I loathe making pie crust but I love making pie. I’m too busy perfecting the filling to want to worry about a rubbery crust or not enough flake in each bite. Also, I’m somewhat stressing out that I didn’t get the proper pan and wondering if the pie is going to stick to the bottom or not. My friends at Grizzly cookware sent me some of the nickel-plated cast iron pans to make a traditional and modern recipe for the Holidays so enter the traditional: classic apple pie recipe.
First of all, don’t let anyone bully you into trying to make your own pie dough. No one has time for that and store-bought varieties are excellent. We should only worry about what filling we’re going to do in our pie and maximizing the flavor of that instead of stressing about making the crust. This recipe doesn’t shame you for buying your crust, I encourage it. Especially when I’m also demanding that you buy two kinds of apples AND apple cider to whip this delicious apple pie up, you’re going to want to save your sanity for the filling, trust me.
My friends at Grizzly Cookware are also encouraging you to try a modern take on a traditional recipe, so you’ll find my Modern Apple Pie over here. Grizzly cookware is the first-ever nickel-plated cast iron pan that helps you achieve all those wonderful cast iron cooking qualities- like even heat dispersion – without the gripes- reseasoning, stuck-on food, rust.
Grizzly uses medical-grade nickel on top of traditional cast iron so it’s completely food safe. The nickel they use on their pan surfaces are the same you would find in medical implants, meaning this pan was built for longevity and durability. You can learn more about the nickel plate process here. Honestly, if you hate the upkeep of traditional cast iron, I highly recommend adding this pan to your cart.
The pie slid out of it so easily and I am VERY impressed with how evenly the bottom crust browned. When we finished the pie, it took a few swipes of a sponge to clean the pan off and it was as good as new!
Now that I’ve sold you on the pan, let me sell you on this classic apple pie recipe.
- 1 cup apple cider fresh
- 4 tsp cornstarch
- 4 granny smith apples peeled, cored and sliced
- 4 honey crisp apples peeled, cored and sliced
- 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
- 1/3 cup granulated sugar
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp freshly ground nutmeg
- 1/2 lemon juiced
- 2 tbsp cold butter cubed
- 1 large egg
- 2 tbsp whole milk
- coarse sugar for garnish
- 2 pre-made pie crusts
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In a bowl, whisk together apple cider and cornstarch.
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In a large dutch oven, combine the apples, sugars, spices, apple cider, and cornstarch mixture over medium-high heat. Cook until the sauce has thickened and apples are tender about 20 minutes. Stirring occasionally. Mix in lemon juice and remove from heat.
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While the mixture is cooling, preheat oven to 400 degrees F and position a rack at the lower third of the oven. Lay one pie crust at the bottom of the pan, ensuring the edge of the pie crust drapes slightly over the end of the cast iron.
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When the filling has cooled a little, pour into the crust lined pan, and layer the top crust on top. Whether you do a lattice crust or a regular pie crust, brush with the milk and egg wash and sprinkle with coarse sugar.
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Place in oven and bake for 1 hour. Remove, let cool for 1-2 hours until cool. Cut and serve.
