An 1808 Apple Pie

This pie hails from the U.S. cookbook The New-England Cookery by Lucy Emerson. That being said, the book was an outright compilation of recipes 'borrowed' from half a dozen or so other cookbooks of the time. Even though this was published in 1808 it may very well have been from an earlier, 18th century recipe. As far as the crust is concerned I borrowed that from another recipe book. 

You may use whatever pie crust recipe that you prefer. We used a combination of 3 cups of flour + a tablespoon of sugar + half a cup of lard + 1 egg + just over half a cup of cold water.

Combine your flour with a tablespoon of sugar. Then add in cold lard and mix until small pearls of dough form among your flour. Then in a separate bowl whisk together 1 whole egg with a little over half a cup of cold water. If your dough is too dry go ahead and add more water until it looks like the dough in the photo above. Set your dough aside in a cold place for one hour to firm up.

After putting your dough in a cold place to chill we will now turn our attention to the pie's filling. We ended up using 7 medium sized apples. Your favorite variant of apple will do. We needed to be rid of our last apples of the season before they went bad. 

Peel your apples, core them then cut them into wedges. Place them onto a frying pan as we must cook them for a little bit before placing them into a pie shell and baking.

 

To our apples we will add a generous dash of rose water, the rind from one lemon, and a teaspoon each of mace and cinnamon. 

Stir well to ensure that all of the apples are coated in our spices. 

Cook over medium heat until soft, or 10-15 minutes. Stir frequently. 

Once soft remove from your heat.

 

Pie crusts are my weakness! Can you tell? Maybe someday I will be able to make a pretty one. After your dough has chilled for at least one hour (yes, you can leave it overnight) divide into 2 pieces for the top and bottom crusts then roll out flat with a rolling pin. Prick a hole in your top crust for ventilation.

 

Bake in a 350 degree oven for 25-30 minutes. The crust will darken into a golden brown. 

https://youtu.be/o3tmG6chExY

Ingredients: 

Pie Crust (you may use whatever crust recipe you wish. This is just the one that I went with and it is a family recipe):

-3 cups of flour 

- A tablespoon of sugar 

- Half a cup of cold lard

- 1 egg 

- Just over half a cup of cold water.

Pie filling: 

- 7 medium sized apples or 4-5 large apples

- Half a cup of sugar

- A teaspoon of ground cinnamon 

- A teaspoon of ground mace

- A quarter cup of rose water

- The rind of one lemon

Directions:

Pie Crust: 

Combine your flour with your sugar. Add in your cold lard and mix until small beads appear throughout the flour. In a separate bowl whisk 1 whole egg with your cold water. Pour your liquids into the flour and mix until you have formed a dough. If your dough is dry add more cold water and if it is too sticky add a small amount of flour. Once you have formed a dough set aside in a cold place for one hour such as a fridge or cellar. You may freeze the dough for later use and you may let it sit in a fridge overnight. 

Pie: 

peel, core and cut your apples into wedges. Be sure to pick out all seeds. To your apples add your sugar, rose water, cinnamon, mace and lemon peel. Mix well to ensure that this spice mixture is on all of the apple pieces. Add the apples to a saucepan and cook on medium heat until the apples are soft, or about 10-15 minutes. Be sure to stir them frequently. Once soft remove from your heat. After your pie crust dough has chilled for at least one hour divide into two halves, one for the top and the other for the bottom crust. Roll out flat using a rolling pin. Lay the bottom crust into a pie pan and cover with your apple mixture. Spread the top crust over this and pierce a hole in the center, or however you wish, for ventilation. I recommend sprinkling sugar on top of the crust before baking. Bake in a 350 degree oven for for 25-30 minutes. Allow to sit for at least 10 minutes before enjoying.