Easy Apple Pie Filling

Apple pie is one of those comfort foods that never loses it's appeal, at least for me. I could eat it year round, but there is something super yummy about apple pie during the Holidays. This is my recipe for apple pie filling. I think Julia Child's crust recipe is the best, but I've found that Pillsbury's refrigerated pie crusts (come in the red box, rolled into two tubes) are corn free. So, when I'm in a pinch I just use those.

Apple Pie Filling

3 Tbsp unsalted butter
1 tsp lemon juice
3/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup light brown sugar
5 apples (I use Gala. You want a sweet apple, but not a really soft one since you cook the filling before baking the pie. You could even buy the pre-sliced sweet apples and cut the peel off.)

Peel and slice your apples. I use a corer/slicer, then cut those slices in half. In a large saute pan (large enough to fit all those apples), melt the butter. Add the lemon juice, cinnamon and sugars. Stir to combine. Add apples and cook on medium/low heat until soft, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to cool some.

While the apples are cooling, preheat your oven to 425 degrees and prepare a 9 inch pie dish for baking. If you want to make your own crust, check out Julia's recipe. Lay one dough roll in the bottom of your pie dish. Pour apples into the dish, and add another dough roll on top. Pinch the dough edges together. Cut the excess off and use the tines of a fork to seal the edges. Cut slits in the center to vent. Bake for about 45 minutes or until the crust is golden brown. Wrap foil around the edges (not the whole pie) to prevent over browning. (The center always takes longer to brown than the edges.) I used to add the foil after the edges got brown, but I think it's actually easier to put the foil on first and leave it for about 25-30 minutes because you're working with a cool dish rather than a piping hot one.