All Season Apple Pie

Pulse flour, salt and sugar in food processor fitted with steel blade.
Scatter butter pieces over flour mixture, tossing to coat butter with
a little of the flour. Pulse machine 5 times in 1 second bursts. Add
shortening and continue pulsing until flour is pale yellow and
resembles coarse cornmeal, with butter bits no larger than small
peas, 4 to 6 more 1 second pulses. Turn mixture into medium bowl. If
you don’t have a food processor, grate frozen butter and shortening
into flour mixture and mix with your hands for 1 minute, rubbing
flour and shortening between your fingers. Flour should turn very
pale yellow and become coarser in texture.

Sprinkle 6 tablespoons of ice water over mixture. With blade of rubber
spatula, use folding motion to mix. Press down on dough with broad
side of spatula until dough sticks together. Shape into ball with
hands, divide the dough into two balls one sightly larger than the
other. Dust lightly with flour, wrap separately in plastic and
refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

Remove dough from refrigerator. The dough is ready to be rolled when
it is still cool to the touch but you can push your finger halfway
down through the center. If the dough has been chilled for more than
1 hour, it may have to sit on the counter for 10 to 20 minutes to
soften.

Heat oven to 425 degrees.

Roll larger dough disk on lightly floured surface into a 12-inch
circle, about 1/8-inch thick, the depth of a quarter. Transfer and
fit dough into 9-inch Pyrex pan, leaving dough that overhangs the lip
in place. Refrigerate dough while preparing the fruit.

Peel apples, quarter, and remove core. Slice each quarter into thirds,
about 1/2-inch thick. Toss with lemon juice, lemon zest, salt, sugar,
spices.

Turn fruit mixture, including any juices, into pie shell. Roll out the
remaining ball of dough and place it over the top of the pie. Trim
top and bottom edges to 1/2-inch beyond pan lip. Tuck this rim of
dough underneath itself so that folded edge is flush with pan lip.
Flute dough in your own fashion, or press with fork tines to seal.
Cut four slits at right angles on dough top to allow steam to escape.
Brush egg white on top of crust and sprinkle 1 tablespoon of sugar
evenly over the top.

Place pie on bottom rack. Bake until crust is lightly golden, 25
minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 375 degrees and continue to bake
until juices bubble and crust is deep golden brown, 30 to 35 minutes.
The bottom crust should be golden and the juices from pie bubbling.

Transfer pie to wire rack: let cool to almost room temperature about 4
hours. Pie is best eaten after it has completely cooled, even the
next day.

Variations:

CRYSTALLIZED GINGER APPLE PIE

Add 3 tablespoons of chopped ginger to apple mixture.

DRIED RAISIN, CHERRY OR CRANBERRY APPLE PIE

Macerate 1 cup dried fruit (chopped coarse if large) in the lemon
juice and 1 tablespoon liqueur Apple Jack, brandy or cognac. Toss
with apple mixture.

FRESH CRANBERRY PIE

Add 1 cup fresh or frozen cranberries to apples, and increase sugar
to 1 cup from 3/4 cup.

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