Apple and Brown Butter Slab Pie
Apple and Browned Butter Slab Pie
Ingredients
Dough:
5 cups all-purpose flour
4 teaspoons kosher salt
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
2 cups cold unsalted butter, cubed or 1 ½ cup butter and ½ cup lard
4 tablespoons full-fat buttermilk
4 to 6 tablespoons ice water
Filling:
4 Granny Smith apples, peeled and finely diced
1 recipe of Browned Butter Filling (recipe follows)
4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 large egg
1 tablespoon water
Granulated sugar
Vanilla ice cream, to serve
Instructions
For dough: In the work bowl of a food processor, place flour, salt, and sugar; pulse until combined. Add butter, (and lard if using) and pulse until the mixture is crumbly. With the processor running, add buttermilk and then ice water, 1 tablespoon at a time, just until the dough comes together. Divide the dough in half and shape each half into a disk. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
Preheat oven to 375°F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
On a lightly floured surface or between two large, floured pieces of plastic wrap, roll out a piece of dough to a 15-by-30-inch rectangle, trimming excess dough. Fit into a 13-by-18-inch rimmed baking sheet, pressing into corners (pastry will hang over sides). Chill before filling. (adjust sizes based on your pan size)
For filling: In a large bowl, stir together apples, Browned Butter Filling, cinnamon, and salt.
Spread mixture over chilled pie shell. Chill again while you roll out the top crust.
I rolled out the remaining dough for a lattice on the top. Roll the remaining dough out and cut into lattice strips. Chill dough strips before placing on the pie.
Place chilled dough strips on over filling – remember it’s your pie. Make the lattice pattern any way YOU want.
I brushed the lattice with egg wash and sprinkled it with Sparkling Sugar.
Bake on lower oven racks at 375 º for 25 minutes, then rotate and bake on middle rack until golden brown. I baked mine for 40 minutes. **Remember – all ovens are different -so keep an eye on your pie.
Transfer to a wire rack and let the pie cool until it is just warm to the touch, about 45 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature, cut into 12 pieces. Slab pie is best eaten the same day it is baked, but it can be kept at room temperature, loosely covered with plastic wrap, for up to 2 days.
Browned Butter Filling
Makes 2 cups
Ingredients
¾ cup (170 grams) unsalted butter
1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise, seeds scraped and reserved, or 1 tablespoon vanilla bean paste or 1 tablespoon vanilla extract.
1 cup (200 grams) granulated sugar
3 large eggs
1½ teaspoons (4.5 grams) all-purpose flour
Instructions
In a medium saucepan, heat butter, the vanilla bean, and reserved seeds (if using paste or extract add after removing from heat) over medium heat. Cook, swirling pan occasionally, until butter turns a medium-brown color and has a nutty aroma, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat and remove the vanilla bean. (don’t discard – see NOTE)
In a large bowl, whisk together sugar, eggs, and flour. To the sugar mixture, add hot browned butter in a slow, steady stream, whisking constantly until well combined. Let mixture cool to room temperature; whisk once more. Transfer the mixture to an airtight container and refrigerate until cold. Extra filling can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.
NOTE: Don’t discard the vanilla bean if you are using one. Rinse it off with cool water and let dry. Once the bean is dry, add it to 2 cups of sugar to make vanilla sugar.
You can also use it to make vanilla simple syrup. Put equal parts water and sugar along with your vanilla bean in a small saucepan and heat over medium heat until the sugar is melted. Allow it to cool and store it in an airtight jar in the refrigerator.
