At this time of the year, the apple orchards are often filled with fruit, and people start thinking about apple pies. Here’s my own version, which combines the flavor of apples with that of cheddar cheese. Yummy!
Ocean’s Cheesy Apple Pie
For the crust:
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup butter-flavored shortening (Crisco)
1/2 cup finely shredded cheddar cheese (may use mild or sharp as you desire)
3 – 4 tablespoons of water
In a mixing bowl, stir together flour and salt. Cut in the shortening to the size of small peas. Stir in cheese. Sprinkle one tablespoon of the water over part of the mixture, and toss with a fork. Continue to sprinkle in water, a tablespoon at a time, and toss until all is well moistened. Form into a ball
On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough to form a 12 inch circle. Ease into a 9-inch pie plate. Trim to 1/2 inch beyond edge of plate, fold under pastry. Finish the edge as desired. Do not prick pastry.
For the filling:
5 cups thinly sliced, peeled cooking apples
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup all purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
In a bowl, combine apples, sugar, flour, cinnamon, and salt. Transfer to crust.
For the topping
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup butter
1 cup finely shredded cheddar cheese (may use mild or sharp as you desire)
In a bowl, stir together flour, sugar, and salt. Cut in the butter until mixture is crumbly. Gently stir in the cheddar cheese.
Sprinkle the cheddar topping on top of the filling. Cover edge of pie with foil to prevent burning, and bake in a 375 degree oven for 25 minutes, then remove the foil and make for 20 more minutes, until top is golden and fruit is tender. Makes 8 servings of delicious pie!
As a person who loves both apples and cheese, and also enjoys the combination of the two, I had to try out this pie.
However, I did make a few minor changes… I confess that I don’t make a good pie crust, and I was a bit lazy to give it a try.
So instead, I just bought one of those ready-made deep dish pie crusts. I let the crust thaw out til it was soft, and then gently pressed grated sharp cheddar cheese into the crust all around the sides and edges of the pie, and sprinkled cheese on the bottom of the crust. I then filled it up with apples, and topped it with the cheddar topping.
It came out tasting quite delicious!
I would highly recommend this pie to anyone looking for a variation on this tasty all-american dessert.