Vegan apple pie
It's full-fledged pumpkin season, but there's still time to squeeze in an apple pie! We capped off a gorgeous day enjoying the bounty of a local farm’s fall festival by baking this one, our most successful yet as a mom and cub (albeit big cub) pair. This time, we gave extra attention to the lattice top, following Sally’s superb tutorial. We even went so far as making two single pie crust balls with two different recipes. For the bottom, we went with this beloved, flaky coconut-oil based dough. For the latticed top, we wanted something that would hold up to the rolling pin and cut a little more pliably, and chose a slightly modified go-to recipe from Chocolate Covered Katie. Felix colored a bit of pastry dough with beetroot powder for the "apple" decoration.
For our filling, we let the pure apple flavor shine, going low on sweetener. We did toss in a whole bunch of spice—a good tablespoon cinnamon, more than a pinch of nutmeg, a little ginger and a dash cloves. Sort of like Pumpkin Pie Spice “lite”. To that we added a little bit of flout, 1/4 cup pure maple syrup, and about the same amount of coconut sugar. You can add more or less and be rewarded with appliscious bliss.
I love this shared time cooking and baking together so much. Lately I've felt myself being a little lackadaisical with presentation and pictures. One day I'll put concerted effort and attention to attempting something elegant. Right now, this verging on beautiful messiness couldn't bring me more joy. It's where we are right now, with my bright, beaming ten year old still willing to snuggle, but ever more independent.
A good friend of mine has always been buoyed up by her son’s growth in a way that grounds and inspires me. Her take is along the lines of, “so cool, the things we can do together now”, as well as, “so great, the time that’s opening up solo”. I’ve been trying to embrace that attitude a bit more, as I realize how much I live awash in nostalgia when it comes to my child. Don’t get me wrong, I celebrate the milestones, feel uplifted by his progress, and can honestly say I’m very good at being (mostly) wholly present with gratitude. But not a day goes by when I don’t slip into wistfulness and some longing, flooded with memories multiple times a day. From pumpkin patch traditions to plain old driving along local roads, I can’t help but wrap myself up just a little too much perhaps in thoughts of yesteryears.
This week, I took stock of little things adding up to big things amounting to the wonder that is right now. Pedestrian things that carry weight. We have a WaterPik, for example, that we share using different tips. I have always set up Felix’s tip for him before he brushes his teeth. Lately, he’s started replacing that tip with mine. The first time he informed me with a modest hint of pride, in case I didn’t notice. You can’t get much more mundane than small notes around dental hygiene, and yet each of those details can mean so much.
Everywhere around us now there's ripe autumnal glory resonant with whispers of a bittersweet farewell. It's time to pull the garden beds. We cleared the tomato plants just a bit earlier than we might have, because Bentley kept nosing his way through the wire cages, inhaling all the dropped tomatoes and running around with them in his mouth looking like a little wererabbit. : ) There are plenty of seeds left behind from their fruits, nestling into the tired soil beds. Faint notes are promising, till we meet again. Time will have changed us, but our hearts will leap with familiar love and light forever.
Happy flavorful fall!
Vegan apple pie
2 vegan pie crusts: we used Connoisseurus Veg coconut-oil pie crust for the base; for the top, we slightly adapted a recipe from Chocolate Covered Katie, mixing 1 1/2 cups flour( we did a mix of whole wheat pastry flour and all purpose flour), a pinch of salt, and 1/2 cup of light olive oil.
For the filling:
8 large apples, peeled, cored and sliced
1 Tablespoon ground cinnamon
1/2 Teaspoon ground nutmeg
A good pinch each of ground ginger and ground cloves
1/4 Cup flour (we used spelt)
1/4 Cup maple syrup
1/4 Cup (heaped) coconut sugar
Line a 9-inch pie pan with one of the crusts and set aside. Preheat the oven to 425 F.
Toss all the filling ingredients in a bowl and let sit for 15-30 minutes before transferring to the crust, letting the feeling heap up.
Place the second crust over the top, or follow the fun easier-than-you’d-think method for latticing from Sally’s Baking Recipes. (If latticing, place the pie in the fridge for 30 minutes before baking.)
If desired, brush the top of the crust with plant milk or a vegan egg replacement wash.
Cover the pie with foil around the edges, allowing the middle to be exposed. Bake for 15 minutes at 425 F, then reduce heat and bake a further 45-50 minutes. Remove the pie and let cool before serving. Enjoy!