Heike Graf’s Mom’s Gedeckter Apfelkuchen
In the early days of the café, when Graf did the baking, her mom’s apple pie was a best seller. She kindly shares the recipe here.
Ingredients
- 2 and 1/3 cups cups all-purpose flour
- 1/3 cup sugar
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 10½ tablespoons (5.3 ounces) cold butter, diced
- 5 tablespoons milk
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 egg beaten with 1 teaspoon of water for egg wash
For the filling:
- 7 Honeycrisp apples, peeled, cored, and diced into ½-inch pieces (8 cups)
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1 tablespoon rum, Calvados, or bourbon (or 2 teaspoons vanilla)
Instructions
- Place flour, sugar, and baking powder in the bowl of a food processor and pulse a few times to combine. Add butter and pulse until the texture of coarse sand with scattered pea-sized lumps.
- Transfer flour mixture to a large bowl. In another bowl, whisk milk, egg, and vanilla until thoroughly combined. Make a well in the flour mixture and pour in the milk mixture. Starting with a wooden spoon and then with your hands, mix the dough until all the flour is incorporated, lifting up from the bottom of the bowl occasionally.
- Press into 1 large disc in the bottom of the bowl. Cut in 2, with one half slightly bigger than the other (this is your bottom piece). Form each piece into a disc, cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
- While the dough is chilling, prepare the apples. In a large pot, mix diced apples, sugar, and flavorings. Set over medium heat and cook uncovered for 12–15 minutes, just long enough to soften the apples. (You’ll start to hear them sizzle at about 7 minutes.) Remove from heat and reserve.
- Preheat the oven to 350° F. Have ready a 10- inch pie pan. Sprinkle flour on a counter or a piece of parchment paper. With a floured rolling pin, roll out the larger piece of the chilled dough to a circle of about 12 inches in diameter, rolling from the center out in all directions for an even thickness. Transfer dough to the pan, pressing lightly into the bottom and sides.
- Cut away excess dough from the edges and roll the remaining inch or so over to make a rim.
- Prick bottom of the pastry with a fork, place a buttered piece of parchment paper on the pastry, butter-side down, and fill with dried peas or beans. Pre-bake for about 8 minutes.
- Remove peas and parchment paper from the crust. Spoon in the apple filling, leaving any liquid behind. Roll out the remaining dough to about 10 inches, cut a hole in the center for steam to escape, and place over top of the apples, crimping the edge. Brush surface with egg wash.
- Bake for about 35 minutes, until the crust is golden brown. Cool before serving. Serve on its own or with a dollop of unsweetened whipped cream.
Notes
Translated by Heike from German, and “North Americanized” for Edible Alaska.
