Apple Pie with Cheddar Crust

Order Now

This recipe comes from Paula Lambert's book The Cheese Lover's Cookbook & Guide. View more recipes.

When I was growing up, my father always liked a slice of Cheddar cheese with his apple pie. I really don't know where this tradition originated, but I do know that its popularity is widespread. Some people reheat slices of apple pie and melt the cheese on top before serving. Other times the slice of cheese is just placed on the dish alongside the pie. The sweetness of the apple pie and the salty sharpness of the Cheddar make a popular combination. Here I incorporate the cheese straight into the crust.

Serves 6 to 8

Ingredients

Cheddar Crust

12 tablespoons (1½sticks) unsalted butter
4 ounces sharp Cheddar, shredded (1 cup)
2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon salt
3 to 5 tablespoons ice water

Filling

6 Golden Delicious apples, peeled, cored, and sliced into thin wedges
2 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, and sliced into thin wedges
½ cup sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
¼ cup raisins (optional)
1/4 cup chopped toasted pecans or walnuts (optional)
Juice of 1 lemon

Directions

For the Cheddar Crust, cream the butter and cheddar together in a medium bowl with a wooden spoon. Combine the flour and salt in another bowl and stir. Cut the butter mixture into the flour, using two knives, a pastry blender, or your hands. Sprinkle 3 tablespoons of the water onto the dough and stir with a wooden spoon or a fork to incorporate the water into the dough, adding more water if needed; do not overmix.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and form into a ball. Remove one-third of the dough, form into a ball, flatten into a disk about ½ inch thick, and wrap with plastic wrap. Flatten the other piece of dough similarly into a ½-inch-thick disk and wrap. Refrigerate both disks for at least 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 375°F Lightly grease a 9- to 10-inch pie pan and set aside.

Remove the larger disk of dough from the refrigerator and place it on a lightly floured work surface. Roll out the dough into a 12- to 13-inch circle. Roll the dough up over the rolling pin and transfer it to the pie pan. Press the dough into the pan and cut off the excess. Refrigerate for 15 minutes.

For the filling, remove the pie pan from the refrigerator and layer about half of the apples, using both kinds, in concentric circles in the pie shell. Mix the sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon, and nutmeg together in a small bowl. Sprinkle half the sugar mixture over the apples. Top with half the raisins and half the nuts, if using. Layer the remaining apples in the pan and top with the remaining sugar, raisins, and nuts. Drizzle with lemon juice.

Remove the smaller disk of dough from the refrigerator and roll out on a floured work surface to a round slightly larger than the top of the pie. Cut the dough into strips about lA, inch wide using a knife or a pastry cutter. Weave the strips to form a latticework pattern on top of the pie. Trim the ends of the strips if necessary. Crimp the edges of the bottom crust and the lattice together by pinching the dough.

Place the pie pan on a baking sheet, place in the oven, and bake for 40 to 50 minutes, or until the apples are bubbling and the crust is golden brown. Remove from the oven and let cool on a cake rack.

To serve , cut the pie into wedges. Serve warm or at room temperature.

An apple pie without some cheese
Is like a kiss without a squeeze
-American proverb