Homemade Apple Pie Recipes
Photo by Warren
The All-American Apple Pie
Around the world, apple pie is known to be an American favorite.
The best test tasted American classic homemade apple pie recipes are here.
A good apple pie starts with excellent apples. So lets talk about apples. Jump to the end of this page for delicious apple pie recipes.
Apple – America´s number one fruit
Apples are America´s number one fruit. They are delicious, versatile and easy to transport long distances. Apples are nutritious with few calories and are about 90 percent water.
Apples give off a tantalizing fragrance that delightful to our nose. Most of the perfume cells are concentrated in the skin of the apple. As apples ripen, the cells give off a stronger aroma.
Apples are cultivated throughout the United States. The main apple growers are Washington, New York, Michigan, Pennsylvania, California and Virginia. These six states produce most of the country´s apples totaling 254,217 million bushels in 2000. The average American eats 48 pounds of apples a year.
Grades of Apples – What are they?
You will notice when you buy apples at your local market that they are graded by variety, weight and size. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) sets the grade standard.
High grade apples
are bad apples?
Do not buy apples
based on their U.S. grade
for pies.
- U.S. Extra Fancy – Very nice color and size
- U.S. Fancy – Good color and size
- U.S. No. 1 – Minimum standard of quality
- Grade 3 or “Utility” – windfall or bruised apples
Something is wrong with this picture. The U.S. grades for apple mention nothing of taste.
Taste is the most important thing for pie. All too often U.S. Extra Fancy apples are tasteless and mealy. You must choose your apples carefully.
Wait! Do you know the best apple variety to use in pies? How can you tell if your apples are ripe and sweet?
The best apples to use in pies are:
Let´s rephrase
that the best
common apples
for pies are:
Granny Smith and
Golden Delicious.
Braeburn
Cameo
Courtland
Golden Delicious
Golden Delicious are
sweet and soft apples.
Granny Smith
Granny Smiths are
tart and firm apples.
Ida Red
Jonathan
McIntosh
Newton Pippin
Pink Lady®
Rome Beauty
Choosing apples for pie:
Look for apples that are free of skin breaks and bruises and firm to the touch.
For pies,
we want an apple
that will hold its shape
and retain their
sweet flavor when baked.
Overripe apples are soft and the texture will be mealy or mushy. Yuck! for pies. The color will be a dull yellow or a dull green based on the variety.
A very dark green apple is an indication that it is not fully matured. These apples are hard and have a sour bitter taste.
Sweet apples have a good aroma. If the apple lacks that sweet smell it more than often means no taste either.
Storing apples:
Apples ripen 10 times fast in dry and warm conditions than in cold storage. Cold storage reduces the apple???s intake of oxygen which slows down the maturation process. This method can extend the shelf life of the apple by several months.
Refrigerate apples as soon as possible to slow ripening. Properly refrigerated apples will maintain its flavor and keep anywhere from 4-6 weeks.
Store apples away from strong smelling foods in the refrigerator or on the counter to prevent them from absorbing unpleasant odors.
Wash apples in cool water before peeling and coring for your pies.
Picking your own apples:
Apples grown on the inside of the tree are not as colorful and sweet as apples grown on the outside of the tree where they receive plenty of sunshine.
Substituting apples in pies:
Some apple pie recipes call for sweet apples, while some call for tart apples.
As apples ripen, they go from tart and hard to sweet and soft. So by remembering this you can choose another variety of apples that will be compatible.
For example, say you need to use Granny Smith apples for a pie but none can be found, or maybe they are expensive to buy. You can substitute with Golden Delicious by choosing one that is more green than yellow and firm by touch. The Golden Delicious will not be fully ripe but will have the characteristics of Granny Smiths by being a little tart and firm.
2 1/2 Pounds of apples for a 10 inch pie is:
- about five large apples or
- seven to eight medium apples or
- nine to ten small apples.
Freeze apples for later use:
Use firm and crisp apples for freezing.
Dissolve vitamin C (ascorbic acid)
in cold water to prevent browning
of sliced apples.
To freeze unsweetened, peeled, cut and cored apples soak them in ascorbic acid or citrus acid to prevent browning. Place slices on a cookie sheet until frozen solid. When frozen, remove and place in plastic freezer bags or freezer containers and freeze. This is good for most pies.
To freeze sweetened, peeled, cut and cored apples soak them in ascorbic acid or citrus acid to prevent browning. Add 1/2 cup of sugar to slices and mix until thoroughly coated. Pack your apple pie filling in freezer containers or bags, seal, and freeze. This is a smart idea to store your apple pie filling and to reduce the time it takes bake that next apple pie.
Homemade Apple Pie Recipes
Easy Apple Pie Recipe
Apple pie is the American tradtion. We have the best of the best pies for to try.
Apple Pear Pie Recipes
This is the marriage of two wonderful fruits, apples and pears.
Bacon Apple Pie Recipe
Definitely for people who like the salty-sweet flavor combination.
Raspberry Apple Pie Recipe
A double crust raspberry apple pie with a touch of love.
Vintage Homemade Apple Pie Recipes
Homemade Apple Pie Recipe of 1845
Made with sweet apples spiced with molasses.
Cream Apple Pie Recipe of a black slave in 1881
A delightful change from peaches and cream.
Green Apple Pie Recipe of 1845
Made with stew apples and lemon zest.
Dried Apple Pie Recipe of 1831
Made with dried apples and moisten with hot water.
Buttered Apple Pie Recipe of 1831
Buttered apple pie with rose water.
Apple Pie Recipe of 1831
Filling has fresh lemon zest. A basic old fashioned pie recipe.
Custard Apple Pie Recipe of 1893
Recipe from the World’s Columbian Exposition Fair held in Chicago of 1893.
Spiced Custard Apple Pie Recipe of 1877
Recipe from a popular cookbook, Buckeye Cookery and Practical Housekeeping, of 1877.
Apple Pie Recipe of 1864
A culinary contribution of 1864 in the fame of Philadelphia.
Spiced Apple Tart / Pie Recipe of 1846
Recipe from influential ladies of 19th century American culinary history.
Apple Pie Recipe of 1808
This recipe is a pirated editon of Amelia Simmons’ American Cookery (1798).
