Eyes On The Pies

Like many people during this time, I am separated from my immediate family by thousands of miles during this holiday.  I left my home a month ago to travel East to be a bone marrow transplant participant in the hope that it helps with the cancer treatment that will result in a positive treatment for an extended family member.  

Turning tough times into opportunities for personal growth has always been the way I’ve dealt with a difficult situation in my life for as long as I can remember.  When I was a child, I would master tree climbing or become unbeatable at Jacks.  As I grew into my teen years I became a marathon runner.  Being able to run 5 miles a day gave me a true sense of control like nothing else.  The endorphins propelled me into a feeling that crushed any anxiety or any challenge of the day.  In my professional life, I was all about the business of crushing the hurdles that life puts in my path.  But alas, in retirement it a little more difficult.  

As the coronavirus governed my movements, security, and anxiety levels, finding ways to cope became more than the normal challenge.  Just like an old school chef, I needed to focus on my craft to lift my spirits and give the fruits of my labor to loved ones and friends.  I began baking like I was starting a pop-up bakeshop.  Starting with Hawaiian Bread because it looks easy enough.  Especially since I have laden childhood trauma of using active dry yeast while making dinner rolls for a family gathering at the tender age of 11.  But soldiering on, I was soon making puff pastry with one eye closed.  

But my heart and my baking eyes kept returning to PIES.  I just love to make pies.  Not only because I am known for baking them.  But the feeling of rolling the pastry seems to extract all the tension from my head, my heart, my life.  Not it can’t replace seeing the people that I love in person.  But today as I bake individual pies for myself, neighbors and friends.  I’m going to keep my eyes on the pies.  Not because I have to but as a reminder of how much I have to be thankful for during this time of yearning for comfort that doesn’t come from food. 

Whiskey-Apple Crumble Pie

INGREDIENTS

Dough for a 9-inch single-crust pie

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

3/4 cup packed light brown sugar

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1 teaspoon cinnamon

Salt

9 tablespoons cold unsalted butter

1/2 cup chopped pecans

2 pounds tart apples, peeled, cored, and sliced 1/4 inch thick

pinch ground cloves

pinch ground nutmeg

2 tablespoons whiskey or bourbon

INSTRUCTIONS

1) Preheat oven to 400 degrees.,  Roll out dough and line pie pan,  Prick dough with a fork, the line with foil.  Fill the bottom with pastry weights or dry beans,  Bake 8 minutes, remove foil and weights, and bake 8 to 10 minutes longer, until the pastry looks dry and is barely starting to color.  Remove from oven and let cool. 

2)  Place flour, 1/4 cup brown sugar, granulated sugar, 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a food processor and process briefly to blend.  (You can also blend using a fork or pastry cutter to combine)  Dice 6 tablespoons butter and add, along with pecans; pulse until mixture resembles breadcrumbs,  Set aside,  Increase oven temperature to 40 degrees.

3)  Melt remaining butter in a large skillet.  Add apple slices and saute' over medium heat for about 5 minutes until a bit softened around edg3esm with some just starting to brown.  Remove from heat,  Mix remaining brown sugar and cinnamon with a pinch of salt, the cloves, and nutmeg,  Pour over apples and fold together.  Fold in whiskey.

4)  Pour contents of the pan into crust and top with crumbs,  Place Pie pan on a baking sheet, bake 10 minutes, love heat to 350 degrees, and bake about 40 minutes longer, until topping browns and juices bubble,  Allow pie to cool completely before cutting,  Pie can be made a day in advance and warmed for serving,