Photo by Emily Giancarlo
Stephanie's Browned-Butter Apple Pie
- Pastry dough for a 9-inch double crust pie (you can use your favorite recipe, substitute a pre-made crust or use Stephanie’s all-butter pie dough recipe, below)
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- ½ cup white sugar
- ½ cup packed brown sugar (light or dark)
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 1 tablespoons cinnamon
- Dash nutmeg
- Pinch of Kosher salt
- 8 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and sliced into small slices
- 1 tablespoon vanilla paste
- 2 tablespoons water
- Egg whites
- Sugar, for sprinkling
In a small bowl, whisk together white sugar, brown sugar, flour, cornstarch, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt. Set aside.
Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Stirring occasionally, let the butter simmer for a few minutes, until small brown spots appear in the bottom of the pan and the butter smells nutty.
Add apples, sugar mixture, vanilla paste and water. Bring mixture to a boil, then simmer it over low heat for four to five minutes, or until the apples have softened and begun releasing their liquid, stirring occasionally until thickened.
Remove saucepan from heat and let cool to room temperature.
Heat oven to 425 degrees. Meanwhile, place bottom crust in pie plate and brush with egg whites. Fill with the apple mixture. Cover with latticework crust. Freeze pie for 20 minutes. Remove pie from freezer, brush the top crust with egg whites and sprinkle liberally with sugar.
Place pie on a cookie sheet and bake pie for 15 minutes, then reduce the temperature to 350 degrees. Rotate pie 180 degrees, and continue baking for 35-45 minutes, rotating pie every 20 minutes.
Cool pie to room temperature before serving.
Stephanie's All-Butter Pie Dough:
- 1 ¾ sticks unsalted butter, divided
- 1 tablespoon Apple Jack Brandy
- ½ cup cold water
- 2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
- 2 ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ tablespoon granulated sugar
Cut the butter into ½ inch cubes. Freeze five tablespoons for 20 minutes or overnight. Chill the remaining butter until ready to use.
Stir the brandy into the cold water and set aside.
Combine the flour, salt, and sugar in the bowl of a food processor and pulse five to six times to combine.
Add the chilled butter and mix for 25-30 seconds, until the mixture resembles coarse meal.
Add the frozen butter and pulse 15-20 times, until the butter is in pea-sized pieces.
Add six tablespoons of the brandy-water and pulse six times – the dough should start to look crumbly. Test the dough by squeezing a small amount in the palm of your hand. If it easily holds together, it is done; if not, add a half-tablespoon of the brandy water and pulse three more times. Repeat this process as needed until the dough holds together.
Transfer the dough to a lightly floured work surface and knead together until smooth.
Divide the dough into two equal parts and roll each into a ball. Flatten the balls slightly and wrap separately in plastic wrap. Let the dough rest in the refrigerator until ready to use, at least 20 minutes, but preferably overnight.