High Peaks Deep Dish Apple Pie

{UPDATE} The Pick Giveaway Winner plugin chose Christa D. as our winner! Congratulations, Christa! Email me your mailing information and I will forward it onto our friends at Harry & David!

This past summer I had the distinct privilege of traveling to Oregon as part of a group of bloggers brought out by Harry & David to tour their orchards, facilities and community. What a treat! It was wall to wall wonderment, beauty and inspiring people. You don’t get a trip like that every day, I’ll tell ya. Aside from making some great new friends, I came away from it all with a deep respect and affection for Harry & David’s operation and philosophy. They take care of their people – they have employees who have worked there for their entire lives who come from parents who worked their for their entire lives- and the mutual loyalty shows in their products.

As I drove from the very north of Oregon to the very south, I had ample time to admire the pines and peaks of the state. Living in New York, I’m no stranger to mountains and trees, so there was a bit of familiarity mixed in with the newness. Where New York has high peaks, they’re rounded and aged; worn down by elements and time. Oregon’s peaks are young and raw and dramatic. What views!

Harry & David is best known for its pears, but they also have spectacular apples. When they offered to give a gift box to Foodie With Family readers, I had no idea what to pick and posed the question to you all on Facebook. It came down to a tie, so I tossed a coin and was thrilled that the coin favoured a gift box with apples in it, too. It didn’t just have apples though, it had Moose Munch (on which I am now officially dependent), their spectacular pears, summer sausage, cheddar cheese, MASSIVE chocolate covered Oregon cherries, raspeberry galettes, olive oil crackers, and mixed nuts. Oh man. Good choice, people!!! I’m so excited because they sent one to me, too! Whoever wins this thing is going to be one seriously happy camper. (Giveaway details are after the recipe!)

…But first…

We must talk pie. I have said it before and I’ll say it again, pie is the best dessert in the whole world; fruit, crust, sweet, tart, tender fruit, and beauty all in one package. It’s just plain superior to anything else you can make. And I -unsurprisingly, probably- have some very strong opinions on apple pie. Don’t get me wrong, I will eat ANY piece of apple pie put in front of me and take great joy in it, but if I’m making a pie, I’m going to make my favourite version of it and THIS pie is it.

I’m going to tell you right now, I buck tradition in my apple pies. I leave out cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and whatnot. I have no problems with them, but when I’m making the pie, I prefer it without that. I want the vibrant, clean, sparkly apple to shine through without all those other notes to sully it. (Reminder: I will happily eat any sullied apple pies, too.)

I use home canned boiled cider syrup, but you can buy it commercially or -in a pinch- substitute plain apple cider in its stead. Do whatchoo gotta do, but do make this pie. It is as high as New York’s High Peaks and a nod to the apple growing power houses of New York and Oregon. This pie crams twelve big old apples in between two pie crusts and sings APPLE! A light brushing of milk and a generous sprinkling of coarse sugar brings the whole thing home.

Oh mama.

Cut a wedge out of that pie and look at it.

This is a pie to make memories.

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Rebecca Lindamood

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This glorious high-peaks, deep-dish apple pie is the ultimate in apple pies. Clean, pure apple flavour shines through and tastes wonderful with whipped cream, vanilla ice cream or a big wedge of aged Cheddar on the side.

Ingredients

  

• Pie pastry for a double-crust 9-inch pie
• 10-12 apples peeled, cored and thinly sliced
• 1/4 cup boiled cider syrup or plain apple cider
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup granulated or raw sugar
• 1/4 cup clearjel or cornstarch

Optional: milk and coarse sugar for brushing on the crust

Instructions

 

• Preheat the oven to 425°F.
• Roll out half of your pie pastry and line a deep dish pie plate, draping excess over the edges. Set aside.
• In a large mixing bowl, toss the apples with the cider syrup, vanilla extract and lemon juice. In another smaller bowl, whisk together the sugar and clearjel or cornstarch until evenly combined. Pour over the apples and toss to evenly distribute. Use your hands to carefully pile and pack the apple slices into the pie plate. You may have to break up some pieces to find a way to get it all in there and it WILL mound up over the crust, just keep the excess pie crust clean and uncovered.
• Roll out the second pie crust so that it is large enough to drape over the apples and around the edges of the pie plate a bit. Tuck the top crust under the excess bottom crust and crimp in whatever style you prefer. Cut a couple of vent holes on top of the crust (slits or shapes), brush the crust with milk and sprinkle with coarse sugar.
• Put in the oven and bake at 425°F for 15 minutes, lower the heat to 375°F and continue baking for 45-50 minutes or until the juices are bubbly in the pie and the apples are tender when pierced through the vent holes. If the crust starts browning too quickly, tent loosely with foil around the edges.
• Cool at least to room temperature before slicing if you want the slices to hold together.

Nutritional information is an estimate and provided to you as a courtesy. You should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe using your preferred nutrition calculator.

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GIVEAWAY CLOSED

I have a couple of ways for you to enter.

MANDATORY ENTRY: Leave a comment telling me your plans for this gorgeous gift basket. Will you use it for appetizers at a dinner party? Share with friends and neighbors? Hide in the closet and eat it all yourself? (I recommend this last option at least for the Moose Munch and chocolate covered cherries.)

Optional Entry 1: Like Foodie With Family on Facebook.

Optional Entry 2: Like Harry & David on Facebook.

Optional Entry 3: Follow Foodie With Family on Twitter.

Optional Entry 4: Follow Harry & David on Twitter.

Don’t forget to leave a separate comment for each one of the optional entries so I can count them all! The approximate retail value of this gift box is $59.99. I will draw a random name on Saturday, October 27th ! Be sure to come back to see if you’ve won! Good luck, everyone!!