This year’s best apple pie recipe
Every October, a group of friends in Holderness, N.H., organizes a friendly “Who Makes the Best Apple Pie?” party, said Barbara Lauterbach in Cooking Light. The contest is held in a restored Victorian farmhouse overlooking White Oak Pond. “The rules are explicit”: All entries must be anonymous, only plain Pyrex or aluminum plates can be used, and no nuts, raisins, or other fruit can be added. Invitations to the contest “are highly coveted,” and the guest list is limited to just 50. After tasting more than 15 entries, the judges this year awarded top honors to Susan Brackett for her crumb-topped pie. Brackett used Cortland apples, but any tart apple—such as Pink Lady—will do.
Recipe of the week
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Susan Brackett’s First Prize Apple Pie
Crust
1 1/2 cups'¯ all-purpose flour (about 6 Er oz)
1/4 tsp'¯salt
1/4 tsp baking powder
2'¯tbsp chilled butter, cut into small pieces
2'¯tbsp'¯vegetable shortening
1'¯tsp'¯vinegar
7'¯tbsp'¯ice water
Filling
1/3 cup'¯granulated sugar
2'¯ tbsp'¯all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp'¯ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp'¯ground nutmeg
1/8 tsp'¯salt
7 '¯cups '¯thinly sliced, peeled Pink Lady
apple (about 7 medium)
Cooking spray
Topping
6'¯tbsp'¯ all-purpose flour (about 1 Er oz)
3'¯tbsp '¯brown sugar
3'¯tbsp'¯ chilled butter
To prepare crust, lightly spoon 1 1/2 cups flour into dry measuring cups; level with knife. Combine 1 1/2 cups flour, 1/4 tsp salt, and baking powder in medium bowl; cut 2 tbsp butter and vegetable shortening with pastry blender or 2 knives until mixture resembles coarse meal. Sprinkle surface with vinegar and ice water, 1 tbsp at a time, tossing with fork until dough is moist and crumbly (do not form ball). Gently press dough into 4-inch circle on 2 sheets of overlapping heavy-duty plastic wrap and cover with 2 additional sheets of overlapping plastic wrap. Roll dough, still covered, into 12-inch circle. Chill dough 30 minutes or until plastic wrap can be easily removed.
Preheat oven to 425 degrees. To prepare filling, combine granulated sugar, 2 tbsp flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, and 1/8 tsp salt in small bowl. Sprinkle sugar mixture over apple; toss well to coat. Remove top sheets of plastic wrap from dough circle; fit dough, plastic wrap side up, into 10-inch deep-dish pie plate coated with cooking spray, letting dough extend over edge of plate. Remove remaining plastic wrap. Fold edges under and flute. Spoon filling into crust. To prepare topping, combine 6 tbsp flour and brown sugar in medium bowl. Cut in 3 tbsp butter with pastry blender or 2 knives until mixture is crumbly. Sprinkle topping mixture over apple mixture. Bake at 425 degrees for 10 minutes. Reduce heat to 350 degrees (do not remove pie from oven); bake additional 40 minutes. Serves 10.
A primer on single malt scotch
It used to be relatively easy “to sniff out Scotland’s finest nectar,” said F. Paul Pacult in Wine Enthusiast. A quarter-century ago, the average liquor store or restaurant offered perhaps 20 Scotch whiskies, and most of those were blends. Just three distilleries dominated the then-exotic world of expensive single malt whiskies—Glenlivet, Glenfiddich, and Macallan. Today, some restaurants boast more than 500 single malt selections. Choosing wisely among the proliferation of labels can be a challenging learning experience. One rule of thumb is that an older scotch is not necessarily better than a newer one. The delicate notes of a young whiskey can sometimes be overwhelmed by the flavors imparted over several decades by an oak cask. Nor is a lofty price a dependable sign of greater quality. Above all, “be clear about what type of single malt you prefer.” Scotches from the Lowlands tend to be flowery and mellow; Highland malts are usually more potent and elegant. Here are two entry-level and two advanced-level single malts, each from the same distillery. Taste and compare them side-by-side to start shaping your own preferences.
Entry level
Caol Ila 12-Year-Old ($48)
Islay Single Malt Whiskey
The Dalmore 12-Year-Old
Northern Highlands Single
Malt Whiskey ($30)
Advanced level
Caol Ila 25-Year-Old Rare
Edition Natural Cask Strength
Islay Single Malt Whiskey ($270)
The Dalmore 21-Year-Old
Northern Highlands Single Malt
Whiskey ($75)
An incomparable porterhouse, served rudely
Peter Luger Steak House in Brooklyn, just over the Williamsburg Bridge from Manhattan, has been serving up porterhouses for “an astonishing 120 years,” said Frank Bruni in The New York Times. It survives despite the legendary rude service of its wait staff, a less than impressive wine list, and its refusal to accept credit cards. The dining room is “brutally illuminated.” But on some days, everything works. On a recent visit, someone in our group wondered aloud whether one of us should try the fish, just out of curiosity. The waiter’s gruff response was pitch-perfect: “Do you go to Hawaii to ski?”
We then did the only sensible thing and ordered steak for four with sides of creamed spinach and fabulous fries. “And what a steak it was,” lying in a pool of blood and butter. The steak’s tangy subtlety, mineral-tinged intensity, crunchiness at the edges, and tenderness at the bone were simply unique. “No other steakhouse serves a porterhouse so breathtaking.” When the very best porterhouse is in short supply, the restaurant scales back on reservations rather than serve a lesser meat. Since the only way to end a gluttonous feast is with more gluttony, we ordered the restaurant’s irresistible hot-fudge sundae.
178 Broadway, near Bedford Ave., Williamsburg, Brooklyn,
(718) 387-7400
