Can you believe I’ve never written an apple pie post before? I’ve made loads of apple recipes for my classic lit menus (homemade apple sauce, apple rose tartlets, and apple cider crullers—just to name a few) but never pie. Of course, when I decided to make one for my Sleepy Hollow menu, I knew it needed to be more than your average apple pie. I wanted to kick it up a notch!

I started with seasonal flavors, bouncing a few flavor combo ideas off the Mister, and we both agreed that maple and walnut were great seasonal additions to an apple pie. I decided to swap maple syrup for the sugar usually found in fruit pie filling, and since I’m not a big fan of chopped nuts in my pie filling, I decided to grind the walnuts up and mix them in with the pie crust. I used a basic version of the pie crust recipe from my cookbook, and the filling is just a slight variation on my family’s favorite apple pie recipe: the one from “How to Make Apple Pie and See the World.”

The result was a glorious pie filled to bursting with the flavor of sweet-tart apples, rich maple syrup, and a hint of nuttiness from the crust. I brought mine to Thanksgiving, where it was a big hit!

NOTE: This recipe needs at least 4 hours to set.

A

Maple Apple Pie with Walnut Crust

“Fain would I pause to dwell upon the world of charms that burst upon the enraptured gaze of my hero, as he entered the state parlor of Van Tassel’s mansion…Such heaped up platters of cakes of various and almost indescribable kinds, known only to experienced Dutch housewives…And then there were apple pies, and peach pies, and pumpkin pies…I want breath and time to discuss this banquet as it deserves, and am too eager to get on with my story. Happily, Ichabod Crane was not in so great a hurry as his historian, but did ample justice to every dainty. “

— The Legend of Sleepy Hollow

INGREDIENTS:

• For the Pie Crust
  • 2 1/2 cups flour
  • 1/2 cup ground walnuts
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 3/4 cup cold unsalted butter, cubed
  • 1/2 cup cold water
  • 1 egg mixed with 1 tbsp water, for egg wash
  • 1/2 tbsp sugar, for sprinkling
• For the Filling
  • 5 large Granny Smith apples
  • 1/2 cup pure maple syrup
  • 1 tbsp flour
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 2 tbsp cold unsalted butter, cubed

 

Makes 1 9-inch apple pie

 

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. For the Pie Crust: In a food processor, pulse the flour, ground walnuts, and salt until combined. Add the butter a few tablespoons at a time, processing well after each addition. When you’re done, it should have the look and feel of damp breadcrumbs.
   
2. Ok, here’s the thing: My food processor is great at incorporating butter into dough, which saves me a lot of time and elbow grease, but I just I don’t think it does a good job adding water to double pie crust dough. It’s fine with single crust, but there’s just too much flour with double crust for it to incorporate the water evenly. So I like to transfer the mix to a large bowl and mix in the water with a fork. If your processor does fine with double crust and water, feel free to keep it in the processor….or skip the processor altogether and start out in a large bowl, cutting in the butter with a fork.
3. So…moving on! Add your water a couple tablespoons at a time until the dough is damp (but not wet) and just holds its shaped when pressed together. You may not use the whole 1/2 cup (I had about 1-2 tbsp leftover).
4. Shape the dough into a ball and divide it into 2 balls of equal size. Flatten the balls into 4-inch disks and wrap with plastic wrap. Chill for 45-60 minutes.
   
5. For the Filling: Preheat oven to 425°. Peel, core, and cut you apples into 1/4-inch thick half moons. I broke out my apple peeler corer slicer and just sliced the finished apples in half. Transfer the apples to a large bowl.
6. Whisk the flour into your maple syrup until well combined. Add it to the bowl, along with the cinnamon and salt. Stir until well combined. Set aside.
   
7. When the dough has chilled, unwrap your first disk and roll it out on a lightly floured surface until it’s about 14 inches across, reflouring your surface and rolling pin as needed. Lay it in the bottom of a 9-inch pie pan and score the edges to fit.
8. Give your filling a good stir, making sure to scrape the bottom as you go so you don’t lose any of the flour you stirred into the syrup (it acts as a thickener!). Lay apple pieces in layers along the bottom of the pie pan. Drizzle a few large spoonfuls of the remaining liquid over the top. Scatter the cubed butter across the top. Use part of the remaining liquid to brush the rim of the pie (this will help the top stick).

   

9. Re-flour your surface and pin and roll your second disk until it’s 14 inches across. Use a second pie tin or a 9-inch circle stencil to cut a large disk from the dough. Using a maple leaf cookie cutter, cut 4 leaves in a circle from the center of the disk, leaving enough room to place one of the cutouts in the center and enough room at the edges to allow for the rim of the pie. Set the cutouts aside. Lay the large disk of dough on top of the filling. Use what’s left of the remaining liquid to brush the back of your leaf cutouts. Place one in the center and the others along the rim of the pie. I had enough extra pie dough to cut 2 more from scraps, then did a quick re-roll to get a third. In all, I had 7 leaves: 1 in the center, 1 each along the top left and bottom right edges, and 2 each along the top right and bottom left. Crimp the exposed rim of the pie with a fork.
   
10. Brush the top of the pie with egg wash and sprinkle on the sugar.
11. Bake for 45 minutes or until the crust is golden brown and the apples inside are tender. When there are 20 minutes left, check your pie. If the crust is as dark as you want it, loosely cover the pie with tin foil for the remainder of the bake time. If you want it darker, allow to bake for 5 more minutes or so before covering.
12. Remove from oven and allow to cool for at least 4 hours. Serve at an autumnal feast in Sleepy Hollow!

    

 

 

Check out some of my other pie recipes!

Big Apple Hand Pies from James and the Giant Peach

Deeper ‘n Ever Pie from Redwall

Cottleston Pie from Winnie the Pooh