Welcome to Aunt Merry’s Kitchen! Today begins Ms. Maddie’s very first cooking lesson with me and we’re making Dutch Apple Pies. Mmm…

Homemade piecrust might not be the easiest first cooking lesson, but I guarantee it will be tasty.

First we gathered together our ingredients for my great grandmother’s piecrust recipe. Of course, it wouldn’t be my piecrust if I didn’t tweak it just a little bit, but, hey…that is the measure of a good cook.

Gather together your flour, sugar, salt, shortening, an egg and vinegar. (I used apple cider vinegar but I figured, hey…I’m making apple pie so it should be just fine!)

This makes enough dough for two double crusts.

In a large bowl add four cups of flour, 1 Tbs. sugar and 2 tsp salt. Mix well. (Maddie is doing such a good job of stirring!)

Add 1 ½ cup shortening ( I used butter flavored) and use a pastry cutter to cut in shortening until mix is the size of peas.

Beat egg, vinegar and water. Sprinkle over flour mixture and mix well with fork.

Roll out on a floured surface and prepare pie pans for pie filling.

Peel and slice six apples (I used a variety of Jonagold, Granny Smith, Fuji and Gala…but I also doubled the recipe so it was a little easier to use four different kinds. Using different kinds of apples intensifies the flavor). Man I miss my apple/peeler/corer/slicer! Can't wait to get my kitchen stuff from Wisconsin!

In a separate bowl mix ½ cup sugar, ½ cup brown sugar, firmly packed, 2 tsp flour, ½ tsp nutmeg and 1 tsp cinnamon. Mix well.

Sprinkle a third of the sugar mixture on bottom of piecrust. Sprinkle the half of the remainder over apples and stir to coat. Pile apples into piecrust and then sprinkle remainder of sugar mixture on top of apples. Dot with butter.

Bake pie for 10 minutes at 425 degrees.

In another bowl mix ¼ cup flour, 1 tsp ground cinnamon, ½ cup packed brown sugar, and ¾ rolled oats. Mix well. Cut in ½ cup butter until ingredients are well mixed.

Take pie out of oven and reduce heat to 375 degrees. Sprinkle topping onto pie then return to oven and bake for an addition 30-35 minutes until topping is nicely browned and pie juices are bubbly.

Let cool.

Piecrust recipe:

4 cups flour
1 Tbs sugar
2 tsp salt
1 ½ cup shortening
1 egg
1 Tbs vinegar
½ cup water

Mix flour, sugar and salt in a bowl. Cut in shortening till crumbs are the size of peas. Beat egg, vinegar and water and sprinkle over flour mixture. Mix well with a fork.

Makes 2 double crusts.

Apple Pie recipe:

6 large apples (variety)
½ cup sugar
½ cup brown sugar, firmly packed
2 tsp flour
½ tsp nutmeg
1 tsp cinnamon
2 Tbs butter

Prepare piecrust. Preheat oven to 425. Peel, core and thinly slice apples. Transfer to a bowl. Combine sugars, flour and spices. Sprinkle 1/3 of sugar mixture on bottom pie crust. Toss apples with ½ of remainder of sugar mix. Fill pie pan with apples and sprinkle remaining sugar mix on top of apples. Dot with butter.

Bake for 10 minutes at 425

¼ cup flour
1 tsp ground cinnamon
½ cup packed brown sugar
¾ cup rolled oats.

Meanwhile, mix flour, cinnamon, brown sugar and rolled oats. Mix well. Cut in butter until mixed well. Sprinkle mixture over pie.

Reduce heat to 375 and bake an addition 30-35 minutes.