Favorite Foods Friday

For Matt's birthday I gave him a list of desserts to choose from. He chose a caramel apple pie that I haven't made in two years or so. It turned out really well - and that's saying something, because I'm not a pie expert in the least. I don't have a clue how to trim and flute the edges all pretty...mine was pretty much a roll and mash technique. It's very technical. This may have been my third homemade pie crust ever, the previous two being the last time I made this pie. I thought the crust was going to fall apart on me as I was transfering it to the pie plate. Perhaps I need some lessons from Matt's dad - he's a real pie expert.

I'm not going to give you the crust recipe because it seems that everyone has their own favorite. If you really want it, I guess you are going to have to ask me pretty please for it.

Caramel Apple Pie - from Lynn's Kitchen Adventures

1 pie crust for a deep dish 9 inch pie (homemade or store bought)

Crumb Topping:
       1 cup packed brown sugar
       1/2 cup all-purpose flour
       1/2 cup quick cooking rolled oats
       1/2 cup butter

Stir together the brown sugar, flour, and oats. Cut in the butter until the topping resembles coarse crumbs. Set aside.

Apples:
       1/2 cup sugar
       3 tbsp all-purpose flour
       1 tsp. ground cinnamon
       1/8 tsp. salt
       6 cups thinly sliced peeled apples (baking type apples work best)

1/3 cup caramel topping

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a large mixing bowl, stir together the sugar, flour, cinnamon, and salt. Add apples slices and gently toss until coated. Transfer the apple mixture into the pie shell. Sprinkle the crumb topping over the apples. Cover the edges of the pie with foil. Bake at 375 degrees for 25 minutes. Then remove the foil and bake an additional 25-30 minutes. Remove from oven and drizzle with the caramel topping.