Recipe: Open-Faced Designer Apple Pie and Cream Cheese Pie Crust

OPEN-FACED DESIGNER APPLE PIE



"Arranging the apple slices in a flower petal formation may be work for the cook, but it sure provides luxurious eating for your lucky guests. This pie has an exceptionally crisp bottom crust under a juicy filling of caramelized, cinnamony apples made tangy and glistening with a gilding of apricot preserves. The border is a wreath of leaves cut from the pie crust."

1 recipe Flaky Cream Cheese Pie Crust for 9-inch lattice pie (recipe)
1/2 (1 tablespoon) egg white, lightly beaten
2 1/2 lbs. baking apples; (about 6 medium), peeled, cored, and sliced 1/8-inch thick to make 8 cups
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 to 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg, preferably freshly grated
1/4 tsp. salt
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon cornstarch
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1/4 cup apricot preserves

TO PREPARE THE CRUST:
Remove one piece of dough from refrigerator. If necessary, allow it to sit for about 10 minutes until it is soft enough to roll.

On floured pastry cloth or between 2 sheets of lightly floured plastic wrap, roll pastry 1/8-inch thick or less and large enough to cut 12-inch circle. Use expandable flan ring or cardboard template as guide and sharp knife to cut out circle. Transfer it to the pie plate. Trim the edge if necessary so that it extends 1/4 inch past edge of pie plate. Cover the pastry lightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate it for minimum of 1 hour and maximum of 24 hours.

Roll out the second piece of dough 1/8-inch thick and cut about twenty-six (2 1/2-inch) leaves, using a leaf-shaped cutter or small sharp knife. Use small sharp knife to make veins. Cover and refrigerate.

WHEN READY TO BAKE THE CRUST:
Preheat oven to 425 degrees for at least 20 minutes before baking.

Line the pastry with parchment, pleating it as necessary so it fits into the pan, and fill it with dried beans or peas.

Bake for 20 minutes. Carefully lift out the beans with parchment. With fork, prick the bottom and sides and bake 5-10 minutes more or until crust is pale golden. Check after 3 minutes and prick any bubbles that may have formed.

Cool the crust on a rack 3 minutes, so it is no longer piping hot, then brush the bottom and sides with lightly beaten egg white.

TO PREPARE THE FILLING:
In large bowl, combine the apples, lemon juice, sugars, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt; toss to mix. Allow the apples to macerate for a minimum of 30 minutes and a maximum of 3 hours at room temperature.

Transfer the apples and their juices to colander suspended over a bowl to capture the liquid. The mixture will release at least 1/2 cup of liquid.

In small saucepan (preferably lined with a nonstick surface) over medium-high heat, boil down this liquid, with butter, to 1/3 cup (a little more if more than 1/2 cup of liquid), or until syrupy and lightly caramelized. Swirl liquid but do not stir it. (Alternatively, spray a 4-cup heatproof measure with nonstick vegetable spray, add the liquid and the butter and boil it in the microwave, about 7 minutes on high.) Meanwhile, transfer the apples to a bowl and toss them with the cornstarch until all traces of it have disappeared.

Pour the hot syrup over the apples, tossing gently. (If liquid hardens on contact with apples, allow them to sit at room temperature for about 20 minutes or until moisture from apples dissolves it.)

TO ASSEMBLE THE PIE:
Arrange the apples, overlapping the slices in concentric circles in the pie shell, starting from the outside edge. Keep adding more apples, using the tip of a knife to help insert them in between the other slices, until you have used all the slices. Pour any remaining apple juices evenly over the apples.

Brush the baked pie crust rim with egg. Brush the bottom of each leaf with egg and place the leaves on the border, tilting them and overlapping them slightly. Brush the top of the leaves with egg. Cover the pie loosely with plastic wrap and refrigerate it for 30 minutes before baking to chill the pastry. This will maintain flakiness.

TO BAKE THE PIE:
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F for at least 20 minutes before baking. Set an oven rack at lowest level and place a baking stone or baking sheet on it before preheating. Place large piece of greased foil on top to catch any juices.

Set the pie directly on foil-topped baking stone or sheet and bake 15 minutes. Cut a round of foil to fit over the apples and the edge of the crust and crimp it in 3 or 4 places to create dome. Cover pie with the foil and cut 3 steam vents in the foil, about 3-inches long. Continue baking for 45 to 50 minutes or until the juices bubble and apples feel tender but not mushy when pierced with a cake tester or small sharp knife. Remove the foil and bake for 5 to 10 minutes more or until the top of apples is golden brown. Remove pie to a rack.

In small saucepan or microwave oven, heat the apricot preserves until melted and bubbling. Strain them into a small cup. Brush them over the top of the apples. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Store at room temperature, up to 2 days.

VARIATION:
For a different look, a 10- by 2- inch tart pan can be used. The fluted sides provide the decoration instead of the pastry leaf border. The apples should be covered when you put the pie in the oven, as there is no exposed pastry to brown.

Makes 1 (9-inch) pie, 8 servings
Source: The Pie and Pastry Bible by Rose Levy Beranbaum