Dube'S Brandy Apple Pie - cooking recipe

Ingredients

For the Crust
2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for coating and pie plate
1/2 cup whole wheat flour, preferably stone ground
1/4 cup sugar, plus more for sprinkling
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 pinch mace
1 3/4 cups unsalted butter, plus more for pie plate
1/4 cup brandy, chilled
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
1 large egg
red food coloring
For the Filling
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
1/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon allspice
1 pinch mace
10 granny smith apples, peeled, cored, and thinly sliced
1/4 cup brandy
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, cut into small pieces, plus more for pie plate
1 large egg yolk, beaten

Preparation

Make the crust:
In a large bowl, sift together flours, sugar, salt, baking powder, and mace.
Cut in butter with a pastry blender until pea-sized clumps form.
In a small bowl, whisk together brandy, vanilla, and whole egg. Pour into flour mixture and blend with a fork until mixture is moist and holds together.
Turn the dough out onto a work surface. Divide in two.
Sprinkle with just enough flour and sugar to coat.
Place each half on a sheet of plastic wrap.
Flatten and form two discs.
Wrap, and refrigerate at least 1 hour before using.
Make the filling:
In a large bowl, sift together sugars, flour, cornstarch, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, allspice, and mace; set aside.
Place apples in another large bowl.
In a small bowl, mix together brandy and vanilla; pour over apples.
Add 3/4 of the flour mixture to the apples; toss to combine.
Preheat the oven to 400\u00b0.
Butter and flour a 12-inch pie plate; set aside.
Place two large sheets of plastic wrap on top of one another on a work surface.
Sprinkle with enough flour and sugar to lightly coat.
Place 1 disc of dough on plastic wrap, and lightly sprinkle with flour and sugar.
Cover dough with 2 large pieces plastic wrap.
Roll out dough between plastic wrap to a 14-inch circle.
Peel off top layers of plastic wrap and flip dough over into prepared pie plate.
Carefully peel off remaining layers of plastic wrap.
Using scissors or a sharp paring knife, trim edges to 1 inch. Reserve trimmings.
Sprinkle reserved flour mixture into pastry-lined pie plate.
Fill with apple mixture, mounding in the center; dot with butter.
Roll out second disc of dough between plastic wrap following the same process as above.
Lay over apples.
Cut vents into top crust.
Trim edges to 1 inch and seal crimping edges with thumb and forefinger.
Divide beaten egg yolk in half.
Add enough red food coloring to half the yolk to create desired shade of red; set remaining yolk aside.
Gather reserved pastry trimmings together and roll 1/8-inch thick; brush with colored yolk.
Cut out into leaf shapes.
Brush top of pie with reserved egg yolk and attach decorative shapes.
Sprinkle with sugar.
Place pie on a baking sheet.
This will catch any juices that may overflow during baking.
Loosely cover pie with parchment-lined aluminum foil.
Transfer pie to oven and bake for about 1 hour.
Reduce temperature to 375\u00b0 and continue baking for another hour.
During the last 10 minutes of baking, remove foil so that the pie has a nice golden color.
Serve pie warm.