Apple Pie

I arranged a Christmas Tea with some of my co-workers this week and wanted to provide something good to eat (preferably a new recipe.) Since I've made so many different cakes in the past and was giving various cookies as the actual Christmas presents, I decided to try another pie since I'd had fairly good luck with the sweet potato pie at Thanksgiving.

This time, I decided to make an apple pie (largely because I had a large bag of apples in my refrigerator getting closer and closer to their rotting point!) For the recipe, I researched a few of the more popular options on allrecipes.com - though most of the options were more complex than I was really wanting to try (I just wanted a simple, classic pie recipe since I also baked a batch of sugar cookies this evening for a massive 6-hour baking marathon!) Fortunately, I was quite happy with the following recipe; it proved to be a very traditional all-American apple pie. The only alteration I might attempt with this recipe is slightly pre-baking the bottom crust before adding the apple-mixture. I had read in the online comments how this had helped prevent a soggy bottom (but I failed to remember this when baking this pie - though, fortunately, it wasn't that soggy.)


Classic Apple Pie

(makes one 9" pie)

7 cups thinly sliced peeled baking apples
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 cup sugar
¼ cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
2 tablespoons butter or margarine
1 egg yolk
1 tablespoon water
a double pie crust (I simply doubled this recipe from my sweet potato pie)

Prepare the dough for the double crust, dividing so that one is slightly larger than the other. Chill for at least 2 hours. In a bowl, toss apples with lemon juice. Combine sugar, flour, cinnamon, salt and nutmeg; add to apples and toss. Pour into crust; dot with butter. Roll out remaining pastry to fit top of pie; cut slits in top. Place over filling; seal and flute edges. Beat egg yolk and water; brush over pastry. Bake at 425°F (218°C) for 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 350°F (175°C) ; bake 40-45 minutes more or until crust is golden and filling is bubbly.

Moist Chocolate Cake

A few weeks ago I had a friend post this recipe on Facebook (as what she thought was a wishful, but impossible request on our island.) When I mentioned that I'd easily be able to bake it, she instantly demanded I give it a try!

Surprisingly, most of the ingredients were readily available at my local grocery store - the only thing I was unable to find was the buttermilk. Instead, I found a simple substitution of lemon juice and regular milk. I was a little surprised at just how liquid-y this recipe was however. I mixed the first set of ingredients (everything except for the final cup of hot water) and the resulting batter was the normal consistency for a cake. However, when the extra cup of water was added (I'm not a big coffee fan), the result was a thin batter with the consistency of chocolate milk! (I was a little worried at this point!!!)

I originally planned to bake this cake in my 7" spring-form pan (since it allows for better airflow in the oven); unfortunately, I discovered that the batter was far too runny for this. (A lesson I didn't learn until chocolate batter had dripped all over my kitchen counters and on the bottom of my toaster oven....) Luckily, I was able to quickly grease my 9" pan and transfer the batter into it. I, then, simply baked the two layers one at a time.

Amazingly, the thin batter did end up congealing into a perfectly formed cake. In fact, I was greatly impressed with how easily this cake fell from the pan (it was almost like during the baking process the cake had actually pulled away from the sides of the pan.

To complete the cake, I simply frosted it with a classic chocolate buttercream frosting (from the Wilton website.) The final cake was extremely dense and rich!

Moist Chocolate Cake

2 c. sugar
1¾ c. flour
¾ c. cocoa
1½ t. baking powder
1½ t. baking soda
1 t. salt
2 eggs
1 c. buttermilk
½ c. butter, melted
1 T. vanilla
1 c. hot coffee (or hot water)

Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Mix sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add eggs, buttermilk, melted butter, and vanilla. Beat for 2 minute on high speed. Stir in hot coffee (or water.) Bake for 30-35 minutes in two greased 9" pans.


Wilton Chocolate Buttercream Frosting

½ c. shortening
½ c. butter, softened
¾ c. cocoa
1 t. vanilla extract
4 c. powdered sugar (1 lb.)
3-4 T milk

Cream shortening and butter and add vanilla and milk. Mix cocoa and powdered sugar. Slowly mix the sugar mixture with the liquid ingredients until very well mixed. Add more milk if needed for a smoother, creamier frosting.