Chef Johns Caramel Apple Pie Recipes

CHEF JOHN'S EASY APPLE PIE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).
• Melt butter in saucepan over medium heat. Stir in white sugar, brown sugar, salt, cinnamon, and water. Bring the syrup to a boil, stirring constantly to dissolve sugar, then remove from heat.
• Unroll pie crusts, press one into a 9-inch pie dish, and place the apples into the crust. Unroll the second crust on a work surface, and cut into about 8 1-inch wide strips. Criss-cross the strips over the apples, or weave into a lattice crust. Crimp the bottom crust over the lattice strips with your fingers. Spoon caramel sauce over pie, covering lattice portion of top crust; let remaining sauce drizzle through the crust.
• Bake in preheated oven for 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C), and bake until the crust is golden brown, the caramel on the top crust is set, and the apple filling is bubbling, 35 to 40 more minutes. Allow to cool completely before slicing.

CARAMEL APPLE CRUMBLE PIE

Steps:

• Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• To make the topping, combine the oats, 1/2 cup brown sugar, 1/4 cup flour, slivered almonds, and 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon. Cut in the butter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs; set aside.
• Roll out the pie dough into a circle and transfer it to a 9-inch pie plate. Trim the pastry and crimp the edge. Toss the apples with the lemon juice in a bowl to prevent browning. Combine the 1 tablespoon flour, 1/2 cup brown sugar, and 2 teaspoons cinnamon; toss with the apples to coat. Drizzle 1/4 cup of caramel sauce over the bottom of the pie shell. Add the spiced apple mixture; drizzle with remaining 1/4 cup of caramel sauce. Sprinkle the crumble topping evenly over the apples.
• Bake the pie in the preheated oven for 50-60 minutes, or until the apples are tender and the crust is browned.

CARAMEL APPLE PIE

Steps:

• For the perfect spiced pie crust: Mix the flour, cinnamon, salt and nutmeg in a bowl. Add the butter and vegetable shortening. Work the butter into the flour using a pastry cutter until the mixture resembles tiny pebbles. Add the white vinegar, egg and 5 tablespoons cold water and stir until just combined.
• Form 2 equal-sized balls. Place each in a large plastic bag (do not seal) and slightly flatten with a rolling pin; this makes it much easier to roll out the crust later. After flattening, seal the bag tightly. Place in the freezer for 15 to 20 minutes to chill.
• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• Remove 1 bag of dough from the freezer (save the other dough for another use), remove the dough from the bag and place it on a lightly floured surface. Roll the dough starting at the center and working outward. Be gentle and patient; it'll take a little time to get the dough completely rolled out. If you think the bottom is really sticking to the surface below while rolling, use a metal spatula to loosen it. When fully rolled out, loosen again with a spatula and lift the pie crust into a 9-inch pie pan (or you can roll the pastry over the rolling pin, lift it onto the pie pan and unroll it). Gently press the dough against the corner of the pan and tear off any excess dough. Then tuck under the edges and go around the pie pan pinching the dough to crimp the edge.
• For the pie filling: In a bowl, mix the apples, lemon juice, granulated sugar, flour and salt. Set aside.
• For the crumb topping: Cut the butter into the flour with a pastry cutter, then add in the brown sugar, oats and salt.
• Add the apples to the prepared pie shell and top with the crumb topping. Bake for 1 hour, covering the edge of the crust with foil if it starts to brown too quickly. After an hour, sprinkle the chopped pecans over the pie, then bake for a further 5 minutes.
• Remove the pie from the oven and pour 1/2 jar (or more, if you're feeling dangerous and naughty) of caramel topping over the top. Allow to cool slightly before serving - or don't if you can't wait!