Parker Appleseed

Aimee headed over to north county to go apple picking with me and Parker. Surprisingly, there are a lot of fruit farms near us. The big crop out here apprears to be cherries, which is now unfortunately out of season. However, peaches and apples are also plentify.

So we took a little drive over to Little Rock and started picking. Most of the low hanging fruit was gone but he had our arm extender...aka "Parker...to help us get the jewels that were out of reach. We just needed to make sure he picked the ripe fruit...not the cute little ones.

All in all, the trip was successful and I made a yummy pie out of all the fruit we picked. BONUS!

BTW, I found this recipe on Food Network's site. It was easy and delicious! The only tweak I did was use a mix of apples and pears.

DOUBLE CRUSTED CHEDDAR APPLE PIE

Prep Time: 1 hr 45 min
Cook Tim 35 min
Level: Easy
Serves: 1 (9-inch) pie

CHEDDAR DOUGH:
2 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 sticks (12 tablespoons) cold unsalted butter, cubed
4 tablespoons cold vegetable shortening
4 ounces sharp Cheddar, grated fine and chilled well
2 egg yolks beaten lightly with 1/3 cup cold water
Milk

FILLING:
3 pounds (about 8) McIntosh apples
3/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into bits

Make the dough: In a food processor combine the flour and salt. Add the butter and shortening and pulse until it resembles very coarse meal. Add the Cheddar and pulse until it again resembles coarse meal. Transfer the mixture to a bowl. Add the yolk mixture, tossing with a fork until it forms a dough. Add more cold water 1 tablespoon at a time, if necessary. Form the dough into a ball, flatten it into a disc, and dust with flour. Wrap the dough in waxed paper and chill for at least 1 hour or overnight.

Roll out half the dough 1/8-inch thick on a lightly floured surface. Fit it into a 9-inch (1-quart) glass pie plate and trim the edge, leaving a 3/4-inch overhang. Chill the shell and the remaining dough while making the filling.
Make the filling: Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Peel, core, and cut the apples into eighths. In a large bowl toss together the apples, 3/4 cup of the sugar, the flour, the cinnamon, the nutmeg, the salt, and the lemon juice until the mixture is combined well. Transfer the filling to the shell and dot it with the butter.

Roll out the remaining dough into a 13- by 14-inch round on a lightly floured surface, drape it over the filling, and trim it, leaving a 1-inch overhang. Fold the overhang under the bottom crust, pressing the edge to seal it, and crimp the edge decoratively. Brush the crust lightly with the milk and cut slits in it with a sharp knife to form steam vents. Bake the pie on a large baking sheet in the middle of the oven for 10 minutes. Reduce the temperature to 350 degrees and bake the pie for 20 to 25 minutes more, or until the crust is golden and the apples are tender.