Apple Pie and Wine: Two great recipes and a bonus!

Memorial Day is fast approaching. What better way to celebrate than with a homemade apple pie — a symbol of American culture? Now add wine to the equation, and you have a definite home run. Here are some tasty recipes we gathered for apple pies that incorporate a touch of vino.

Red Wine Apple Pie

Ingredients:

• 5 cups thinly sliced tart apples
• 3/4-cup sugar
• 1/4-cup sweet red wine (ONEHOPE Wine’s California Sweet Red—which helps veterans continue their service through disaster relief—is a great choice)
• 1 T. lemon juice
• 1/4-cup all-purpose flour
• 2 T. sugar
• 1/8 tsp. salt
• 3 T. butter
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese, (4 oz.)
• 1 tsp. salt
• 2/3-cup (plus 2 T) vegetable shortening
• 4-5 T. ice water

Directions:

• Preheat oven 425 degrees.
• Place apples, 3/4-cup sugar, wine and lemon juice in a 3-quart pan. Cover and cook over medium heat, stirring often until apples are tender (about seven-eight minutes).
• Mix 1/4-cup flour, 2 T. sugar and 1/8 tsp. salt and stir into apple mixture. Heat to boiling, stirring constantly. Boil and stir one minute, remove from heat, stir in butter, and cool to room temperature.
• Measure 2 cups of flour, the cheese and 1 tsp. salt into bowl; cut in shortening. Sprinkle in water, 1 tsp. at a time, mixing until flour is moistened and pastry almost cleans side of bowl (more water may be added, if needed).
• Gather pastry into a ball; divide in half and shape into two flattened rounds on a lightly floured surface, use a rolling pin to flatten out to 10 inches, and ease into an 8-inch pie pan.
• Pour apple mixture into a pastry-lined pan. Roll out second round of pastry and place on top. Flute the edges and cover them with a 3-inch foil strip to prevent excess browning. Bake 25 to 30 minutes, remove foil, and bake 15 minutes longer.

Tyler Florence’s Ultimate Caramel Pie

Ingredients:

• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• Pinch salt
• 3/4-cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, cold, cut in chunks
• 1 egg separated, (yolks for the pastry, whites for the glaze)
• 3 T. ice water (plus more, if needed)

Caramel Apples:

• 1 cup sugar (plus 1/4 cup for the top)
• 3 T. water
• 1/4-cup heavy cream
• 1/2-cup red wine
• 1/2 vanilla bean, split and scraped
• 1 lemon halved
• 8 apples (recommended: Granny Smith and Gala)
• 1 T. flour
• 1 cinnamon stick, freshly grated
• 1/4-cup unsalted butter

Directions:

Pastry:

• Combine flour and salt in a large bowl. Cut in the chunks of cold butter with a pastry blender, a little at a time, until the dough resembles cornmeal. Add the egg yolk and ice water and blend. Form the dough into a ball, wrap it tightly in plastic wrap, and let it rest in the refrigerator for 1 hour.

Filling:

• Place the sugar and water in a small pot and cook, without stirring, over medium-low heat until sugar melts and caramelizes (about 10 minutes). Remove pot from burner and slowly add cream and wine.
• Return to flame, add the vanilla bean and heat slowly until the wine and caramel are smooth. Continue to slowly cook until reduced by half and then remove from the heat and cool until thickened.
• Fill a large bowl with cold water and squeeze in lemon juice. Peel the apples with a paring knife, cut them in half, and remove the core with a melon baller. Put the apple halves in the lemon-water (to keep them from turning brown). Toss the apples with the flour and cinnamon.

• Remove dough from refrigerator, unwrap the plastic, and cut the ball in half. Rewrap and return one ball to the refrigerator, until ready for the top crust. Let the dough rest on the counter for 15 minutes and then use a rolling pin to flatten out into a 12-inch circle.
• Roll the dough up onto the pin and place it inside a 10-inch glass pie pan.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Cover the bottom of the pastry with a layer of thinly sliced apples, shingling the slices so there are no gaps. • Ladle about 2 oz. of the cooled red wine caramel sauce evenly over the apple slices. Repeat the layers, until the pie is slightly overfilled and domed on the top (apples will shrink down as the cooks). Top the apples with pieces of the butter.
• Now, roll out the other ball of dough just as you did the first. Brush the bottom lip of the pie pastry with a little beaten egg white to form a seal. Place the pastry circle on top of the pie, and using some kitchen scissors, trim the overhanging excess from around the pie. Crimp the edges of dough together with your fingers to make a tight seal. Cut slits in the top of the pie, so steam can escape while baking. Place the pie on a sheet tray and tent it with a piece of aluminum foil, so the crust does not cook faster than the apples.
• Bake the caramel apple pie for 25 minutes on the middle rack.
• In a small bowl, combine the remaining 1/4-cup sugar with the freshly grated cinnamon. Remove the foil from the pie and brush the top with the remaining egg white. Sprinkle evenly with the cinnamon sugar and return to the oven. Continue to bake for 25 minutes, until the pie is golden and bubbling

Bonus: Sparkling Apple Pie Cocktail

Ingredients:

For each cocktail:

• 3 oz. apple juice or apple cider
• 3/4 oz. cinnamon schnapps
• 2 tsp. honey granules (recommended: Tate+Lyle)
• 3 oz. champagne or sparkling wine (try ONEHOPE’s California Brut Sparkling Wine)
• Cinnamon an sugar for rim
• Apple slice for garnish

Directions:

• Combine a bit of cinnamon and granulated sugar in a shallow dish (and add in a bit of honey granules, if you’d like). Wet the rim of each glass, all the way around, with water. Dip each rim into cinnamon sugar to coat. Set aside.
• Place apple juice, cinnamon schnapps, and honey granules in a cocktail shaker filled with ice. Shake for about 20-30 seconds until well combined and honey granules are dissolved. Strain into prepared glass.
• Add champagne and gently stir to combine. Garnish glass with an apple slice.