Lauwarmer Apfelkuchen (American Pie)
An American double-crust apple pie rather than a German streusel or custard cake, apples tossed with cornstarch to thicken their juice into a proper filling rather than a watery one, baked under a full pastry lid and served warm with vanilla ice cream. The all-butter crust is worked cold and handled as little as possible.
Prep45 min
Cook55 min
Rest60 min
Oven200°C
Servings10
Christoph's American-style double-crust apple pie, tossing the apples with cornstarch for a filling that thickens properly instead of running thin.
Ingredients
Written for a 24 cm round tin
Units
Temperature
Servings
Crust
- 400 g flour rounded
- 10 g sugar rounded
- 5 g fine salt rounded
- 280 g cold butter, cubed rounded
- 120 ml ice water rounded
- 1 egg, beaten, for glazing rounded
- 10 g sugar, coarse, for the top (optional) rounded
Filling
- 1 1/8 kg apples, peeled, cored, in 1.5 cm wedges rounded
- 150 g sugar rounded
- 30 g cornstarch rounded
- 5 g ground cinnamon rounded
- 1 g fine salt rounded
- 20 ml lemon juice rounded
- 20 g butter, cut into small pieces, dotted over the filling rounded
Dietary labels are a guide, not a guarantee. If you have an allergy, read the ingredients yourself.
Method
- Rub the cold butter into the flour, sugar and salt until pea-sized pieces of butter remain visible; do not overwork it to fine crumbs. Add the ice water a tablespoon at a time, mixing just until the dough comes together. Divide into two portions, one slightly larger, shape into discs, wrap, and chill for at least 1 hour.
- Toss the apple wedges with the sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon, salt and lemon juice and let sit for 15 minutes; the sugar will draw out some juice, which the cornstarch will thicken as it bakes.
- Roll the larger disc out and line a 24 cm pie dish, leaving a small overhang.
- Fill with the apple mixture, mounding it slightly in the centre, and dot with the small pieces of butter.
- Roll out the second disc and lay it over the top, either whole with a few vents cut in, or woven into a lattice. Trim and crimp the edges to seal.
- Brush with the beaten egg and scatter with the coarse sugar, if using.
- Bake at 200°C for 20 minutes, then reduce the oven to 180°C and bake a further 30 to 35 minutes, until the crust is deep golden and juice is visibly bubbling through the vents. Tent loosely with foil if the edges brown too fast.
- Rest at least 1 hour before slicing, so the filling sets enough to hold a clean cut. Serve warm, not hot, with vanilla ice cream.
Notes
- Keep the butter cold and visible in the dough. Small, unblended pieces of butter are what create the flaky layers as the pie bakes; a dough rubbed to fine, even crumbs bakes tender but not flaky.
- The cornstarch is what keeps the filling from running. A pie sliced too soon, before the filling has had time to set, will spill juice everywhere no matter how much starch was used.
- Do not skip the resting time. A pie that looks perfectly baked still needs an hour to firm up enough for a clean slice; cutting into it hot gives a puddle rather than a wedge.
- It keeps for 3 days at room temperature, loosely covered, and reheats well in a moderate oven; the crust softens in a microwave.
Ingredient substitutions
- A mix of tart and sweet apple varieties gives more depth than a single kind; a firm baking apple that holds its shape is important either way.
- For a lattice top, cut the second disc into strips instead of leaving it whole, and weave as for a Linzer Torte.
- A pinch of ground nutmeg alongside the cinnamon is a common American variation.
- Vanilla ice cream is the traditional pairing; lightly sweetened whipped cream works well too.
From Christoph Mayer