.