Finally, our fall weather has arrived in the south. Last week we even dipped down to 54 degrees! I adore the autumn….changing colors (although not as vibrant here as the midwest where I grew up), football games, scents of pumpkins & apple spice….oh, and the cozy feeling of wearing warm sweaters and boots….it just seems to make the spirit come alive before we all hibernate for the winter. One of my most wonderful fall childhood memories was our annual family trip to the local cider mill, where we would board a hay wagon and head off to pick apples straight from the trees in the orchard. Hot cider and cake donuts awaited our return, and with our bushels of apples in tow, we headed home to make apple pie.My mom, a fabulous baker, would let me roll the pie dough and mix the apples & spices for our filling. I enjoyed getting to help, but the real joy came when I tasted that warm pie, complete with big scoop of vanilla ice cream!
I may not be able to pick apples straight from the tree now, but I’m still able to share my love of autumn pie making with my precious daughters. To my delight I found the wonderful Rose Levy Beranbaums pie plate from Harold Import Company (HIC Cooks) to help me create a yummy, perfect apple pie crisp.HIC oven to table transitionals are built to the demanding specifications of the best culinary shops and home bakers around the world. Each piece is high-fired with a scratch-free glaze so they are broiler, oven and dishwasher safe.~HIC CooksI combined recipes of apple pie and apple crisp, for my first use of Rose’s Pie Plate. Satisfying both my love of dough crust, which keeps everything neat when slicing and serving, and the sweet crunchy goodness of a crumble topping, I couldn’t have been happier. My homemade bottom crust turned out just right, golden and flaky, because of the ceramic plate distributing heat evenly. Deep ruffled edges on my lovely new Bayberry Blue Pie Plate helps achieve a scalloped edge, without the labor of hand pinching, and also adds a nice classic touch. At 9″ in diameter and with a 4 cup capacity, the pie plate provides nice portions.
