Dutch Apple Pie

Here in Grenada we have tropical fruit year-round, which I love. Mangoes, pineapple, starfruit, they are all so delicious. However, being away from home for so long has made me crave one of the most popular American desserts...apple pie! Dutch apple pie, with its streusel topping, is my favorite kind of pie. I did take a shortcut to save on time by buying a pre-made pie crust for this one, but I will include my pie crust recipe below.

Ingredients:

Store-bought pie crust (or use pie crust recipe below)

Apple Filling:

     3 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, and sliced

     1 1/2 tablespoons of all-purpose flour

     6 tablespoons of light brown sugar

     1/4 teaspoon of ground cinnamon

Streusel Topping:

     1 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour

     2/3 cup of light brown sugar

     1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

     1/2 cup of butter or margarine, melted

Preheat the oven to 375F. For the streusel topping, add the flour, sugar, and cinnamon to a medium-sized mixing bowl. Melt the butter and pour into the dry ingredients. Stir with a fork and mix until crumbs form. Cover with plastic wrap and put it in the freezer until you are ready to top the pie.

For the filling, put the apple slices in a medium-sized mixing bowl. Sprinkle the flour, sugar, and cinnamon over the apples, and toss to coat. 

Now you can either defrost a store-bought crust, or roll out one half of the pie crust dough on a floured surface to about an 11 inch circle and place in a 9 inch pie pan. Lay the apples out in the crust, and then sprinkle the streusel topping over it. 

Filled apple pie ready for topping

Streusel topping

Bake for 15 minutes, loosely covered with aluminum foil, and then remove the foil and bake for another 25-30 minutes, or until it is golden and bubbling. Cool and serve.

Pie Crust:

     2 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour

     2 tablespoons of white sugar

     pinch of salt

     1/4 cup vegetable shortening, refrigerated

     3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) of butter, cold and cubed

     1/2 cup ice water

To make the crust, add the flour, sugar, and salt into a large mixing bowl. Use a pastry cutter, fork, or two knives to "cut" the shortening and the butter into the dry ingredients until it forms a crumbly appearance. Add the ice water a little at a time (you may not need all of it), and mix with your hands until it forms a dough. Divide the dough into two halves, wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate while you prepare the filling. (You will only need one half of the dough for a dutch apple pie, so you can roll out the other half and place in an aluminum disposable pie pan in a large freezer bag and freeze for later use. Alternatively, you can roll out the other half and use it to cover the pie instead of the streusel topping for a traditional apple pie.