The First American Apple Pie

Apple pie with a crumbled top crust

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City/Region: United States of America

Time Period: 1796

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This recipe comes from the first American cookbook, American Cookery by Amelia Simmons, and there are actually two recipes for apple pie in the book. This one is for “A buttered apple Pie”, so I had to go with it. The only problem with this recipe is that you first bake just the apples in the crust, then lift the top crust and add the spices, rose water, and butter. I’m still not sure quite how this worked for Amelia Simmons, but my top crust broke when I tried to do this. If you’d rather not fuss with it, I think it’d turn out just fine if you mix all of the filling ingredients together and bake it like a regular modern double crust apple pie.

The rose water and mace make for an old-fashioned feel, and the butter adds wonderful richness. It’s not too far off from a modern apple pie, but has its own unique flavor profile.

“A buttered apple Pie.
Pare, quarter and core tart apples, lay in paste No. 3, cover with the same; bake half an hour, when drawn, gently raise the top crust, add sugar, butter, cinnamon, mace, wine or rose-water q:s:

Puff Pastes for Tarts No. 3
To any quantity of flour, rub in three fourths of its weight of butter, (twelve eggs to a peck) rub in one third or half, and roll in the rest.”

— American Cookery by Amelia Simmons, 1796

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Ingredients:

Crust

• 3 3/4 cups (450 g) flour
• 1 1/2 cups (340 g) butter, cut into about 1 tablespoon pieces
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten

Filling

• 2 lbs (900 g) granny smiths
• 1/2 cup (100 g) sugar
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 3/4 tsp mace*
• A pinch salt
• 1 tsp rose water
• 2 TBS (30 g) butter, cut into small pieces

*See notes below.

Instructions:

1. For the crust: In a large bowl, toss the pieces of butter in the flour and use your fingers to break up the butter and work it into the flour until the butter pieces are pea-sized or smaller.
2. Mix the eggs into the flour mixture until it forms a dough. Knead it a few times to bring the dough together (too much kneading will result in a tough pie crust, so do this just until the dough is cohesive). Divide the dough into roughly 1/3 and 2/3 pieces, then flatten each piece out into a disc, wrap well, and chill in the fridge for 1 hour.
3. For the filling: Peel and core the apples, then slice into eighths.
4. Mix the sugar, cinnamon, mace, and salt together in a bowl.
5. To assemble the historical way: Preheat the oven to 425°F (220°C).
6. On a floured surface, roll out the larger disc of dough and line a 9 inch (23 cm) pie dish.
7. Lay the apple slices evenly in the crust.
8. Roll out the smaller disc of dough and cut out a round that will cover the filling of the pie, reaching almost to the edges. I used a plate as a template for mine. Lay the round of dough on top of the apples.
9. Bake for 30 minutes, then take the pie out and lower the oven to 375°F (190°C). Gently remove the top crust. If you have better luck with this, let me know. Mine came off in pieces, which I don’t think is what was supposed to happen, but it still tasted good in the end.
10. When the top crust is off, sprinkle the sugar and spice mixture over and gently stir to coat the apples. Sprinkle the rose water over it and stir gently again. Dot the top of the filling with the small pieces of butter, then lay the top crust back on. If your top crust broke like mine did, you can crumble it up and sprinkle it over the top.
11. Bake for another 30 minutes or until the filling is bubbling.
12. Cool, and serve it forth.
13. To assemble in a less historical, but easier way: Preheat the oven to 425°F (220°C).
14. In a small bowl, combine the sugar, cinnamon, mace, and salt.
15. In a large bowl, toss the apples with the sugar and spice mixture. Sprinkle in the rose water and toss to combine.
16. On a floured surface, roll out the larger disc of dough and line a 9 inch (23 cm) pie dish with it.
17. Arrange the filling in an even layer in the pie dish. Dot the top of the filling with the butter.
18. Roll out the smaller disc of dough and lay it over the pie, crimping the edges in any decorative way you like. Cut a few vents in the top crust.
19. Bake for 1 hour, or until you can see the filling bubbling up through the vents.
20. Cool, and serve it forth.

Notes

• Mace comes from the outside of a nutmeg seed and tastes similar to nutmeg with notes of cinnamon and black pepper. It's used in a lot of historical recipes and is definitely worth getting.
• Link to mace: https://amzn.to/3SMkVJ5

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