Crust
2 cups King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1/3 cup sugar
2 sticks (1 cup) butter, frozen
1/2 cup to 3/4 cup cold water
Filling
6 large Granny Smith apples, peeled, core and sliced (about
8 cups)
3/4 cup sugar, divided
1/2 cup chopped crystallized ginger
1 cup sour cream
1/4 cup King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
The Crust: You may make this crust by hand,
but it's much easier with the help of a food processor, and
we'll write the recipe using that tool. In the bowl of a
food processor equipped with the steel blade, combine the
flour, salt, ginger and sugar. Using a coarse shredding
disk, shred the frozen butter into the flour mixture (if
you're doing this by hand, shred butter on the coarse side
of a hand grater). Switching back to the steel blade,
combine the shredded butter and flour. With the machine
going, drizzle in water, till the dough just starts to hold
together. Remove the dough from the processor, shape it into
a flattened ball, and let it rest in the refrigerator while
you prepare the filling.
The Filling: Place the apples and 1/2 cup of
the sugar in a saucepan and cook, covered, over low heat,
just till the apples release some juice. Increase the heat
to medium, and simmer the apples, covered, for 20 minutes.
Remove the cover, increase the heat to medium-high, and boil
till most of the juice has evaporated. Remove the apples
from the heat, and allow them to cool a bit, then combine
them with the remaining filling ingredients.
Remove the pie crust from the refrigerator, and divide it in
half. Working with one half at a time, roll out the crust to
fit a 9 to 10-inch pie pan. Spoon the filling into the
crust. Roll out the remaining crust, and use it to top the
pie; if you like, form a lattice or other design crust, or
decorate it with pastry scraps cut in leaf shapes. Seal the
crust.
Bake the pie on the bottom rack of a preheated 425°F oven
for 15 minutes. Reduce the heat to 350°F, and bake for an
additional 50 minutes, transferring the pie to a
middle-to-upper oven rack for the final 10 minutes of
baking. Remove the pie from the oven, glaze it with ginger
syrup, if desired, and allow it to cool for 20 minutes to
half an hour before serving. Yield: 8 to 10 servings
