Apple Pie and Peanut Butter Cookies

My mom is a talented baker, so during her last visit, I figured it was a perfect time to learn something new, while also using the 1/2 peck of apples Whitney and I had picked up at Johnson's Orchards and making one of my favorite desserts - apple pie! The first step is to make the crust. This recipe is copied from Mom's ancient recipe card:

Plain Pastry
Single-crust pie:           Double-crust pie:
1 1/2 cups sifted flour     2 cups sifted flour
1/2 tsp. salt               1 tsp. salt
1/2 cup (3 oz.) shortening  2/3 cup shortening
4 to 5 tbs. water           5 to 7 tbs. water


Sift together flour and salt; cut in shortening until size of small peas. Sprinkle 1 tbs water over part of mixture. Gently toss with fork; push to side of bowl. Repeat until all is moistened. Form into ball. Flatten ball on lightly floured board. Roll from center to edge until dough is 1/8" thick.

The water part can be a bit challenging - too much and the dough is completely ruined, so add carefully and stop as soon as the dough holds together in a ball. When rolling the dough, always be sure there is enough flour under the dough to prevent it from sticking. Cracks are likely to appear - just repair them as they form. When ready to transfer to the pie dish, it can help to flour the dough, fold it in half, and transfer it quickly. The edge can be doubled over and decoratively crimped.

Making a pie crust with my new pastry cutter, rolling pin, and pie dish!

Mom brought along an apple pie recipe from a cookbook, but unfortunately I don't know which cookbook that is. Anyway, here's the recipe:

1/2 cup sugar
3 tablespoons flour
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Dash of salt
5 cups thinly sliced apples (about 5 medium)

Mix sugar, flour, nutmeg, cinnamon, and salt, and set aside. Peel, core, and slice apples (this can be a lengthy process, so you can use lemon juice to keep the slices from browning). Stir into dry ingredients and turn into pastry-lined pie plate. Cover with topping. Cover crust edge with 3-inch strip of aluminum foil; remove foil during last 15 minutes of baking. Bake until crust is brown and juice begins to bubble through slits in crust, 40 to 50 minutes.

For this pie, I decided to top it with the crisp topping I love. This can be prepared simultaneously with the apples.

Making the filling and adding the topping...

Ready for the oven!

Don't forget to install your new car stereo while the pie bakes.

All done!

Once the pie was done, Mom made some yummy peanut butter cookies with the leftover Crisco, using the recipe from the Crisco package. I liked them enough that I figured I would link to the recipe.