Open Faced Brown Butter Spiced Apple Pie

Open Faced Brown Butter Spiced Apple Pie

By Irvin Lin
This rustic pie is like a tart on steroids. Deep flavor and large apple slices make a dramatic presentation for any dinner party. The spices and brown butter really change the flavor profile of the pie and make it feel holiday but in truth you can serve it anytime you want. I certainly did, in mid January when I made it for my family. One thing to note, make sure to read the recipe thoroughly and take into account the time it will take for each step (the crust and apples need to baked separately before assembled and baked again).

Adapted from Bon Appetit

Ingredients
Crust
1 cup (140 g) all purpose flour
3/4 cup (100 g) white whole wheat flour
1/4 cup (50 g) white granulated sugar
1/4 teaspoon sea or kosher salt
3/4 cup (170 g or 1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, cold
2 large egg yolks
1/4 cup dark rum

Apples
5 1/2 lbs (2 1/2 kg) apples, about 15 medium ones
5 tablespoons (70 g) unsalted butter, melted
2 tablespoon lemon juice
1/4 cup (50 g) white granulated sugar
2 tablespoons (30 g) dark brown sugar
2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Filling
1/2 cup (113 g or 1 stick) unsalted butter
6 whole cloves
2 cinnamon sticks
3 cardamom pods
1 star anise
1 large vanilla bean (or 2 teaspoon vanilla extract)
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
zest of 1 blood orange
2 large eggs
1/2 cup (100 g) white granulated sugar
1/4 cup all purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt

Directions
1. Make the crust by first placing the flours, sugar and salt in a large mixing bowl. Cut the salted butter into 1/2 inch cubes and sprinkle over the dry ingredients. Toss the butter cubes with your hands to coat, then squeeze the cubes of butter until they flatten out. Continue doing this until the rest of the butter has been reduced to smaller bits and flakes, squeezing and tossing the dry ingredients until the dough starts to resemble crumbly cornmeal with bits of butter still in flattened chunks. Add the egg yolks and sprinkle the rum over the ingredients and, using a large spatula, fold the wet ingredients into the dry. As the dry ingredients become more moist, work the ingredients together with your hands, until it comes together and forms a dough. If the dough seems too sticky, sprinkle a little flour into it. If the dough seems to dry, add a little more rum. The dough should seem soft however. Once formed, gather into a ball, flatten into a disk and wrap with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

2. Once the dough has chilled, roll it out into a 14 inch round circle but don’t worry if isn’t perfect. This dough is really forgiving. Fit the dough into a 10 inch springform pan with a removable bottom. Press the dough into the bottom and up the sides of the pan. If you can’t get all the dough into the pan at once, it’s ok to put it in pieces and patch the dough together (especially the sides – it’s pretty much impossible to not have to patch together the sides). Press the dough until it is all the way up to the top of the pan, all the way around and use any leftover dough to reinforce the seams at the edge of the bottom of the pan. Put the lined pan in the freezer for 15 minutes and preheat the oven to 400˚F. Once the oven is preheated, pull the pan out and bake in the oven for 10 minutes, until very lightly golden brown around the edges. The side dough should also contract and shorten, so don’t worry if that happens.

3. While the dough is chilling, peel, core and cut the apples into quarters. Place in a large bowl and sprinkle the lemon juice and melted butter over the apples and toss. Spray two large rimmed baking sheets with neutral flavored cooking oil and once the crust has baked, divide the apples and place them in a single layer on each pan. Sprinkle each with half the sugars and half the cinnamon each. Roast in the oven for 40 minutes, turning the apples and rotating the pans halfway through, until the apples are golden brown and fork tender. Let cool.

4. Once the apples and crust are cooked and cooled, arrange the apples in the crust, starting with a circle around the edge and working into the center, in concentric circles. Then make the filling by placing butter in a pan on the stove, along with the cloves, cinnamon sticks, cardamom pods, star anise. Split the vanilla bean lengthwise and scrape the seeds into the pan and add the vanilla pod as well. Add the nutmeg and orange zest. Turn the heat to medium and cook the butter, stirring frequently until it melts and starts to brown and turn fragrant. If you start to see the butter brown, turn the heat off and let the residual heat bring the butter to the right point. You don’t want to burn the butterfat, you just want it golden brown. Once this is done, discard the cloves, cinnamon, cardamom, star anise and vanilla pod.

5. Preheat the oven to 350˚F if it isn’t on, or turn the temperature down to it, and whisk the remaining filling ingredients together in a medium mixing bowl. Add the butter, scraping out the brown bits at the bottom into the bowl. Pour the filling over the apples into the crust. Bake in the oven for 60 to 70 minutes or until the apples are a rich golden brown and the egg mixture has set and looks puffy and slightly golden. Let cool on a rack for 30 minutes before releasing the pan side and serving on a platter.

Makes one 10inch pie. Serves 12.