Papá’s World Famous Apple Pie
A Story and Recipe of Apple Pie
About a year ago, in some conversation about who knows what, I mentioned to my kids that I make a World Famous Apple Pie. They didn’t believe me and had so many questions.
“If I call the Emperor of China will he know about your apple pie?”
“There is no current Emperor of China. But, yes, call the last guy and he’ll know.”
The last Emperor of China abdicated in 1912 and passed away in 1967. Good luck, kid.
I enlisted the help of old friends who we called on the phone to tell my kids how amazing my apple pie was and how famous it was. The old bros don’t lie to children. They never tell tall tales. They are vessels of wisdom and the most true, that-totally-happened war stories. Still, the kids would not believe me.
So, on New Year’s Day, January 1st, 2022 — day one of the third part of the 2020 trilogy — I made my World Famous Apple Pie. The truth is, it’s World Famous because that’s its name. Only a handful of people have ever tasted it. Until today.
Dear reader, my gift to this chaotic, cold, exhausting world, is the recipe to “Papá’s World Famous Apple Pie.” Take notes.
World Famous Pie Crust
2.5 cups of All Purpose Flour
1 tablespoon of brown sugar
1 teaspoon of kosher salt
1 cup of cold butter (can be replaced with vegan butter)
1/4 cup of cold water
Parchment paper
1 can of Athletic Brewing Run Wild non-alcoholic beer (can be replaced with drink of choice)
- Put 1.5 cups of flour, sugar, and salt in the blender. Yes, the blender, and mix for about five seconds. Take a sip of beer.
- Add the butter and mix until it becomes a paste, or about 15 seconds.
- Scrape with a rubber spatula and move around the blender.
- Add the remaining flour and mix another 20 seconds. You may need to use a spatula to move around the mix — in between blending — as it gets pretty clumpy and crumbly. Take another sip.
- Sprinkle some flour on a cutting board to prepare for the next step.
- Scrape out the crumbly mix and place in a bowl. Dip your fingers and hands in cold water and roll the mix into a ball, on a cutting board. Add the remainder of the cold water and continue to form the ball.
- Once you have an even round ball, cut it in half. These will be your top and bottom crusts. Roll one half out into about a 12-inch disk and place on parchment paper. Put parchment paper on top of the disk. Roll the other half out into a similar sized disk and place on top of the other disk, parchment paper separating them. Place one more parchment paper on top. Place the whole thing in the refrigerator for one hour.
- Wash your hands and take a few more sips. You’re doing well.
Take a few moments to clean up your area. I say this as a friend, it makes it so much easier to enjoy your pie when there’s less clean up at the end.
World Famous Apple Pie Mix
8 apples (honey crisp, can be replaced with another variety)
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
2 teaspoons of cinnamon
1/2 cup of All Purpose Flour
2 tablespoons of butter (can be replaced with vegan butter)
1 tablespoon of brown sugar
1 egg white
- Pre-heat the oven to 450 degrees F.
- Wash, slice, and core the apples. Some folks will peel them but as my mom would say, that’s where la vitamina is.
- Toss in a bowl with the larger amounts of sugar, cinnamon, and flour. Make sure apples are well covered in the glorious mix. Take a sip of your non-alcoholic beer or drink of choice.
- Take out cooling disks from refrigerator. Roll one crust disk into a pie pan.
- Place apple mixture into the pan, tossing bits of butter throughout the mix.
- Use a pizza cutter or knife to create long inch-wide strips of second crust disk. Weave strips on top of apple mix. Look at you, being artistic and all. Take a sip.
- Wet your hands to gently wet the top crust. Sprinkle the remaining table spoon of brown sugar to the top of the crust.
- Put the world famous pie in the oven and bake for 15 minutes.
- Reduce the temperature to 350 degrees F and continue baking for another 40 minutes. Look at your creation through the little oven window and say to yourself, yeah, I did that. Take a sip, you deserve it.
While the pie bakes, clean up the kitchen. Others will also enjoy your pie more if they don’t have to clean up after you. Take all the sips.
10. When the forty minutes are done, pull the pie out of the oven.
11. Brush the egg white on top of the crust to let it shine as brightly as you do.
12. Put the pie back in the oven for ten minutes.
13. When done, place the pie on the stove. Remember to turn off the oven.
Call everyone into the kitchen to admire your creation. You made that. Papá’s World Famous Apple Pie. Now tell them the most true, that-totally-happened war story about your pie while the pie cools and while finishing your drink.
Enjoy!
Christian Alberto Ledesma is not a professional cook or chef and does not take responsibility for whatever mess you make in the kitchen. That’s on you, boss.
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