Tarte aux pommes

One of my favorite parts of stage managing is baking for my cast. This may not sound like a typical managerial duty, but, in fact, it's a wonderful one. I often try to make something that relates to the play in some way or other, though other times I just settle for brownies--my old stand-by.

Not too long ago, I was stage managing for a cast that was suffering from low morale. We agreed to have a line-through, without the director present, late on a Sunday night when everyone was done with their other commitments. For the occasion, I baked a Covered Apple Pie, deciding that real fruit was better for my cast than massive amounts of chocolate. Because it was a busy week, I didn't have time to make my own dough (another thing I should start doing in the New Year) so instead I used a frozen Trader Joe's crust which was truly tasty--the best prepared crust I've had yet. It was buttery and had a real flavor, not at all like the parchmnet paper in which it came wrapped. The only problem is that it does break easily, so it needs to be handled with care and a little extra butter.

Tarte aux pommes

2 9-inch Pie Crusts
6 Granny Smith Apples, peeled, cored and thinly sliced
1/4 cup Brown Sugar
2 tablespoons All-Purpose Flour
1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
1 teaspoon Cinnamon
2 tablespoons Butter
Milk

Pre-heat oven to 425 F. Place 1 Pie Crust in a 9-inch pie pan. In a large bowl, toss together Apples, Sugar, Flour, Vanilla and Cinnamon until well-combined. Transfer to pie pan. Stud with Butter.

Cover filling with second Pie Crust. Pinch pastry edges together to seal, using the edge of a fork. Btush visible crust with Milk, more if it seems brittle. Cut several holes on-top to allow steam to escape while baking. Bake 20 minutes. Reduce heat to 375 F and bake another 30 minutes. Serve warm or cool.


Food and Baking and Recipe and Dessert and Vegetarian and Dairy