I bought victory pie. I purchased the pie and let it sit on my counter for two days untouched—I wanted to taste sweet success when my Butler Bulldogs made it to the Elite Eight. Brian could barely handle not stealing a bite. But I left it there, tied up in its pretty box knowing that I would savor it once my team won.
I have had a lot of pie this last week. It was only fitting that the pie was purchased at Hoosier Mama Pie Company. This old fashioned pie company sits humbly on Chicago Avenue in Ukrainian Village. The retro pie shop doesn’t fit in, but I’m glad it’s there. You don’t see pie shops too often, and most bakeries don’t even feature a decent slice. But Hoosier Mama does. Upon arriving to the store, I surveyed my options and came home with a whole apple pie. I have always been a pie-kind-of-gal. Pie is more modest than cake; it’s simple but certainly has a wow-factor. Hoosier’s apple proved to be traditional and interesting all at the same time with a crust that was tender and flaky.
I filled out two NCAA brackets this year—one under my name and one under “Baby Shields.” Baby is already out shadowing mom… picking Butler to win big in Indy. I had Kansas. We are in a pretty big pool (Baby is ranking fourth); the stakes are high and Baby might just have a college fund before his/her birthday.
The media is all over Butler—the smallest school in the tournament that will be playing just miles from their home stadium—Hinkle Field House. People know that Butler is not a Cinderella, but it stills seems as if they are perceived that way. True, this is Butler’s first visit to the Final Four; it’s not that folks are surprised Butler is there, they are just glad to see them. Butler is old fashioned, modest and about to make it happen. And for that I’ll be making some of my own victory pie.
My apple pie
Apple Pie (this is an update on a previous Apple Tart recipe)
Adapted from Williams-Sonoma Pies & Tarts Technique booklet
Crust:
2 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
2 TBS sugar
1 tsp salt
2 sticks cold unsalted butter – cubed
1/2 cup+ TBS ice water
Mix the flour, sugar, and salt in a large mixing bowl. Add the butter and vegetable shortening in three parts. Make sure the fat cubes get individually coated by the flour. By hand, mix the fat and flour until you get pea size fat pieces (use your fingers to pinch the fat cubes into the flour). Add the water in three parts until a dough ball forms (continue blending by hand). The dough should be soft (be careful not overwork). Divide dough into two disks. Cover completely with plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for at least three hours.
Dust workspace with flour and roll out each dough disk. The dough should make two 11-inch rounds.
Filling:
6 granny smith apples – peeled, cored, sliced
½ cup sugar
cinnamon to taste
nutmeg to taste
2 TBS flour
touch of fresh lemon juice
1/2 stick of butter – chopped
Preheat oven to 375. Mix the apples, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and flour in a large mixing bowl. Place one rolled out dough into a pie dish. Add the apple mixture and butter. Add a spritz of fresh lemon juice. Top with final rolled out dough. Crimp edges and cut four small incisions near the center of the top crust. Cook for 45 minutes to an hour or until golden in color.
