Dutch Apple Pie

With the "unofficial end to summer" Roxie wraps up her up north stay. It's been a fun neighborhood attraction and she definitely slowed the traffic down with her impressive creative style. As fall begins to spread a kaleidoscope of colors we seem to crave more comfort foods with fall flavors.

Dutch Apple Pie is made with a tender crust that is filled with juicy, sweet-tart apple filling topped with a delicious, oatmeal cookie-like topping. This homemade dutch apple pie is easier to make than a classic double-crusted pie and makes the perfect fall dessert! 

The perfect apple pie starts with choosing the right apples. You want the apple filling to have a balanced flavor that is not overly sweet so you can taste the apple and have a bit of texture. Many recipes recommend Granny Smith apples but I find using a combination of Granny Smith apple and Mcintosh apples pair nicely together. The approach to making this recipe is departure from the standard technique but works creating a delicious fall dessert.
recipe adapted from cuisineathome.com Oct. 2019 issue
Ingredients:
For the Streusel

• 2 cups flour
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
• 3/4 cup chopped walnuts or pecans
• 2 tsp. apple pie spice
• 1/4 tsp. salt 
• 1 stick of butter, melted

For the Filling

• 1-1/2 cups apple cider or juice
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 3 TB. flour
• 6 cups peeled and diced apples (I used a combination of Granny Smith and Mcintosh)
• 1 tsp. cinnamon 
• 1 TB. fresh lemon juice
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• For the streusel combine flour, brown sugar, oats, nuts, apple pie spice, and salt in bowl. 
• Stir in melted butter until thoroughly combined. I used a food processor for this step,  pulse 3 times. Reserve 1-1/2 cups streusel for the topping. 
• Press remaining streusel into bottom and up sides of a 10 inch deep dish pie plate for the crust. Bake 10 minutes.
• Increase oven temperature to 375 degrees. 
• For the filling whisk together cider, sugar and flour in a large saucepan until sugar and flour are dissolved.
• Bring to a boil over medium heat. Cook until thickened 1-2 minutes. 
• Off heat stir in lemon juice, cinnamon, apples and vanilla. Pour into crust. 

• Crumble reserved streusel over filling and bake until crust and topping are golden and  brown, filling bubbly and apples are cooked. 

• Check pie at 55-60 minutes.