My First Apple Pie

My first Apple Pie and the 2nd pie I have made in my entire life. Last year I made a crust at my former Mom’s group , I made the Libbys pumpkin pie recipe with it.

Did I mention this was a trial run for a Pie Baking Contest I decided to participate in? Recently we went to a local city cultural and history center, it was really cool, I plan to blog about it soon. While we were there I picked up some brochures and one was advertising ‘Cider Days’.

Here is what the city website says:

Celebrate the autumn season at the 35th Annual Cider Days harvest festival! Cider Days includes booths serving cider by the glass or gallon. Festival-goers can also bring apples (or buy them at the event) and use our presses to make fresh apple cider to take home.

There is the bake-off, demonstrations, hayrides, petting zoo, arts and crafts, bands and more.

Who could resist? The event sounded so fun, so Fall! A Bake-off… what a fun experience! I am game. I set off to research crusts, pies, apples, everything! Not that I expect to win or even come close but I want to do for the fun of it all. Experience some Americana, if you will.

I originally was going to use 1 recipe but wanted to do my own thing too. In the end I took ideas from several recipes and took what I like, left out what I didn’t. I came up with some ideas, made a game plan and tonight it was time to get to work.

I posted pictures below, against my husbands better judgement *laughing*. I told him I wanted to keep it real and hopefully it would get better as I blog about making another practice one and then one for the Bake-off, at least that is my plan right now.

So here it is…

Getting started on Apple Pie — Getting started on the crust, then the apples

Granny Smith Apple Slices — Granny Smith Apple slices before I sprinkled them with cinnamon

OK, so far so good! At this point I have a sugary mixture simmering away on the stove-top, looking good still….

Timing is everything and as an amateur I simply didn’t have my lattice work done in in time for my stove-top concoction to be ready. I had my husband keep stirring it while I rolled out more dough and cut the strips. I was in such a hurry when I pulled them up quickly most of them broke, I threw them on anyway. At this point all I keep saying is, “Well at least it will taste good!” and giggling nervously.

I put it in the oven without taking a picture, this is what came out: