Pie #13! A baker's dozen! I'm a quarter of the way through my pie odyssey and I think my Pie IQ has increased, nowhere near genius level but maybe by year's end I'll be a regular "Pienstein". I've tried an all shortening pastry crust, a half shortening/half butter pastry crust and an oil crust, all with respectable results. Last week's shoofly pie crust made with butter, however, was a resounding success! Using that same recipe, this week I attempt the double crust.
Continuing on with my retro pie theme, I am curious about the mock apple pie recipe featuring Ritz crackers. I grew up with Ritz crackers which were a staple in my house. The crackers were perched on top of the refrigerator next to the Carnation Breakfast Squares and the Freakies Cereal. My dad or mom must have been swayed by Andy Griffith as he proclaimed in the Ritz commercial, "Everything tastes better when it sits on a Ritz. Mmmm, good cracker!"
The mock apple pie movement was actually born in the mid 1800's when pioneer woman, appalled at the high cost of apples, invented a recipe using soda crackers. Their mock pies were a hit with their families who craved the real McCoy. Ritz crackers later appeared on the American market in the 1930's with the mock apple pie recipe printed on the box.
As I began to prepare this recipe, I was positive that the results would be disastrous. My bottom pie crust seemed too thin and my top crust too thick. I accidentally put too much lemon juice in the syrup and it looked terribly watery as I poured it over the cracker crumbs. Within the first moments of baking the syrup oozed out of the upper crust, dripped onto the oven floor, proceeded to burn to a black crisp, and made my whole house reek of burnt offerings. Needless to say, I suggest placing a shallow pan under the pie to catch spills.
I watched with trepidation as the pie baked. Would my pie make a mockery of the tried and true mock apple pie recipe? Surprising, my crust didn't shrink, warp, or dissolve into a soggy mess. The initial leak sealed itself. As I pulled the pie out of the oven, I was thankful that it looked okay. But looks can be deceiving. Would it taste okay? After an hour of cooling, my knife slide smoothly into the crust and I extracted a picture perfect slice of pie. It looked like apple pie, smelled like apple pie, and (drum roll please) tasted amazingly like apple pie! I even convinced my husband it was apple pie. I suggest serving it on April 1st. You're sure to fool everyone!
Best of all, I think my Pie IQ (let's call it my Pie-Q) just bumped up a few notches with the success of this pie. I'm beginning to believe this pie quest might just be as easy as pie.
Crust:
2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/4-inch pieces
1/2 cup cold water
Combine the flour, sugar, and salt in a large bowl. Add the butter, tossing it with the flour. With electric mixer on low speed, blend butter into the flour until you have what looks like coarse, damp meal. Turning the mixer on and off, add half of the water. Mix briefly on low speed. Add the remaining water, mixing slowly until the dough starts to form large clumps. Do not overmix.
Test the dough by squeezing some of it between your fingers. Add water, a teaspoon at a time, if the dough seems dry and not packable. Using your hands, pack the dough into 2 balls. Make one ball slightly larger than the other; this will become your bottom crust. Knead each ball once or twice, then flatten into 3/4-inch thick disks and wrap in plastic. Refrigerate for at least an hour before rolling.
On a sheet of lightly floured waxed paper, roll the larger portion of dough into a 12-inch circle with a floured rolling pin. Invert over a 9-inch pie pan, center, and peel off paper. Tuck the pastry into the pan, and let the overhang drape over the edge. Put the cracker crumbs from the filling recipe in the prepared crust. Refrigerate for 15 minutes.
Filling:
36 Ritz crackers, coarsely broken (about 2 cups)
1 3/4 cups water
2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons cream of tartar
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
Grated zest of one lemon
2 tablespoons cold butter, cut into small pieces
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Bring the water, sugar, and cream of tartar to a boil in a medium-size saucepan over high heat. Reduce the heat and simmer for 15 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the lemon juice and zest. Cool to lukewarm. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
Slowly pour the cooled syrup over the cracker crumbs in the chilled pie shell. Dot the filling with the butter and sprinkle with the cinnamon. On a separate sheet of floured waxed paper, roll the other half of the pastry into a 10-inch circle. Lightly moisten the rim of the pie shell. Invert the top pastry over the filling, center, and peel off paper. Press the top and bottom pastries together along the dampened edge. Using the back of a butter knife, trim the pastry flush with the edge of the pan. If desired roll out this excess pastry dough and cut decorative shapes with canape cutters. Moisten pie edge with water and place cut outs on pie rim for decoration.
Place the pie on the center oven rack and bake until the top crust is crisp and dark golden brown, 30-35 minutes. Remove from oven and cool pie on a wire rack. Serve slightly warm with vanilla ice cream, if desired.
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