Caramel Apple Pi Pie
Making an apple pi pie is the perfect way to celebrate Pi Day (March 14). This is my favorite pie recipe, it always turns out!
To make a pi pie, you'll need the following:
For the pie crust:
For the caramel sauce:
You will also need:
Make the Pie Crust
Homemade pie crust is easy to make!
My favorite no fail pie crust recipe:
Cut the butter into chunks, this is easier to do before you freeze it! Add flour, salt, butter and sugar to food processor. Process until small pea sized chunks form. Add ice water and process until a dough forms. Turn out onto floured surface and split into two balls. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least an hour.
No food processor? You can do this with a couple of forks or a pastry blender too!
Ready the Apples
Once the pie crust has refrigerated for an hour, roll out one ball about 1/4 inch thick and transfer to pie pan. Trim the edges flush with the pan.
Next ready the apples. Peel and slice 6-8 Granny Smith apples. I never measure the next few ingredients, but add about 2 tablespoons flour, a tablespoon of cinnamon sugar and a few shakes of nutmeg. Toss the apples until evenly coated. Transfer to pie pan, but do not overfill. Try to make a fairly flat surface.
Cut the Pi Pieces
Roll the second ball of pie crust out to 1/4 of an inch thick. Use cookie cutters to cut out the digits of pi. I linked the cookie cutters I used below, they are about 1.5 inches tall.
It took about 55 digits of pi to cover my whole pie. Here are the first hundred digits of pi: 3.1415926535 8979323846 2643383279 5028841971 6939937510 5820974944 5923078164 0628620899 8628034825 3421170679
I used a 9 inch pie pan. You may need more or less numbers depending on how you place them, how mounded your apples are, etc. I started with 50, then went back and cut a few more.
I found it easiest to print the number out and then place the cutouts in order on the counter. I used a piping tip to create the . at the beginning, but you could also use a middle of the 8 or simply roll a small piece of dough into a ball.
Cookie cutters>> https://www.hobbylobby.com/search/?text=fondant&qu...
Make the Caramel
This pie is extra tasty because it has a caramel sauce poured over top of the pie before baking.
Melt 1/2 cup unsalted butter in a heavy bottom sauce pan. Add 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour and mix to form a rue.
Then add:
Mix thoroughly and let mixture come to a boil. Boil until sauce thickens, about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent burning.
Place pie on a rimmed baking sheet then pour the caramel sauce slowly over the pie. Use a pastry brush to help cover all the numbers. Avoid pouring too close to the edge, keep the caramel sauce inside the pie! Wipe up any spillage.
Optional: sprinkle with a little white sugar before placing in the oven.
Bake the Pi Pie
Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit.
Bake pie on rimmed baking sheet for 15 minutes at 425 degrees. After 15 minutes, drop temperature to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and continue baking for an additional 35-45 minutes, until crust is brown and apples are soft.
Let cool for at least a half hour before serving.