a Dutch Apple Pie by a Dutch Girl

Baking a Dutch apple pie inevitably leads to the question: "what’s the difference between a ‘Dutch’ apple pie and a regular apple pie?" All of the Dutch apple pies I’ve ever tried seem to be more gooey than normal apple pies (god I love that!). After researching quite a bit, I read in a very very old Betty Crocker cookbook that Dutch apple pies use heavy cream in the apple filling. Just before the last 5 minutes of baking, you pour heavy cream into the slits of the pie. Indeed, this made it very gooey and moist. But honestly, we Dutch people aren’t king or queen at making apple pies, in fact, we don’t even really have pies. We have something similar called “taart”, which is more like a tart than an actual pie. Dutch apple pies aren’t really Dutch, just as French fries aren’t really French.

French Pastry Pie Crust recipe: AllRecipes.com

Ingredients:
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ teaspoons salt
- 3 tablespoons white sugar
- 1 cup shortening
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon distilled white vinegar
- 5 tablespoons water (I needed about 10 tablespoons)

Instructions:
- In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, salt, and sugar. Mix well, then cut in shortening until mixture resembles coarse meal.
- In a small bowl, combine egg, vinegar, and 5 tablespoons of water. Whisk together, then add gradually to flour mixture, stirring with a fork. Mix until dough forms a ball. Add one more tablespoon of water if necessary.
- Cover dough ball in a plastic wrap and allow dough to rest in refrigerator 10 minutes before rolling out.

Dutch Apple Pie recipe: adapted from AllRecips.com

Ingredients:
- 1 recipe pastry for a 9 inch double crust pie
- ½ cup unsalted butter
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup water
- ½ cup white sugar
- ½ cup packed brown sugar
- 5 Granny Smith apples - peeled, cored and sliced
- ½ cup heavy cream

Instructions:
- Preheat oven to 425°F/220°C.
- Melt the butter in a saucepan. Stir in flour to form a paste.
- Add water, white sugar and brown sugar, and bring to a boil. Reduce temperature and let simmer for 2 minutes.
- In a medium bowl, mix the apple slices with the warm filling, by using a spoon.
- Place the bottom crust in your pan. Gently pour the apple mixture in the pan, then cover with the second pie crust. Make sure the top crust has slits to let the steam escape.
- Bake 15 minutes in the preheated oven. Reduce the temperature to 350°F/175°C. Continue baking for 35 to 45 minutes, until apples are soft and crust is golden brown.
- 5 minutes before end of baking, pour ½ cup heavy cream through slits of the top crust.


Granny Smith apples, which happens to be my favorite kind op apples.


Chopping the apples into these little pieces took the most work. Here they are drenched with a butterscotch-ish sauce.


Before the pie went into the oven I covered the edges with foil, to prevent the edges from getting burnt. I hate burnt edges!


Done and done! :D


The recipe didn't call for any cinnamon so I forgot all about it. I really like some cinnamon with my apple pie, so I sprinkled it over my slice of pie.

Comments

Eliana said…
WOW. You outdid yourself with this one. This pie looks incredible.
Anonymous said…
Looks fantastic!
The result looks so adorable! In Latvia apple is the most popular fruit and apple pies are very popular, but I haven't found the moust delicious recipe for me. So this is the thing I have to try! :))
apparentlyjessy said…
There is NOTHING better than a slice of apple pie on a cold winters night...I want to make this very soon!
Rachel said…
The apple pie looks delicious!
Mmm I like cinnamon in my apple pie too! Your crust looks perfect! :D
Anonymous said…
This looks so good! I wish I could have a slice right now! And I love that we both have the same dishes. My husband is from that very northern island region of Germany!!
Anonymous said…
I thought Dutch apple pie always had a streusel topping on it, no?
Paris Pastry said…
@Anonymous: Maybe in the US, Dutch apple pies are marketed that way (with streusel), but here it's usually a lattice top crust. =)
Lissa Brooks said…
Yes, in the US, "Dutch apple pie" always has streusel instead of a top crust. My absolute favorite pie.
Unknown said…
My Grandmother & Mom made what they called Dutch Apple, but they added raisins to the mix.

Popular Posts