Lessons from making an apple pie

This is an entry of an amateur baker’s afterthoughts for attempting Tasty’s made-from-scratch apple pie recipe.

Over the weekend, I was feeling adventurous and decided to try my hands on the famed recipe. This idea totally came from Queer Eye’s Antoni’s bake for Yoko which got me craving for one right after. For the curious, I’m what you call an aspiring baker who’s pretty good friends with Betty Crocker. There’s always epiphanies after every bake that I’ve conquered and here, I’d like to share some life lessons from my first attempt at an apple pie. But before I get on with that, here’s how you can try it out for yourselves too!

Tasty’s Apple Pie Recipe

Ingredients

Dough

• 2 ½ cups flour(315 g)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 ½ stick of cold butter, cubed
• 8 tablespoons chilled water, add as required

Filling

• 2 ½ Granny Smith apples (1kg), cored, sliced and peeled (Any apples are fine too)
• ¾ cup sugar(150 g)
• 2 tablespoons flour
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
• ½ lemon juice
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1 tablespoon sugar

Topping (optional)

• A scoop of vanilla ice cream

1. In a medium-sized bowl, add in flour and salt and mix well.
2. Add butter cubes into flour using a fork. It’s alright if the mixture has small lumps present.
3. Gradually add in chilled water as required, and continue to mix until the dough comes together. The texture of your dough shouldn’t be too sticky.
4. Work the finished dough into a ball and cover with a cling wrap, refrigerate for an hour.

Getting the apple filling ready

1. Gather your apples – peel, core and slice them.
2. In a bowl, add in the ready sliced apples, sugar, flour, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and lemon juice.
3. Mix the ingredients together and ensure all apples are well coated. Refrigerate for 20 minutes.
   
4. Preheat your oven to 200°C.

Preparing your pie base

1. Have a clean floured surface to work on and divide your chilled pie dough into half – this will be the pie base. Keep the other half for the pie cover.
2. Roll out your dough using a rolling pin and spread it nicely onto your baking dish/tray. Ensure all edges are covered and trim off the extras if necessary.
   

Time to make your apple pie

1. Pour in your apple filling unto the pie base and pat down.
   
2. Roll the other half of the dough on top. (As for me, I went criss-crossed.)
3. If you’re making the full pie cover, trim off any extra dough from the edges. Make sure to pinch the edges to create a crimp so the pie seals well together.
4. Brush the pie with the beaten egg and sprinkle with the sugar.
5. Cut four slits in the top of the pie to create a vent.

Bake it!

1. Bake your pie for 50-60 minutes or until the crust is golden brown and no visible undercooked pastry remains.
2. Once done, allow it to cool completely before slicing.
3. Top off with a scoop of ice cream and serve.

The big reveal

Finally, how did mine turn out?

In short, baking is science.

My apple pie turned out charred in the middle which, well, isn’t perfect but I’m no defeated soul. I’ve concluded that the art of baking boils down to exactness and the importance of following through. That being said, I’ve to admit I didn’t follow the recipe to a T and kind of winged it as I went along. What do you mean wing it, Eunice? Well, I eyeballed the amount of salt, butter measurement and skipped perhaps a step or two (like forgetting to egg wash).

If it looks easy? It definite took experience.

It’s one thing to be inspired by a YouTube recipe video, and another when doing the actual work. From choosing the right ingredients, setting up your mise-en-place, to grasping the right temperature and timing, it all boils down to experience when trying to achieve that perfect taste. And, of course, probably hours of trial and errors, practice and more practice. For someone who bakes once in a blue moon, winging just don’t cut it.

Dare to fail forward

I’m a firm believer in trying out new things because if you don’t, you’ll never know. Although my first attempt at an apple pie wasn’t much of a success (my tasters said too much salt, too little apple fillings), I’m still glad I did it! With the feedback, I now know where I’ve gone wrong and am ready to bake an improved version 2.0. Every negative outcome is an opportunity to learn and that’s the same with life, isn’t it? It has always been a personal motto of mine to always try, rather than sitting in a pool of ‘What Ifs’.

While I may not be a master in apple pies (yet), I’ll continue on my baking adventures and continue learning as I go! If you’re into baking too, here’s 18 recipes to inspire you on a pie-making journey or… a Pepperkaker Norwegian Gingerbread Recipe from Rigmor!