Tammy's Recipes

Oh no! How awful! I always seem to have the worst luck with apples purchased from Aldi or the grocery store. Several years ago, I purchased several bags of apples from Kroger that were a "great deal". I was planning on making some apple butter, but was unable to as nearly every apple was brown and icky once I began to cut them. It was quite the frustrating experience!

~Mrs. Brigham
http://inclotheslinealley.blogspot.com/

I have had a lot of problems with produce from Save-A-Lot and Aldi's (not just with apples, but almost any fresh fruit and vegetable). Produce is more expensive elsewhere, but I've found that it's worth it!

I have found that an easy and cheap way to make apple pie is to use apples canned in water. They are not as good of course as fresh, but if you cannot afford to buy all the apples to make a pie (Which I usually can't except in the fall) then this works good. You buy a #10 can of apples for $3, clear jel or Perma Flo and make your own pie filling. One can makes about 6 pies I think.

I can't stand apple pie with hard-ish apples. If you cut your slices VERY thinly, they should always cook properly.

Ewokgirl (http://marriedtotheempire.blogspot.com)

I can tell you a big problem with buying apples from the store: they are old apples. A lot of times the apples have been sitting in a cooler all winter/spring/summer, so they are not fresh. Your best bet is to try to find a local orchard and buy they fresh (I live in Michigan, so there are a ton around).
FYI - try using Northern Spies, they are great for baking.

Sliced very thinly, Granny Smith apples are delicious for pie. I even like the peel left on them. : P I ditto one of the above comments - they're best fresh, though!

I never shopped at Aldi's before reading your blog... and I really like it...Thanks for the tip. But I have found their produce... pretty high and not up to Par. I would rather go to the local farmers markets.
Sue

Gravensteins make the best pies - I am on the other side of the Northern Spy vs Gravenstein battle. haha

But I entirely agree with a previous commenter about the thin slicing of apples for good pies.

Janey

Hi Tammy

The comments aren't closed here yet?

My best and "most favorite" pies are made from MacIntosh apples. Some people say they get too mushy, but I like them soft. It is important to use the freshest apples you can--my parents had trees, so we had great apple pie. Now I live in NY, and the apple season in the fall is really nice.

Besides cutting apples into very thin slices, another thing I do to get my pie to come out the way I like it: never bake it at 400. All the recipes seem to say to bake pie at 400. I do not understand this. I always bake my fruit pies at 350 for at least an hour, and then I start checking after that. The pie filling must get very bubbly and ooze up through the slits in the crust, or it is not done. Using this method, I have never burned a crust, and never had to put foil around the edges. Baking longer at a lower temperature makes a better pie every time.

Ruth

the lady who posted about baking the pie had it absolutely right. Low temperature and long cooking time makes great apple pie. When apples are fresh and
cheap ie late summer and fall, sit down and peel,
core and slice as many as you can fit in a freezer.
Don't bother with blanching etc. This way you can
make pies, sauce, coffee cake etc year round. My father planted one MacIntosh apple tree in our backyard 60 years ago and we have being doing this
every since. Macs are 'early' so in August every year my mother and I would sit under the tree for coolness and just sit and peel and slice the apples for hours on end. Now there is just me but I still do it.