Climbing: September 2017

LEAFY ELSTAR APPLE PIE WITH ALL-BUTTER CRUST

Said the 10 yr old upon tasting the pie: "Mommy, your apple pie exceeds expectations!"

Yes, it was a mighty fine pie and I'd make it exactly the same way again and again!

It all starts with the Apple. In my pie are Elstar apples, which is a variety originating in the Netherlands in Elst in the 1950s. It is a cross between Golden Delicious and Ingrid Marie apples. We picked these in Abbotsford at Willow View Farms last week. They are excellent apples eaten out of hand as they are crunchy and sweet.

I have an aversion to soggy crusts. If you’re like me this recipe will please you because it does everything possible to mitigate the soggy pie crust scenario.

I used leaf cutters for my top crust because I didn’t feel like struggling with a braided lattice again. It took me only 10 minutes to make this top crust.

The crowning glory is the little bird cut-out. I was tempted to use a Totoro cut-out but it just didn’t look right lol!

A brushing of egg white and sprinkling of evaporated cane sugar ensures a crunchy crust

The recipe called for baking at a high temperature of 425F for 15 minutes and then turning the oven down to 350F for 45 minutes. After the time was up, I added another 15 minutes because I saw the bottom crust wasn’t browned enough. The best thing about using a glass pie plate is that you can easily monitor the bottom crust during the baking process.

The top crust of overlapped pastry leaves are absolutely delicious and crunchy with the sprinkling of sugar.

The filling is simply apples, cinnamon and sugar. No extra butter or lemon juice is needed

ELSTAR APPLE PIE WITH FLAKEY ALL-BUTTER LEAFY PIE CRUST

FOOD PROCESSOR ALL-BUTTER PIE CRUST

2 1/2 Cups all - purpose flour (12.5 ounces; 350 grams)
2 Tbsp sugar (25 grams)
1 tsp kosher salt (5 grams)
2 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, cut into 1/4 - inch pats (10 ounces; 280 grams)
6 Tbsp cold water (3 ounces; 85 milliliters)

PREHEAT OVEN TO 425F (400F convection). If you have a sheet pan or a pizza stone/tile, place it on your oven rack to heat.
Combine the flour, sugar and salt in a bowl. Scoop out two thirds of the flour mixture into the bowl of a food processor. Pulse twice to incorporate. Spread butter chunks evenly over surface. Pulse until no dry flour remains and dough clumps, about 25 pulses. Use a rubber spatula to spread the dough evenly around the bowl of the food processor. Sprinkle with remaining flour and pulse until dough is just barely broken up, about 5 short pulses. Transfer dough to a large bowl.
Sprinkle with water; using a rubber spatula, fold and press the dough until it comes together into a ball. Use your hands to form a ball. Divide ball in half. Form each half into a 4-inch disk. Wrap tightly in plastic and refrigerate for at least 2 hours before rolling and baking

ELSTAR APPLE PIE FILLING (REPLACE WITH GOLDEN DELICIOUS IF YOU CANNOT FIND ELSTAR)

8-10 large Elstar apples, peeled, cored and sliced thinly
1/2 cup evaporated cane sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Place the sliced apples in a saucepan with the cane sugar and cinnamon.
Heat over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally until the apples are translucent and have released their juices
If there is a lot of juice in the bottom of the pan, scoop out most of the juice into a small bowl. Create a cornstarch slurry with 1 teaspoon cornstarch and 2 tablespoons water. Pour the slurry into the juice and stir. Then add the mixture back into the pan of apples. Heat, stirring constantly until the apple filling thickens
Allow filling to cool in the pot until ready to fill pie crusts

ELSTAR APPLE PIE

double-crust pie dough (above)
1 egg white
extra evaporated cane sugar
cooled apple pie filling

Roll out one of the pie crust disks between parchment or plastic wrap to fit the bottom of a 9 inch glass pie pan. Roll the edges under itself to fit the pie pan. Make a decorative pattern in the dough with fork or fingers along the rim.
Brush the bottom of the pie crust with egg white
Pour the apple pie filling onto the bottom crust.
Roll out the top crust and use leaf cutters to cut out leaves. Overlap the leaves in a concentric pattern and brush the tops with eggwhite. Sprinkle sugar over the crust.
Bake in hot preheated 425F (400Fconvection) oven by placing the filled pie on the heated pizza tile or sheet pan. Bake for 15 minutes
Lower oven temperature to 350F (325F convection); baking for a further 45-60 minutes. NB: monitor the bottom crust of the pie through the glass pan and ensure that the crust is a deep golden brown. Cover with foil if you think the top crust is browning too quickly. I had to bake this for 60 min at 325F convection setting.
Allow to cool on a rack.
Serve warm with vanilla ice cream.

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Marie-Hélène's Apple Cake

Sweet September

APPLE PICKING AT WILLOW VIEW FARMS IN ABBOTSFORD

ELSTAR APPLES! A VARIETY OF GOLDEN DELICIOUS AND ORANGE PIPPIN, THE FLESH IS CRISP AND SWEET

WE SNAGGED A FEW OF THE REMAINING PEARS LEFT ON THE TREES FORTUNATELY

NESTLED IN THE CROOK OF THE PLUM TREE WAS A BIRD'S NEST

BLUE DOLL PUMPKIN! THE FLESH IS DEEP ORANGE AND I'M MAKING SOUP WITH THIS BABY

WE PICKED SOME PLUMS (OF WHICH THERE WERE ONLY A FEW REMAINING IN ARM'S REACH), BOUGHT SOME SQUASH AND SOME CORN TOO

PREPARING THE BATTER FOR THE APPLE CAKE: EGGS, EVAPORATED CANE SUGAR AND VANILLA

I HAVE 3 VARIETIES OF APPLES PREPARED FOR THE CAKE

THE APPLES ARE LEFT IN LARGE CHUNKS SO YOU CAN REALLY TASTE THE DIFFERENCES IN THE VARIETIES

THE BATTER IS POURED INTO A SPRINGFORM PAN

FRESH OUT OF THE OVEN!

THIS APPLE CAKE SMELLS OF FALL

ENJOY THE RECIPE! IT'S EASY AND MAKES USE OF A GOOD NUMBER OF APPLES; HIGHLIGHTING THE QUALITY OF THE APPLES AND THE DIFFERENT VARIETIES. SERVE WARM WITH VANILLA ICE CREAM OR PLAIN WITH A CUP OF TEA.

MARIE-HELENE'S APPLE CAKE
from Dorie Greenspan's Around My French Table

3/4 cup all purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
pinch of salt
4 large apples (if you can, choose 4 different kinds)
2 large eggs
3/4 cup sugar
3 tablespoons dark rum
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled

Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Generously butter an 8-inch springform pan. Line a baking sheet with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper and put the springform on it.
Whisk the flour, baking powder and salt together in a small bowl.
Peel the apples, cut them in half, and remove the cores. Cut the apples into 1 to 2 inch chunks.
In a medium bowl, beat the eggs with a whisk until they’re foamy. Pour in the sugar and whisk for a minute or so to blend. Whisk in the rum and vanilla. Whisk in half the flour and, when it is incorporated, add half the melted butter, followed by the rest of the flour and the remaining butter, mixing gently after each addition so that you have a smooth, rather thick batter. Switch to a rubber spatula and fold in teh apples, turning the fruit so that it’s coated with batter. Scrape the mix into the pan and poke it around a little with the spatula so that it’s evenish.
Slide the pan into the oven and bake for 50-60 minutes, or until the top of the cake is golden brown and a knife inserted deep into the center comes out clean; the cake may pull away from the sides of the pan. Transfer to a cooling rack and let rest for 5 minutes.
Carefully run a blunt knife around the edges of the cake and remove the sides of the springform pan. (Open the springform slowly, and before it’s fully opened, make sure there aren’t any apples stuck to it.) Allow the cake to cool until it is just slightly warm or at room temperature. If you want to remove the cake from the bottom of the springform pan, wait until the cake is almost cooled, then run a long spatula between the cake and the pan, cover the top of the cake with a piece of parchment or wax paper, and invert it onto a rack. Carefully remove the bottom of the pan and turn the cake over onto a serving dish.

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Foraged-Blackberry No-Churn Ice-cream & Totoro Choux au Craquelin

What to do with the many buckets of FREE local blackberries you've picked along railroad tracks, parks and roadways in Vancouver? How about Foraged Blackberry No-churn Ice Cream?

Your leaf or mine?
How about stuffing Choux au Craquelin with that blackberry ice cream?

Cream puffs are dead easy to make. Top it with craquelin and you're good to go

The craquelin are perfectly round and crispy on the top.

I made some crėme pâtissière with which to stuff the choux au craquelin.

Here are my bowls of whipped heavy cream and the blackberry ice cream mixture ready to combine for the no-churn blackberry ice cream. I had pureed the blackberries and sieved out the seeds for a beautifully smooth texture.