When Norma Smith makes this prizewinning recipe for a contest, she aims to please the judges, with plenty of sugar and shortening. When she bakes a pie for home use, however, she uses less sugar (1/2 cup) and shortening (2/3 cup), and no butter. She and her husband are particularly partial to a variation in which she adds one tablespoon each of just-thawed raspberries and blueberries to the filling.
Yield:
1 nine-inch pieFor the crust:
Ingredients
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup shortening
6 tablespoons cold water
1-1/2 tablespoons shortening
1/2 cup flour
Instructions
In a medium bowl combine 2 cups of flour and the salt. Cut in the shortening with a pastry cutter or 2 knives. Sprinkle cold water onto the mixture, 1 tablespoon at a time, stirring lightly with a fork. Form the dough into a ball and divide it in half. Roll out one half to fit the bottom of a 9-inch pie plate. Put both the bottom crust and the second ball of dough into the refrigerator while you prepare the filling.
For the filling:
Ingredients
8 apples (4 Cortlands, 4 McIntosh)
1 tablespoon flour
3/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 tablespoon butter
milk
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. To prepare the filling, peel and slice the apples thin. Mix the sugar, cinnamon, and flour with the apples and fill the bottom crust with the mixture. Dot top of filling with 1 tablespoon of butter. Roll out the top half of the dough and spread it with 1-1/2 tablespoons of shortening. Sift a little flour on top and lightly roll again. Wet the edge of the bottom crust and cover it with the top crust. Trim and press along the edge with a fork to seal. Brush the top with milk and slit the top a few times. Bake for 1 hour.
