Cherry & Apple Venn PIEagram

This recipe has been simmering on the back-burner for a while now and it’s finally ready to claim its place in the spotlight.  I made it the week I found out I couldn’t eat gluten or dairy and I knew that I wanted my next few posts to be for food that I could eat and drool over without feeling guilty.  Now, my masterpiece is ready (I also feel like this would be an appropriate time for an evil laugh, too) for general consumption.  Welcome to my deliciously geeky creation: a venn PIEagram.

There is a little bit of a backstory with this culinary creation and I need to give credit where credit is due.  A few months back (sometime during March Madness) my boss sent me a picture of a of a venn pieagram and I never turn down a challenge.  Ever.  Seriously.  Ask all my old co-workers at the Bivouac and Michigan Radio.  Ask my friends.  Ask anyone who I beat and is not crying in a corner with their inferior biscotti (not that I’m implying anything *wink wink* Lester).  Cut to the end of March Madness and I made this pie as a celebration for both the championship game and the fact that men of the world suddenly had a lot more free time on their hands.

Evidenced by the photos, I chose to make an apple pie with a crumble top and a tart cherry pie with a lattice crust.  I wanted to have two pies that would both contrast well and taste good together when they inadvertently mixed in the baking process.  Anyways, aren’t apple and cherry pie the definition of American?

If you want to make this (and if you want to impress people, I recommend you do), you’re going to have to use a few special and cheap supplies.  In hindsight, I should have taken pictures to show you how I jiffy rigged two disposable cake pans together but hopefully this (incredibly poorly drawn) picture will help:

I know, you wonder why I didn’t go to art school.  I ask myself this too.  Just call me the queen of MS Paint instead.  So as you can obviously see, get yourself two disposable cake pans, cut out a section from one of them and then tape them together.  Tada!




Crust for Pies:

Ingredients:

• 3 ¾ cups unbleached all purpose flour
• 3 tablespoon sugar
• 1 ¼  teaspoon salt
• 1 ½ cup chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
• 7 ½ tablespoons (or more) ice water

Directions:

1. Whisk flour, sugar, and salt in a food processor.
2. Add butter and pulse in one second increments until small pea-size clumps form. Add 5 tablespoons ice water; pulse lightly until dough holds together when small pieces are pressed between fingertips, adding more water by teaspoonfuls if dough is dry.
3. Gather dough together; divide into 2 pieces. Form each piece into ball, then flatten into disk and wrap in plastic. Refrigerate at least 30 minutes. Do ahead Can be made 2 days ahead. Keep chilled. Let dough soften slightly before rolling out.
4. To assemble the venn pieagram, separate the dough into two balls with one being significantly larger as it will be for the base of the pie.  Roll out in a larger oblong shape and press into the base of your pie pans.

Apple Crumb Pie 

Adapted from Bon Appétit September 2002

Filling Ingredients:

• 3 3/4 pounds Granny Smith apples (about 10 medium), peeled, cored, thickly sliced
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 2 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 2 tablespoons apple cider
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch1/4 cup applesauce

 Topping Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup all purpose flour
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup (packed) golden brown sugar
• 3/4 cup chopped walnuts
• 6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

Directions:

For filling:

1. Toss apples and lemon juice in medium bowl. 
2. Melt butter in heavy large skillet over medium-high heat. Stir in sugar and cinnamon. Add apples; sauté until coated with cinnamon butter and crisp-tender, about 5 minutes. 
3. Whisk cider and cornstarch in small bowl. Add to apples. Bring to boil, stirring constantly. 
4. Transfer apple mixture to large bowl. Mix in applesauce. Cool completely. (Filling can be made one day ahead)

For topping:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Using fingertips, rub all ingredients in bowl until moist clumps form.

 Sour Cherry Pie with Lattice Crust

Adapted from Bon Appétit September 2002

Ingredients

• 1 cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar
• 3 tablespoons cornstarch
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 5 cups whole pitted sour cherries or dark sweet cherries (about 2 pounds whole unpitted cherries)
• 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice (if using sour cherries) or 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (if using dark sweet cherries)
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
• 1 tablespoon (about) milk

Directions:

1. Position rack in lower third of oven and preheat to 425°F. Whisk 1 cup sugar, cornstarch, and salt in medium bowl to blend. Stir in cherries, lemon juice, and vanilla; set aside.
2. Transfer filling to dough-lined dish, mounding slightly in center. Dot with butter. Arrange dough strips atop filling, forming lattice; trim dough strip overhang to 1/2 inch. Fold bottom crust up over ends of strips and crimp edges to seal. Brush lattice crust (not edges) with milk. Sprinkle lattice with remaining 1 tablespoon sugar.

Baking:

1. Place pie on rimmed baking sheet and bake 15 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 375°F. Bake pie until filling is bubbling and crust is golden brown, covering edges with foil collar if browning too quickly, about 1 hour longer.  Impress everyone you know!