Girls Gide

You know what they say, if you want to sell a house, bake an apple pie. Why, probably because it is one of the most nostalgic smells and immediately makes you happy. I’m here to share my Grandma’s recipe for the most delicious Dutch Apple Pie, which will have people asking for more and probably also the recipe. Baking an apple pie is pretty much foolproof since it doesn’t require a lot of difficult techniques, however, do keep in mind that it calls for a lot of cutting.

The Crust

Just like most things in life, a good base is very important. The same goes when making an apple pie. One of the most important things for a delicious apple pie is a good crust. A crust that is soft yet firm and sweet but not too sweet. A tip to make sure that your crust doesn’t become soggy from the apples is to add some breadcrumbs to the base of the crust. The bread crumbs will absorb any excess moisture that comes from the apples when they’re in the oven. Don’t worry you won’t notice the breadcrumbs in the pie after it is done baking.

The Filling

The filling for this pie is actually super simple. All you need are some sweet and sour apples, cinnamon sugar, and some love when it comes to cutting and peeling. The recipe doesn’t require much more. When you are making the apple pie you might wonder if you don’t need more liquid for the pie to become something nice, but the moisture from the apples and the cinnamon sugar will make the best apple pie filling ever.

The Ingredients

The crust:

• 200 grams of unsalted butter
• 200 grams white caster sugar
• 400 grams of self-rising flour
• 1 egg (use half to make the crust and the other half to coat the top crust
• 8 grams of vanilla sugar
• pinch of cinnamon
• pinch of salt

The filling:

• 1.5 kilo’s of sour sweet apples
• 75 grams of fine sugar
• 3 teaspoons of cinnamon
• 15 grams of breadcrumbs

The Recipe

1. In a bowl add the butter, caster sugar, self-rising flour, half of the egg, vanilla sugar and a pinch of salt. You will need to mix this and knead the dough with your hands. It will be easier if the butter has softened a bit (don’t melt the butter but take it out of the fridge 15 minutes before making the dough). After kneading the ingredients together, for about 5-10 minutes, you should be left with a nice firm ball of dough. If the dough is too dry and crumbly you can add a bit of egg or butter. If the dough is to wet you can add a bit more flour. When your dough is ready you can set it aside and move on to the filling
2. Start by peeling the apples and removing the core, After the apples have been peeled and decoded you need to cut the apples into small pieces. I like to cut my pieces nice and thin. In a separate bowl add your fine sugar and cinnamon together and give it a mix.
3. Now butter your springform baking pan and dust lightly with flour. Divide the dough into three parts, one part to make the bottom of the crust, one part to make the sides, and one part to make the weaving on top of the pie. You can roll out the dough for the bottom and use your fingers to make the sides of the crust. You can do this by taking a piece of the dough and flattening it around the sides of your springform.
4. Add the bread crumbs to the bottom of your pie crust and start adding half of the apples to the pan. Sprinkle 1/3 of the cinnamon sugar mixture on top of the apples. afterward, add the rest of the apples to your pan and evenly sprinkle the remaining cinnamon sugar onto the apples.
5. Now make even strips of dough and put these crosswise on top of the apple pie, to create a woven pattern. Use the rest of the egg and brush this on top of your weaving.
6. Put the pie in the middle of the oven and bake for 60 minutes at 170 degrees Celsius. The pie should be golden brown and fully baked. Wait until the pie has cooled down before you take it out of the spring form.
7. And lastly, enjoy your homemade Dutch apple pie! You can serve it by itself or with a bit of whipped cream or vanilla ice cream!

If you want to see a behind the scenes of how I made my apple pie click on the link: