New England Apple Pie with Cinnamon

Classic American double-crust apple pie with cinnamon and brown sugar

Origin: New England, USA

From the journey of Cinnamon.

Apple pie is so deeply embedded in American cultural identity that the phrase 'as American as apple pie' functions as a synonym for America itself (yet both of its central ingredients arrived with European colonists. Apples came with English settlers; cinnamon came via the Portuguese and Dutch spice trade, eventually reaching American kitchens through English culinary tradition. The New England apple pie tradition crystallised in the 18th century, when apple orchards planted by settlers had matured and cinnamon had become affordable enough for regular domestic use. The earliest American apple pie recipes) including those in American Cookery by Amelia Simmons (1796), the first cookbook written by an American: call for cinnamon and nutmeg as the essential spice pairing. The double-crust pie, as opposed to the English open tart tradition, became the American form: a full top crust sealing the filling, creating steam inside, turning the apples to a soft, caramelised, deeply cinnamon-scented interior. New England's cold winters and prolific orchard culture made this the regional heartland of American apple pie.

Ingredients

Pastry

  • 300 g plain flour
  • 175 g cold unsalted butter, cubed
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 tsp caster sugar
  • 6 tbsp ice-cold water

Filling

  • 1.2 kg apples (Granny Smith and Honeycrisp mixed), peeled, cored, sliced 5mm thick
  • 150 g light brown sugar
  • 2 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 0.25 tsp ground nutmeg
  • 0.25 tsp ground allspice
  • 2 tbsp plain flour or cornstarch
  • 1 tbsp lemon juice
  • 30 g unsalted butter, in small cubes

Finish

  • 1 whole egg, beaten with 1 tbsp milk (egg wash)
  • 1 tbsp demerara sugar, for crust

Method

  1. Make the pastry: pulse flour, salt, and sugar together. Add cold butter and rub or pulse until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs with some pea-sized pieces of butter remaining. Add ice water one tablespoon at a time, mixing until the dough just comes together. Divide in two, flatten into discs, wrap and chill for at least 1 hour.
  2. Make the filling: toss apple slices with brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, flour, and lemon juice. Set aside for 15 minutes: the apples will release some juice, which will coat them and the flour will thicken it during baking.
  3. Preheat oven to 200°C (390°F) with a baking sheet inside on the lowest shelf. Roll one pastry disc to about 3mm thick and line a 23 cm deep pie dish. Leave an overhang.
  4. Fill the pie shell with the apple mixture, mounding it slightly in the centre. Dot the filling with the small butter cubes.
  5. Roll the second pastry disc and place over the filling. Trim, then crimp the edges together firmly. Cut 4–5 steam vents in the top. Brush with egg wash and sprinkle with demerara sugar.
  6. Place on the preheated baking sheet (this prevents a soggy bottom). Bake at 200°C for 25 minutes, then reduce to 180°C (355°F) and bake for a further 30 minutes until the crust is deep golden and the filling is bubbling visibly through the vents.
  7. Cool on a wire rack for at least 2 hours before cutting. The filling continues to set as it cools: cutting too early produces a liquid, slumping slice.

Notes

The cinnamon in a New England apple pie is the essential flavour. Use the full amount. A mix of tart (Granny Smith) and sweet (Honeycrisp, Cox, Braeburn) apples gives the best texture and flavour complexity. Serve with vanilla ice cream or sharp cheddar cheese: the New England tradition of apple pie with cheddar is an entirely authentic and excellent combination.

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