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Pennsylvania Dutch Apple Pie (Lancaster County Apple Crumb Pie)

Pennsylvania Dutch Apple Pie

A single bottom crust, a thickly spiced apple filling cooked on the stove before it ever meets the oven, and a heavy oat-brown-sugar crumb on top instead of a lid. Cooking the filling first is the Lancaster County trick: the slice stands up clean, never soupy, never collapsing. Heavier on cinnamon and nutmeg than supermarket versions, and lighter on sugar.
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Prep Time 45 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour 5 minutes
Total Time 2 hours 50 minutes
Servings: 8 Slices
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Calories: 495
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

  • 1.25 cups all-purpose flour for the crust
  • 0.5 tsp salt for the crust
  • 0.5 cup cold lard or unsalted butter cut into small cubes, for the crust
  • 4 tbsp ice water plus more as needed
  • 2.5 lb tart firm apples Granny Smith, Stayman or Winesap; about 6 medium, peeled, cored and sliced 1/4 inch thick
  • 1 cup water cold, for the filling
  • 0.75 cup granulated sugar
  • 0.25 cup cook-type clear jel or 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1.5 tsp ground cinnamon for the filling
  • 0.25 tsp ground nutmeg freshly grated if possible
  • 0.25 tsp salt for the filling
  • 1 tbsp lemon juice fresh
  • 2 tbsp unsalted butter for the filling
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour for the crumb topping
  • 0.75 cup packed light brown sugar
  • 0.5 cup quick-cooking rolled oats
  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon for the crumb topping
  • 0.25 tsp salt for the crumb topping
  • 0.5 cup cold unsalted butter cut into cubes, for the crumb topping

Equipment

  • 1 9 inch pie plate glass or ceramic, standard depth
  • 1 Rolling Pin
  • 1 large saucepan 3 quart or larger
  • 1 Whisk
  • 1 rimmed baking sheet to catch drips
  • 1 wire cooling rack

Method
 

  1. Make the crust. Whisk 1.25 cups flour with 1/2 teaspoon salt in a bowl. Cut in the cold lard or butter with a pastry blender or your fingertips until the largest pieces are the size of small peas. Sprinkle in the ice water 1 tablespoon at a time, tossing with a fork, until the dough just holds together when squeezed. Press into a disk, wrap, and chill 30 minutes.
  2. Roll the chilled dough on a lightly floured counter into a 12 inch round. Lift it into a 9 inch pie plate, settle it into the corners without stretching, trim the overhang to 1/2 inch, fold it under and crimp the rim with your fingers. Chill the shell while you make the filling. Do not prebake it.
  3. Peel, core and slice the apples 1/4 inch thick. You want about 6 generous cups. Toss them with the lemon juice and set aside.
  4. Make the cooked filling base. In a large saucepan, whisk together the cold water, granulated sugar, clear jel, 1.5 teaspoons cinnamon, nutmeg and 1/4 teaspoon salt until no lumps remain. Set over medium heat and whisk constantly until the mixture comes to a boil, turns glossy and thickens enough to coat the whisk, about 4 to 6 minutes.
  5. Take the pan off the heat and stir in the 2 tablespoons butter until melted. Add the raw apple slices and fold until every piece is coated in the hot syrup. The apples stay raw and firm here, they only warm through. This is the step that makes the slice sliceable.
  6. Preheat the oven to 400 F and set a rimmed baking sheet on the lower rack to catch drips.
  7. Make the crumb. Combine 1 cup flour, brown sugar, oats, 1 teaspoon cinnamon and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Rub in the cold butter cubes with your fingertips until the mixture clumps into coarse, wet-sand crumbs with some pea-size pieces. Do not work it into a paste.
  8. Scrape the apple filling into the chilled shell and mound it slightly in the center, pressing out any large air gaps. Scatter the crumb thickly and evenly over the whole surface right to the crimped edge. Do not pack it down.
  9. Set the pie on the hot baking sheet and bake at 400 F for 10 minutes to set the bottom crust. Reduce the oven to 350 F and bake another 45 to 55 minutes, until the crumb is deep golden brown and the filling bubbles slowly at the edges. If the crumb colors too fast, lay a loose sheet of foil over the top for the last 15 minutes.
  10. Cool the pie on a wire rack at least 1 hour, and 2 hours is better. The filling needs this time to set. Serve warm rather than hot.

Notes

  • Cook-type clear jel gives the firmest, clearest slice and is what Amish and Mennonite bakers use. If you cannot find it, substitute 1/3 cup all-purpose flour whisked into the cold water. Do not use instant clear jel, which will not survive the bake.
  • Use genuinely tart, firm apples: Granny Smith, Stayman or Winesap. Soft eating apples turn to sauce under the crumb.
  • Melted butter in the crumb gives a crisper, more clustered topping; cold butter rubbed in gives a sandier one. Both are traditional.
  • Serve warm, not hot, with vanilla ice cream, fresh whipped cream, or the old Pennsylvania custom of a wedge of sharp cheddar. Strong black coffee or a glass of cold milk alongside is how it was eaten for breakfast or supper in the old farmhouses.
  • Keeps well, loosely covered at room temperature, for 2 days. Refrigerate after that and warm slices for 10 minutes at 325 F to bring the crumb back.