gingerbread apple pie

Do you have any Fourth of July plans? The small town that I grew up in always had a festival around Independence Day. It lasted for three whole days & came complete with a parade, tractor pull races, & ring-toss games for prizes. My parents would always let us crawl onto the roof with our bags of parade candy to watch the fireworks on the last day of the festival. It was one of my favorite times of the year. Nowadays I tend to keep things more low-key, while still looking forward to the mid-summer holiday.

What better way to celebrate the holiday than with an American classic - the apple pie? Maybe patriotism is just an excuse for my sweet tooth.

This gingerbread apple pie is one of Heather's specialties. Whenever an occasion involves bringing a homemade dish, she'll casually mention the possibility of making one of these pies. Almost too casually, as if not to get my hopes up in case it doesn't happen, because let me tell you what: this pie is a winner. It's all of the sweetness of apples, with the spice of gingerbread, without all the hassle of making a traditional pie crust. A.k.a., the perfect apple pie.

This recipe has been adapted from Post Punk Kitchen's Gingerbread Apple Pie recipe in

Vegan with a Vengeance.
Heather's version is not vegan, but can easily be made so by substituting the butter for vegan margarine. 

Ingredients

Crust //

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2/3 cups brown sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger
• 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon allspice
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 2/3 cups butter
• 1 1/2 tablespoons molasses

Filling //

• 2 pounds (5 large) Granny Smith apples
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon allspice
• 1/2 teaspoon ginger
• Pinch of ground cloves
• 1 tablespoon canola oil
• 2 tablespoons arrowroot powder

Preheat the oven to 375 °F. 

Crust // To make the crust, stir together the flour, sugar, spices, salt, & baking powder. Add the butter one tablespoon at a time, mixing together with your hands.

Add molasses & water, mixing with your hands until the dough begins to cling together. Divide the dough into two sections: about 2/3rds of the dough for the bottom crust, & the remaining 1/3 for the top crust. 

Knead your bottom crust dough into a ball, & press it into your pie plate evenly. Bake for 10 minutes. 

Filling // Peel & core your apples. Cut in thin slices.

While the crust is baking, combine your apple slices & all other filling ingredients except for the arrowroot powder in a mixing bowl. Mix in the arrowroot powder until it dissolves. 

When the pie crust is done baking, fill the crust with the filling mixture. Place the remaining dough over the filling, sealing the edges of the bottom crust & top crust together. Cover with aluminum foil & bake for 20 minutes. Remove the foil & bake for another 30 minutes.

I wish I could show you photos of the inside of the pie, but once it was sliced, it was immediately devoured.

Do you have any Fourth of July traditions?

xoxo,
-m.e.

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P.S. For more 4th of July fun, check out these summer-themed links.