As American as apple pie

Now that you picked all those apples, what are you going to do with them?

One of the most popular staples this time of year is apple pie.

I've been making apple pie forever, using a recipe from a 1970s version of the Betty Crocker Cookbook. I've never found a better recipe, so I'm including it here, with permission.

I've also included my own recipe for apple crisp, which ran in a previous column. It's worth a repeat. Enjoy!

Apple Pie

For a standard 10-inch pie crust:

2 2/3 cups flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup shortening

7-8 tablespoons ice water (I put a glass of very cold water in the freezer, just as I assemble my ingredients and leave it in there until I am ready for it. If the top starts to freeze, just tap it with a spoon to break the ice.)

In a medium-sized bowl, combine flour, salt and shortening. Blend with two knives, using a criss-crossing pattern, or with a pastry blender, until it forms crumbs the size of small peas. Drizzle water, a tablespoon at a time, until you've added about five tablespoons. Stir with a fork to combine.

Add more water as needed, stirring with the fork, until the dough forms a ball (see tip below). Separate into two balls.

Place a sheet of waxed paper on your counter and place one ball of dough in the center. Cover with a second piece of waxed paper and using a rolling pin, roll dough out to about a 12-inch circle. Remove the top piece of waxed paper and carefully flip the dough into a 10-inch pie pan. Set aside.

Tip: Don't use your hands at all other than to gather the dough into a ball. If you handle the dough too much, you'll end up with a tough crust.

For the filling:

1/3 to 1/2 cup sugar

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/8 teaspoon salt

8 cups thinly sliced peeled apples (About 8 medium. I use 6 Macintosh and 2 Granny Smiths for a mix of sweet and tart.)

2 tablespoons butter or margarine

Heat oven to 425 F. Mix sugar, flour, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt in large bowl. Stir in apples and coat well. Turn into pastry-lined pie plate. Dot with butter. Trim overhanging edge of pastry, about 1/2 inch from rim of plate.

Roll the second round of pastry. Flip over filling. Remove waxed paper and trim overhanging edge 1 inch from rim of plate. Fold and roll top edge under lower edge, pressing on rim to seal; flute as desired. Cover edge with 3-inch strip of aluminum foil to prevent excessive browning. Remove foil during last 15 minutes of baking.

4. Bake 40 to 50 minutes or until crust is brown and juice begins to bubble through slits in crust. Serve warm if desired.

Apple Crisp with a Twist

4 cups apples, pared and sliced

2 tablespoons pure maple syrup

1/3 cup white sugar

2/3 cups brown sugar

1/2 cup quick oats

1/4 cup flour

1/2 cup finely chopped walnuts

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

1/4 cup butter

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Spray an 8-inch by 8-inch baking pan with cooking spray. Place apples in the pan and drizzle with maple syrup.

With your clean fingers, combine remaining ingredients into crumbs, then pour over top apples, spreading the crumbs to cover.

Bake for 45-50 minutes in a preheated 350 degree oven.

Serve warm with ice cream.