Ahoy, Y’all!
Do you have that friend that can bake? That one human in your life you turn to for incredible baked treats - when they say they’re making something at home your mouth starts to water because you know you’re missing out? Maybe it’s your mom, dad, aunt, sister, neighbor. For me that friend is Kelly.
I remember the first time she told me about her apple pie. Cool. I like apple pie. She said it was amazing, she said we would love it. She stressed how perfect it was, but I didn’t get it. Until I got it.
She made us her now-famous apple pie on Thanksgiving four or five years ago. It was the first time I got a brilliant glimpse into the world of Kelly’s baking. It wasn’t just amazing. It was heavenly, decadent, perfection in a bite. Piles of sweet, soft melty apples with the perfectly browned, slightly sugary, crunchy topping - I instantly wanted to lock myself in a closet and eat the entire thing with a spoon. My young children wanted it (and still do) for their birthdays in January - instead of the traditional birthday cake. I couldn’t imagine gifting anything else to people that year - I just wanted to share this pie. I’ve gifted it to everyone: friends, family, coworkers, teachers, and neighbors.
One of the best parts about this pie is that it’s so easy to make. No homemade crust required - unless you really love that kinda thing. I don’t, so I skip that step and plop that premade crust right into my online cart. If making it all from scratch is for you, that’s great too! You can do that as well.
One of the best parts about this recipe kids (and adults) love is that you stick the entire pie in a brown paper bag, staple it shut, then place the entire thing in the oven. Unbagging the pie when it’s finished baking is like opening a gift on Christmas morning. You just cannot wait!
Apples speak to me this time of year. Apple pie, apple picking, apple cider, homemade applesauce - give me all things apple. It takes me right back to playing in big piles of leaves in the frosty autumn air, and back when seeing my breath on a cool morning while walking to school was still quite exciting. It was a sign the holidays were within reach. When selecting seasonal scents for fall, we couldn’t not bring you apple, which is why we launched Admiral’s Apple in the fall of 2019.
This year we wanted to celebrate by doing something a little extra special, so we reached out to our friend, photographer, and New England food blogger Liz Harris of Floating Kitchen to see if she would shoot our fall seasonal products alongside Kelly’s famous apple pie. We didn’t know if it would work. Would it be weird? Maybe. But we wanted to try it and the results were pure fall magic.
I hope you love this Brown Bag Apple Pie as much as our family does. We have shared the recipe below for you and your loved ones to enjoy. We are wishing you and your family a beautiful autumn season and a very happy Thanksgiving.
If this pie earns a spot at your table we would love to know! Tag us on social with #oldwhalingco
Ingredients:
- 9 in deep dish pie crust
Filling:
- 5-6 large golden delicious apples (or 1 bag of small) - peeled, cored, and sliced
- lemon juice from 1 lemon
- ¾ cup sugar
- 2-3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
Streusel topping:
- 2/3 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/3 cup white sugar
- 1/3 cup packed brown sugar
- 5 tablespoons butter (cold chunks)
- 1 ½ teaspoons cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 400°
2. Add lemon juice to apples while slicing. Add other filling ingredients until mixed.
3. Mix occasionally while working on topping
4. Mix all streusel-topping ingredients in the food processor until just blended. Do not over blend. If it looks too dry, add 1/2 tablespoon butter at a time until consistency is as desired
5. Place apples in pie crust. Try to fill in spaces by dropping pie crust lightly on counter while filling. It will be a huge mound of apples- but it will cook down.
6. Evenly coat apples with streusel topping. Place in a brown paper bag on a cookie sheet, fold over the open end once and seal with a paper-clip.
7. Bake at 400° for 75 minutes.
8. Open bag & cut along bottom after letting it cool for about 15 minutes.
