Make an Apple Pie with Havarti for National Pie Day!
Did you know that 1/23 is National Pie Day? In 1986 the American Pie Council (yes, there is one) declared this cold day towards the end of January as the day to make and eat pie. Why? I have no idea, but I will take any excuse to eat pie. (This fun fact comes our way courtesy of the book Eat the Year
But back to the pie. I have used cheddar along with apples but this twist with Havarti works beautifully and was brought to us by Michael Symon. He cautions to make sure we use aged Havarti. “Castello Aged Havarti’s rich, creamy texture and crunchy flecks of salt crystals are the perfect partner for an apple pie crust.” We like the use of the tart Granny Smith apples in the filling. This is comfort food for a cold month.
- 2 ½ c all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¾ cup unsalted butter (1 ½ sticks), cut in to cubes
- 1 ½ cups shredded Castello Aged Havarti cheese
- 6 to 8 tablespoons ice water
- 8 cups peeled and sliced granny smith apples (about 8 apples)
- ⅔ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup packed dark brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons flour
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ¾ teaspoon fresh nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup heavy cream
- 2 tablespoons butter, cut in to small cubes
- 1 large egg beaten with 1 tablespoon heavy cream
- 1 ½ tablespoons sugar in the raw (Turbinado sugar)
- Before you begin-make sure all of your crust ingredients are as cold as they can be. This includes the butter along with the bowl and blade of the food processor.
- In the chilled bowl of your food processor, combine the flour, sugar, and salt. Pulse a few times to mix then add the chilled, cubed butter. Pulse until small crumbs form then pulse in the shredded cheese. Begin to add the ice water, 4 tablespoons at first then 1 tablespoon at a time after until a dough mass forms. You may not need all of the water-we don’t want sticky dough. Turn the dough out and gently bring it in to a ball without overworking it. Cut it in half then flatten each ball in to a disk. Chill the two disks for at least an hour.
- Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F.
- For the apple filling: In a large mixing bowl, combine the apples, granulated sugar, brown sugar, flour, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt. Add the cream and toss to coat. Set aside.
- After the dough has rested, keep one piece chilled while you roll out the other. Lightly flour a work surface. Roll out one piece into a 13-inch round. Brush off any excess flour. Line a 10-inch pie plate with the pastry round. Roll out the remaining pastry into a 12-inch round.
- Transfer the filling to the pastry-lined pie plate and dot with the butter. Trim the edge of the pastry even with the edge of the pie plate. Place the second pastry round over the filling, trim any excess and seal and crimp the edges. Cut small slits in the top and a small x in the middle, brush with the egg yolk and cream mixture and sprinkle with the raw/turbinado sugar.
- Place the pie on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake for 45 minutes. Remove from the oven and cover the edges with foil (to prevent overbrowning). Bake until the fruit is tender and the filling is bubbly, about 30 minutes more. Cool on a wire rack for at least 1 hour, if you can wait!
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