“21” Apple Pie

To prepare the dough by hand, combine the flour and salt in a
stainless steel bowl and mix well.

Add the cold butter cubes and, with a pastry blender, blend in the
butter until the mixture begins to resemble a mealy mixture where
butter forms peas-size nuggets plainly visible in the flour. Add only
enough water to pull the dough together. The water should be added to
the flour slowly to ensure that only the minimum amount of water is
used. Do not over-mix the dough. When the dough has been mixed just
sufficiently to combine the ingredients, form it into a ball and wrap
in a piece of plastic wrap and refrigerate for several hours.

To prepare the filling, melt the butter in a large saute pan until it
begins to brown. Add the sliced apples and cook over medium heat
until they begin to soften, about 2 to 3 minutes.

In a bowl, combine the lemon juice, sugars, Southern Comfort, and
cinnamon. Add this mixture to the apples and cook 2 to 3 minutes over
medium-high heat until the apples are completely caramelized and
covered with all the sugar. Remove filling from the heal and allow to
cool.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

When ready to use, remove the dough from the refrigerator, lightly
flour a pastry board and a rolling pin, and unwrap the dough. Divide
the dough into 2 equal pieces and begin to roll out

into a circle by rolling evenly outward from the center and turning
the dough in small 1/8th turns to keep the rolling even. When the
dough is rolled out to an even thickness and is about 12 inches in
diameter and 1/8-inch thick, it is ready to be transferred to a
10-inch pie tin. Lightly butter the tin, partially roll the dough up
on the rolling pin, lift the dough and center it in the pie tin and
unroll.

Roll the second half of the pie dough into a round slightly larger
than the pie pan. Fill the bottom crust with the cooked apples using
a slotted spoon to drain the apples. Reserve juices if desired, for
sauce. Brush an egg wash coating over the lip of the dough. This is
where it will be sealed to the top crust. Cover the apples with the
top half of the pie dough. Trim any excess from the top crust before
using both hands to crimp the edges of the two crust together to
seal. With a sharp knife, make several crosshatch slits in the top
crust. Brush with the egg wash and bake for 35 to 40 minutes. Remove
from the oven and cool 20 minutes. Serve with vanilla ice cream.

Reserved juices can be reduced with heavy cream for a sauce for the
pie.

Yield: 6 to 8 servings